"Double, double toil and trouble," Crystal chanted in a playfully low voice. "Fire burn, and kettle bubble."
She stood with her forelegs folded on the kitchen countertop, her head resting on them to gaze at the side of the silent tea kettle. Her tail swished lazily back and forth to the rhythm of her chant.
"Sprig of nettle. Balm of lemon. A rose's red hips. Leaf and root of the yellow'd dandelion. Root of ginger digg'd i' the dar—"
The kettle started to whistle and she gasped, her lips curling into a wide smile. She poured the already infused tea through a strainer and into a cup.
It was her third cup of tea and, consequently, her third experiment. Velvet's particularly sensitive nose didn't care for some of her more aromatic brews, and it had been a while since she had the freedom to throw some herbs together just to see what came out.
Once she finished pouring, she took her time to savor the scent alone. It was rich and full of all sorts of earthy tones: spearmint, rose hips, ginger, dandelion… She licked her lips and once her sense of smell was satisfied, she moved on to the main course of taste by taking a sip.
"Mm." She melted against the counter and sighed contentedly. "This is the life. Nothing can be better than this."
♡
Whump. The little red ball hit the wall, rebounded toward the floor, and bounced back to Crystal.
"Bored." She threw it again. "Bored," she repeated when the ball returned and she threw it once more. Whump. "Bored, bored, bored."
She turned her head to look at the door that hadn't opened all day while the ball rolled past her and came to a stop. Her gaze drifted over to the nearest window and she sighed. The sun was still high in the sky. She had been alone for a whole three hours and she was ready for Velvet to come home.
Crystal rolled over onto her stomach, then stood up. Her joints popped from the motion that was strenuous by comparison to the morning's lack of activity. Her hooves scuffed the floor as she walked into the kitchen and checked the fridge.
"Oh, right." She frowned. "Velvet didn't go shopping." She rolled her eyes and shut the fridge door, turning back to the living room. "I'm too busy! I have to perform for a big crowd in Las Pegasus! Busy, busy, busy!" With a grunt, she flopped back onto the floor. "Well, I'm too lazy."
A paper and quill floated over to her and with her nose held defiantly high, she distracted herself with writing.
Her olive-green eyes flashed in the dim sum of light as she strode across the cream-colored sand, the waves lapping at her hooves like a cat lapping frothy milk. Selene's moon hung above her, a perfectly round white peach in a night sky of deep blackberry hues.
A low groan rumbling from the depths of her stomach alerted her that it was not going to comply with her stubbornness and she forced herself back onto her hooves. "Fine! I get it, I'm hungry!" Her stomach rumbled again. "I'm going already, jeeze."
She knew just where to go. There was one place she could count on to feed her until she was so full that she wouldn't have to go shopping all weekend. She trotted down the street, her legs weak with hunger but urged forward by the promise of food if they carried her just a little further.
The bell above the door chimed to announce her arrival. Pepper Ridge looked up and smiled. "Hi, Crystal! What brings you here?"
Crystal put a hoof to her chest, batting her eyelashes. "Would you believe me if I said your wonderful company?"
Pepper Ridge laughed. "Food it is, then. Come on back. Sunbeam will take care of you."
"You're the best, Papa Pepper!" She smiled as she walked past him and into the back room that doubled as a kitchen and storage.
Sunbeam was resting against a giant pillow, one foreleg draped over her stomach, the other dabbing a wet cloth to her forehead. "Oh, hello, sweetie." She smiled weakly. "I'm sorry, let me get you so—"
"No, no, no! I can do it!" Crystal raised a hoof. "You shouldn't be working at all. He's due in four months, isn't he?" She trotted over to the large fridge and retrieved a pitcher of lemonade. "You look like you could use some of this, too."
Sunbeam scrunched up her nose. "No, thank you. I can't stand sweets." When Crystal looked at her with wide eyes and a loud gasp, she laughed and corrected, "Right now, that is. This little guy's messed up my sense of taste all to Tartarus and back." She covered her mouth. "Excuse my language!"
