Prince of Errors

by David Silver

13 - Ideas!

Pinkie parted from the prince to say her goodbyes. "Thanks for coming out at least. He's still here, and you didn't see him any better than the other ponies." She sighed gently.

Twilight just looked baffled. "How can I see him if you don't introduce me to him? Pinkie, this really is a new level of strange that I didn't think you could reach." She glanced around softly. "None of the ponies here look especially surprised, though I suppose that fits what you said."

Spike pointed at Pinkie. "Didn't you say once he talked, we could see him? Is he just being quiet or what?"

Pinkie's ears lifted with a smolder of hope. "So you remember that?"

Spike's brows fell. "You told us that, why would we forget it?"

Pinkie tapped at her chin, trying to reason things out. "Right, so... um... Thanks, again, really! I'll keep thinking about it and I'll come up with a super-awesome idea to try later."

"So they can talk about me." The prince nodded softly. Neither Spike nor Twilight took note of his words, not directed at them. "That's... something at least."

"Yes!" Pinkie slapped a hoof down on his back. "That is something. We're getting closer to an answer."

Twilight nodded at the prince, seeming to notice him but not thinking much of it. "We'll see you later, Pinkie."

Spike leaned in towards Twilight as they left, whispering, "That was a little stranger than usual."

Pinkie tilted her head. "Wait, she saw you?"

"She saw her friend was interacting with another pony." The prince shrugged softly. "She didn't see who the pony was, or care to find out. You brought me from utter irrelevance to a tiny beep on the radar."

"That's still an improvement." Pinkie smiled hopefully. "But we did learn something. What I tell them, they remember, so she can learn about you and what's going on, even if she can't actually chat with you about it."

He pulled up the raft he had been floating on, grabbing it in his teeth and setting it beside the pool. "I mean, sure, you can, but how long until she decides you're 'just being Pinkie' and gives up?"

"She would never!" Pinkie floofed up a moment. "Look... I'll keep searching for answers. In the meanwhile! Enjoying your day off?" She pointed at the raft he had just beached. "Done floating?"

"Yeah..." He glanced at it, then her. It was unusual having a pony so intensely focused on him when he wasn't pretending to be some other pony. "I... What do you do for fun?"

"I was hoping you'd ask." She grinned as she bobbed her head. "There are so many options, but they're all better with a friend nearby." She wobbled a hoof. "Now, don't get me wrong. That's just me. I've learned it's not like that for everyone. Some people recharge in a nice quiet room, maybe with a book." She raised a brow up at the castle in the distance, but it refused to reply to her insuations.

The prince started to step away from the pool, veering towards some long chairs that had been set out. "I guess I'm more of the second option? I was never much for books though."

Pinkie bounced alongside him easily, matching his pace. "What do you like to do then?"

"I liked the Internet, when I had that." He flopped down onto the chair, sprawling out on his side, eyes on Pinkie. "Do you know what that is?"

"If you had asked a few months ago, I woulda said no, but lucky for you!" She clopped her forehooves as she sat down beside his chair, watching him. "That's the thing where you type on a typewriter and you can see what other people are typing on their typewriters and you can check out all kinds of art and words and even music