Crystal giggled and poured herself a glass, then started to rummage around to make herself a tomato and cucumber sandwich. "It's okay. Pregnancy is that much trouble, huh?"
"Oh, I don't want you to think it's not wonderful!" Sunbeam sighed, shaking her head. "It is. I can't wait to meet this little guy. There are just some, well, side effects that I could do without." A grimace overshadowed her expression. "Like the nausea." She paused, glancing at Crystal, who was mid-bite. "Sorry, sweetie." The smile returned in full force. "So, Velvet left you alone with no groceries, huh?"
Crystal nearly choked. "How do you know that?"
Sunbeam's laughter chimed and she rolled off the pillow to land on all four hooves. "Because she said that if she didn't get the groceries before she left, we'd know it because you'd come here looking for food instead of going shopping."
"Her lack of faith in me is disturbing," Crystal muttered between bites of her sandwich. "I thought about going shopping, but I figured this would be more fun."
"Of course, of course." Sunbeam ambled over to the large table set against one wall where a row of bare cupcakes sat. She grunted, shifting her weight to raise one hoof and reaching for a frosting piping bag. Pink magic erupted around it, startling her back a step before she looked at Crystal. "Thank you, sugarlump."
Crystal smiled and walked over to peer at the cupcakes while the bag levitated just above one. "I don't know much about decorating, but I'm pretty sure you won't be able to do much when you can hardly get a hoof off the ground."
"Just keep it simple and it'll turn out just fine." She winked. "I'm going to go sit back down, if you don't mind."
"I don't mind, but I do mind that Pepper let you come in like this." Crystal stared hard at the cupcake as she slowly worked her magic around the piping bag to squeeze out a dollop of pink frosting.
Sunbeam grunted as she lowered into the pillow, then laughed. "Oh, he didn't want me to. I insisted and told him that if he left me alone in the condo, I'd start redecorating the nursery. He just finished doing it himself, so he's rather attached to his work."
Crystal glanced over at her. "I don't get it. Why do you want to be here instead of resting at home?"
"Why are you here instead of shopping?" She giggled. "Because it's better than being alone, of course!" She gazed at Crystal fondly, her eyes soft and smile gentle. "How is your special Silentpony?"
Crystal's ears perked straight up and her magic squeezed a little too hard. "How do you know abou—oh, Velvet, that scamp!" She shook her head. "I don't know. I can't even really explain it. It's not like he's given me any kind of signal whatso—oops, a little too much! Anyway. He's not flirted with me or anything. I have no real reason to like him. I just—"
"—do?" Sunbeam smiled. She patted the empty space beside her on the oversized pillow. "Sweetie, why don't you come here? Nopony's waiting on those cupcakes, anyway. It's a slow day."
Crystal sighed. She set the bag down and walked over, nestling in, squeaking when Sunbeam put a foreleg around her and tugged her closer.
"You know how Pepper and I got together. Well, what if I told you that there's just a teensy bit more to the story?"
Crystal looked up at her with wide eyes. "There is?" She swallowed.
"Oh, don't look at me like that!" Sunbeam bubbled into giggles. "Goodness, I'd swear you were love-traumatized or something if I didn't know you were obsessed with the darn thing, silly filly."
Sunbeam stroked Crystal's mane and sighed wistfully, looking up at the ceiling. "Pepper was the only stallion I felt so comfortable around. When he joined the home economics club and introduced himself, I didn't feel this great, strong, life-altering attraction to him. Poppyseeds, I didn't even feel that when he kissed me!"
Sunbeam laughed and tapped Crystal on the nose. "I know it doesn't sound believable to a pony like you that writes about romance, but I think filly flicks have it all wrong. Love isn't fireworks, because those fizzle out after their brilliance, don't you think?"
Her tone grew softer to continue, "It's constant and gentle, like a river. Dependable and strong." She blinked a few times and laughed once more. "I'm sorry, sweetie; I don't mean to suggest that what you write is wrong but—"
"It is. Everything I've written is wrong!" Crystal exclaimed, smiling in spite of her words. "Mama Sunbeam, you have no idea how much I needed to hear that right now!"
Sunbeam's brow twitched in an effort to not furrow. "You're welcome?"
Crystal threw a hoof around Sunbeam and snuggled against her. "I've been so confused because that's exactly how I feel and I've never heard anypony describe it like that! It's always magical and passionate, so I thought maybe I was mistaken, but how could I explain everything else I felt about him?" She sighed, shaking her head, still smiling. "Thank you, Mrs. Sunbeam. Really."
"I think I like 'Mama Sunbeam' much better." Sunbeam patted her on the head. "Now, why don't we pack you a basket of food to tide you over until Velvet gets home?"
Crystal sat up and slid off the pillow, then trotted over to the fridge. "Okay! I'll pack while you tell me more about you and Papa Pepper." She scanned the fridge's contents. "Ooh, radishes!"
After loading up with a basket full of food, Crystal spent a little more time talking with Sunbeam before she returned home. Though the talk inspired her to make some progress on the draft, it didn't take long for her to spiral back into the lazy comforts of reading magazines the rest of the day. The lack of Velvet's presence made it much easier to lounge around the condo, for better or for worse. Likely worse.
♡
The door creaked open as Velvet walked inside, one hoof already covering her mouth in mid-yawn. "I'm home," she mumbled, her voice slurred from exhaustion.
"Yay!" Crystal leaned back to smile at her upside-down. "You're just in time!"
Velvet glanced at the window. The sun was in the process of setting, illuminating the sky with brilliant orange and red hues. "For what, dinner? Please tell me it's dinner. I didn't get to eat on the train and I am starving."
"Huh? Oh, sure, dinner, yes. Anyway, I need your help." Crystal straightened up and gestured at the coffee table, where two bottles rested. "Which do you like better: blue, pink, or both?"
Velvet dropped down beside her and squinted at the bottles. "Mane 'N Tail Dye? What do you need this for?"
"To dye my mane and tail, of course." Crystal beamed. "Help me pick what would look best! I think the blue might make me look too much like him, but the pink might not be different enough."
Velvet rubbed her temple. "Whoa, girl, slow down. Why are you dying your mane?"
"Because—" She hesitated, the excitement in her expression and voice deflating. "Well, why not?"
"If you don't want to talk about it, fine." Velvet stood up, grumbling as she walked to the kitchen. "But don't drag me into something half-heartedly, especially when I'm hungry, and—oh great, you didn't go shopping. Why would you?"
"We can go shopping after you pick my new mane color!" Crystal fluttered her eyelashes. "Pretty, pretty please?"
Velvet glowered at her. She puffed out her cheeks, growled, then turned and skulked toward the door. "I'll just get some fast food, then."
"Okay, okay, okay!" Crystal jumped to her hooves. "I want to be more punky!"
Velvet stopped. "Uh-huh? And?"
Crystal bit her lower lip and looked down at the floor. "Like Iridescence."
One of Velvet's eyebrows quirked. She slowly closed the door and walked back over, her expression calming from irritated to confused. "Why the hay do you—oh." Her hoof flew to her forehead and the irritation returned in full force. "Crystal! I leave you alone for two and a half days and this is what I come back to?
"What's going to happen when I leave next month for two weeks? You revert back to pre-Equestrian civilization?" She paused, her hoof lowering, her gaze raising. "Oh, by the way, surprise, I have another trip!"
Crystal blinked once, then two more times. "Two weeks? Next month? So soon?"
"Well, yeah. I'm part of the corps now. I told you I'd have to travel someday for work. Well—" She grinned lopsidedly. "It's someday!"
"Oh." Crystal dropped her rump to the floor. "I didn't realize someday was so soon."
Velvet sat in front of her and put a hoof on her shoulder, saying in a serious tone but with a soft smile, "It isn't soon at all. Crystal, we talked about this, like, almost two years ago."
Crystal sighed, keeping her gaze fixated on the patterns in the wood grain. "I know, but I've just gotten used to having you around. I don't think I'm ready to be alone."
"Then I guess we'll just have to make some progress on your Silent situation." Velvet looked over at the bottles of dye. "So, let's start with you explaining why you want to look like Iridescence."
Crystal followed her gaze and levitated the blue bottle, bringing it closer to them. "Silent Knight doesn't notice me as I am, so maybe if I look more like the kind of mare he likes, I can get him to look my way."
"So your grand, genius plan is to get him to like you because you look like his ex-marefriend?" Velvet asked, her tone deadpan.
Crystal fell silent for a moment. Slowly, she lowered the bottle back to the table. "When you put it like that, it sounds rather awful."
"Uh-huh. Logic tends to do that. But," she started, a grin overtaking her as she stood up and grabbed both bottles, "that doesn't mean I can't have a little fun!" She cackled and bounded toward the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.
Crystal slumped against the coffee table and waited. She didn't have to wait long, however, as a few moments later a shriek pierced the air. She jumped to her hooves, running to the bathroom door, which opened and a multi-colored Velvet ran out. They nearly collided, instead skidding past each other and turning to stare with mirrored wide-eyed expressions.
"Velvet, you're—"
"What the hay?! Is this some kind of prank?!" Velvet glared at her.
Crystal's feelings were bouncing between amused and concerned. A grin tried to take hold of her expression but she quickly tried to smother it. "No, I swear, it's not!" She cleared her throat and turned to the front door. "We have to get you to Runic. I'm sure he has a perfectly reasonable explanation and cure for this."
Velvet whined, shrinking back a few steps. "I don't want to go out looking like a rainbow farted on me!"
A bark of laughter escaped Crystal. She levitated a pair of sunglasses and a hat over to Velvet and headed out the door. "Come on, we should hurry in case there are side effects."
"Side effects?!" Velvet squeaked. She hurried after Crystal, tugging the hat over her face. "Oh my gosh, Crystal, if this is permanent, I am going to murder you."
They made it to the Phial and Filly in record time, Velvet running ahead with a panicked speed. She tugged on the door to no avail, banged on it with one hoof, then looked at Crystal. "It's locked! He's gone!"
Crystal gestured and trotted around the side. "He's probably in the back conducting"—a flash of light and a series of crackling pops came from an ajar door on the side of the building—"an experiment."
Runic stumbled out the door, coughing and gasping for fresh air. He turned his head to see Velvet rapidly approaching him. "Hello?"
Velvet grabbed him by the front of his vest. "Fix this!"
Runic smiled. "Fix what?"
One of Velvet's hooves let go of him to raise up and flick the hat off her head, then removed her sunglasses. She stared at him with narrowed eyes. "Me!"
"Oh, hi, Velvet!" His smile widened. "I didn't recognize you!"
"I know!" she shouted. Her right lower eyelid twitched.
Runic leaned some to look around her at Crystal. "Is she okay?"
Crystal shook her head, hiding her grin behind a hoof. "No. She used the mane and tail dye I bought from you."
Runic's gaze returned to Velvet. "But I only sold you pink and blue dye." He paused, then gasped. "Oh, did you use them together? You shouldn't do that."
Velvet seethed while Crystal asked, "Why didn't you tell me that when you bought them?"
"You said you were going to use blue or pink. You didn't say blue and pink, so I didn't recommend the kind that can be mixed because I assumed you knew."
Velvet shook him by his vest. "I don't care about that. I just want to be pink again!"
"Well, there's the easy way, and the hard way." Runic smiled. "Which way would you prefer?"
"I don't know." Velvet glanced at Crystal, who shrugged, then back at Runic. She replied with questioning hesitancy, "The easy way?"
Runic put his hooves on hers, lifted them away from him, and trotted inside. "Come on in! I'll just find my razor and we'll take care of your problem!"
"A razor? You're going to shave me? No, no, no, no!" Velvet grabbed his tail and tugged on it. "The hard way, then! No shaving!"
Crystal walked in and sat on a stool to watch with mild amusement. "Short coats are in for this summer, you know." She laughed when Velvet glared at her.
Runic sighed and changed his direction over to a table. "Fine, but the hard way involves this potion." He picked it up, paused to take a quick whiff, nodded, and held it out. "Drink this."
Velvet whined, "But using a potion is what got me in this mess in the first place!"
"No, you used mane dye, not a potion." He smiled. "Trust me! I had to develop this after Silent Knight kept turning himself pink."
Crystal sputtered, "P—Pink? Silent Knight? Why in Equestria—"
Velvet waved her forelegs. "Let's focus on the real issue here! How is this potion the hard way if you already had it made?"
"Huh? Oh, no, that's not the hard part. You have to drink it and, from what Silent Knight said, it tastes awful."
Velvet looked at the phial in her hooves. Her lower lip trembled the more she stared at it. Finally, her expression hardened along with her resolve as she tilted her head back and downed the greyish-blue liquid in one gulp. She tore the potion away from her lips once she had drained it.
"Ugh!" Velvet wiped her mouth on the back of her foreleg, grimacing. "That is—" She belched. Not just a little bit, either.
Her eyes widened in surprise at the sound that had escaped her and before she could apologize, a puff of steam rose from her whole body. The rainbow colors dissipated, leaving behind her natural pink and mauve self.
"—amazing!" Velvet stared down at herself in awe.
Crystal clapped. "It worked!"
Runic beamed at them. "Of course! Now, Velvet, if you really wanted to be blue and pink, I can get you some—"
"No!" Velvet shrieked and ran out the door.
Runic tilted his head, blinking a few times, then shrugged. "Oh well." He looked over at Crystal with a smile. "Anything else I can do for you?"
"Nope. That'll do it for today. Have a good evening, Runic!" She slid off the stool and trotted outside to chase down Velvet before she could flee the city in terror.
Oh- new chapter! Fun fun!
media.giphy.com/media/YatCsJ4K1ctgY/giphy.gif
Th... that's it? There must be more!
Side not: I'm really going to enjoy writing Crystal as an Inquisitor and Velvet as a Death Cult Assassin.
Yay! Another chapter!
Rainbow Velvet! I think I'd choose the hard way too. Crystal couldn't take two days without Velvet, she is going to have it really tough when Velvet goes away for two weeks.
Oh, geez, poor Velvet. Though, my favorite chemist popped up again, so I can't complain~
Crystal's definitely going to be asking Silent Night, or Iridescence, about him turning pink.
That was a funny chapter. I loved the rainbow Dye. This story is so good. Thanks for the update.
My brother (Edukas here on FimFic) just got up from his computer to get some shut-eye while I refreshed the FimFic front page. Then I noted (aloud) that you had published the new chapter (as I saw the story in feature box), which caused my brother to imitate Luke Skywalker during his famous 'NOOO'. Of course he added a few choice words ('how could you', 'I just shut down my computer', etc.) but it was funny nonetheless.
By the way, I have yet to cave in to my brother's demands to read the story and the other one related to this (or the other way around, I can't remember). We'll see if I will at some point.
5943996 Hehehe, tell him I'm sorry! I usually update earlier in the day but today just wasn't agreeable with that...
And hey, I got you in the front door. You clicked in and commented. Now I can reply to your comment once in a while and just remind you of its existence, kind of like an annoying blue fairy...
Hey, listen!
PaintedWave does good work.
5944014 That might work if I had ever played any of that particular game series. I do recognize what's going on, though, I've read a couple of cross-overs but that's about it. Besides, I'm fairly hard to annoy as it is, more often than not the ones trying to annoy (or even get a reaction out of me) will get annoyed themselves first. But go ahead and try, maybe it will get me reading, maybe not.
5944073 Hehehe. I'll stick to letting Edukas vouch for my story and hope that's enough someday. The recommendation is less biased, since it's not coming from me!
Oi! You cheated and removed a group to counterbalance for the one I added it to! Now I have to go fine another thing to mess with your nice even number!
5944233 Good luck! I think it's already in most of the groups it qualifies for, anyway, so neener!
5943966
Ahhh I remember that name generator.
Yeah, when you find that name you know it's a winner and you'll never want to let it go. That kind of name you'll keep for at least a few years and use on more than one account.
I had that name...
...it was time to retire it.
R.I.P first great username.
On a more upbeat note, do you know about this?
5944256 You underestimate me, CW. *steeples fingers a la Mr. Burns*
... I think I'll write some omake this week....
Yesssss....
This was funny chapter and I quite enjoyed it, I was moved by Sunbeam's description of what love feels like it was a very passionate and clever way to describe it brilliant chapter as always Crystal
I read this in Darth Vader's voice... well then. Darth Crystal muahahaha
Runics reactions to her mixing the hair dyes amused me, then everything else made me smile and laugh at the hilarity of it. including crystals reaction to Silent turning himself pink. haha
A good chapter. cant wait for the next one!
Oh boy, Crystal's not the only one who laughed, I can tell you that!
5944256
Haha, best "argument" I've seen all month!
Amazing chapter. I want to know how Silent Knight became pink, though...
Hmmmmm...
I might just write an omake if you don't address this soon, it would be an interesting experience for a first-time story thingy on Fimfiction.
For some reason i feel like ive read the first few paragraphs before. Im probably mistaken, but i thought i would just say
For some reason i feel like ive read the first few paragraphs before. Im probably mistaken, but i thought i would just say
5944742 You may have! Somehow, the draft of this chapter ended up in "Yearning History" (still a mystery to me). So if you recognize it... you may need to go back and read that chapter's actual content...
5943765 Oh, gosh. That should be interesting. Somehow, in an alternate universe (such as the one you're writing!) ... I can see Velvet as an assassin... hahah.
5943786 I love rainbow Velvet! Yes, it will be interesting to see how Crystal tries to cope with the extended loneliness. Good thing there's a stallion just up the road at the castle...
5943794 Runic will be happy to know his fan club is still going strong. And... 5944281 Bring it on! *cracks knuckles and readies 'Featured In' toggle button clickery*
5943821 It's a shame the real story isn't as interesting as she thinks it is...
5943853 Thank you for reading and commenting!
5944046 Yes she is, she is one of my favorite artists!
5944292 My interest is piqued.
5944346 I'm glad you liked the conversation with Sunbeam! What she describes is the way I came to know true love, so while it may not be the conventional description found in romance movies and novels, to me, that's the way it really is.
5944348 Yesss, I'm glad the Vaderism did not go unnoticed.
5944417 The moment that line came to be, flying forth from my fingertips, I shared it with a friend so I wasn't laughing by myself.
5944476 Hehe, that sounds like it might be a fun idea if it inspires you! If you're curious, I was referencing the Memoirs chapter, Nightmare Night, but Runic did say it happened on more than one occasion...
As always, thank you all for reading and commenting! It means so much to me!
5944814 Your clickery is no match for the plethora of unrelated groups I can multi post this in!
Now, if you'll excuse me, I must go try to not think of ideas for OCs. You and Anzel are terrible at making me think of them. :V
5944814 true, but depending on who she hears it from it's either an experience best left unmentioned in the future or so funny it has to be told. Silent Knight would probably just be honest and blunt about it, Iridescence would likely embellish it a bit to make it more story worthy.
5944814 I already have a title, "The Inquisitor and the Knight". Sound familiar?
5945196 I love it already!
You have no idea how happy I was to see that. Not that I want Crystal to choke on things, (unless she's into that sort of thing; I'm in no position to judge) but every time I see someone spell the word "choking" correctly I smile inside. If I got a nickel for every time I saw someone "chock" on something on this site I'd be a millionaire...
And it looks like there are at least two ponies who know Crystal and Velvet aren't together! Two down, the rest of Canterlot to go.
And Crystal finally realised that real romance isn't like the books. I wonder if that will show up in her writing at all, especially her latest work.
Wonderful chapter! But I have to ask: Have you been burning up your Netflix credits? I'm thinking you should be fined for the number of movie references in this chapter. "the Great Escape" "Star Wars" "Macbeth" ... And there is probably some Rom-Com in there too that I am unfamiliar with. How do you plead?
And in the next scene she's bored out of her mind! Hehe! We don't know what we have until...
Does she know who she is apart from Velvet?
Does Crystal always use food descriptors when she writes on an empty stomach?
How bad is Crystal's relationship with her own parents that she has taken on surrogates?
5945310 Does that mean I'd get a nickel for spelling it correctly?
Sunbeam and Pepper could always start a cupcake awareness campaign. Not a campaign to increase the awareness of cupcakes, but cupcakes that increase awareness.
Try the "Straight Crystal" cupcake, featuring a blue male symbol and a pink female symbol and... oh, my, what are those symbols doing? That-- that's just indecent! Sunbeam, you should be ashamed of yourself! No, you can't blame the hormonal imbalance for such risqué mischief!
*ahem*
Somehow this chapter (and the whole Silent Knight becoming Pink thing) reminded me of this line, roughly paraphrased "I spent a week as a mare. I was pretty. It was weird."
5945337 What was the Great Escape one? The Star Wars, Macbeth, and also a very loose Hamlet (chapter title) were intentional... Great Escape may have been subconscious...
The next chapter (or chapter thereafter, since I struggle to stay on my own schedule) will reveal a manic Crystal lost without Velvet for a week, or a self-discovery... Who knows which...
I'm glad someone commented on the food descriptors. That was probably among my favorite parts to write for this chapter. Yes, Crystal's writing was suffering from hunger pains!
And... yes, there is some surrogate parent syndrome going on. It's sad that she feels that need, but I think it's good she at least has Sunbeam and Pepper. They're definitely an intended contrast to Jet Set and Upper Crust. And as Sunbeam said a few chapters ago, Crystal is basically family to them, so it works out!
5945344
This needs to be a thing. I almost fell out of my chair at that last part. You get a nickel for that if nothing else.
But seriously, Crystal really doesn't do herself any favors. Walking into the bakery Velvet's parents own and calling them mom and dad can be really misleading from a certain perspective.
5945376
The bouncing red ball that Rainbow Dash did in the Hospital was a "Great Escape" reference. Steve McQueen bounced a ball against a wall while in solitary confinement.
Ah Crystal got a bit of an epiphany from "Mama Sunbeam". I wonder if she is going to start changing her story writing style based on this new knowledge. Oh and by the way, I take it calling Sunbeam by "Mama Sunbeam" and Pepper Ridge as "Papa Pepper" means she has unofficially adopted them as her secondary parents yes? I could totally see why if that is the case.
I also like the comedy you threw in there at the last bit with the hair dye. It brought me back to when I used to watch TV shows with that type of slapstick humor. Ah, good times.
5945389 I'll see if we can make a raunchy, hormonally imbalanced Sunbeam canon. She did say 'Tartarus,' after all (which, in my head, is for her strong language)...
And as for the Mama/Papa thing, (going to sneak a reply to 5945545 in here, too) I didn't know quite how to convey it properly - I tried having her explain it to Sunbeam, but the dialogue just sounded wooden to me so I scrapped it - but the Mama/Papa thing is fairly new (thus Sunbeam's reaction to it), brought on primarily because of the pregnancy... To her, before, they were just Velvet's parents, but with Sunbeam becoming a new mother in her lifetime, it makes her a real Mama figure in Crystal's eyes. Not to say that it isn't also largely a surrogate parent thing, because that is definitely a thing, that's just the easier motivation to understand.
5945391 Oh. I just took that from Rainbow Dash, which I imagine they maybe took from that, so... Yes. Indirectly!
5945657 Hahaha! Velvet did say she wanted a cat. Well... Wish granted!
You and Anzel updating on the same day.....coincidence.....I think not.
Why do I always think of Dwight Schultz (Howling Mad Murdock from the A-Team) every time Runic is around??
I saw the whole Mama & Papa thing as completely natural. Crystal is living with their daughter. It only seems natural that she would see them as a second family. My best friend's parents see me as another son and same goes with my mom to a couple friends..... or maybe I'm just the odd one.
I think Rainbow Dash would appreciate Velvet's new look. Really wish there was a drawing of that
5946079
You did a great job with how you portrayed that relationship in the story, and all the different layers you were going for came across clearly (at least to me). But to observers who don't know Crystal's background with her own parents and who already think that she and Velvet are a little closer than "just friends" there's a whole different level to it that gets added on, lol.
5944814
I shall read that story and judge from there. Of course, I am busy with school and various projects (including a pmv) so it would likely take a while.
5946150 Hehe. We'll have to ask Runic and see what he thinks of the comparison. I'll poke him later... And I don't know, she might have been too rainbow for Rainbow Dash!
5946161 Oh. ... Oh... Oohh. I'm picking up what you're putting down now. Well, at least as far as the writing is concerned, I'll consider that mission accomplished! As for the other part... heh, I'm okay with it.
5946685 I think she could rock it. Obviously, it'd be a black catsuit, which goes great with blonde tails!
5946818 Hehe, no worries! It sounds like you have a lot on your plate, so I'm honored that my story made it through your workload barrier! Memoirs and Wishes take place in the same timeline (though this story starts a LOT further back in the past than Memoirs), and they provide alternate perspectives on the scenes that they share... But you can read one without the other. Memoirs is also further ahead, so there are spoilers past (as of posting) chapter 33 or so!
Pepper Ridge.
Ridgeside.
Why does everthing have to remind me of Austraeoh now?
Other than that, simple, happy chapter. Like it. Very like it.
5946958 Hahaha! In my head, I was thinking:
fc08.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2012/035/f/4/sneaky_rainbow_dash_by_lockiesajt-d4on3kz.png
Nonetheless, hilarity all around. And I think it's fun to have a few readers that aren't caught up on Memoirs. It lets me have some fog of war on the horizon! (Oops, did I say war? I meant that as the idiom. Definitely not foreshadowing / blatant spoiler. Nope.)
5946971 I don't know what the reminding is of but if I should apologize, I do! I'm glad you liked the chapter otherwise! We needed some fun, simple, happy shenanigans, I thought.
This is a terrible plan.
You know, considering how terrifying Runic's products occasionally are, his non-terrifying products must really be something if even mares that have experienced the other sort keep coming back.
5947533 In the non-written words of Crystal... "My mane has never been so luxurious. Just make sure you only buy products from the store shelves, not from Runic himself... That's when things get iffy."
In the non-written words of Runic... "All of my products work exactly as expected if you follow the instructions on the label! If there's no label, let me know what happens so I can make one!"
5946985 Don't apologize Austraeoh is a story here on fimfiction that I just finished yesterday. It's just so well-done that I got so engrossed in it that I keep being reminded of it by the smallest things
These puns with Silent Knight name xD
Drat. I was kind of hoping Crystal would say it the same way I do, just because it's extra goofy then:
"Double, double,
toil and trouble,
cauldron burn and fire bubble."
Also, I'm totally going to be using your story as inspiration to make my own female characters more adorable. Hope you don't mind.
5947779 Ohh, okay! I follow now! Thanks for the clarification!
5947921 His name is so much fun to play with. I just wrote a conversation playing with it in the upcoming chapter that I hope I can actually have ready on schedule...
5947939 Hahah! I like your version! It took me a second to get what you did there. At first, I was very "But that's the regular line..." "Wait a second, no it's not..."
And as far as wanting to use my story for inspiration?... um... of course! I'm flattered to have something I've done be used with the word 'inspiration'! I'm glad my silly OCs can help you with yours!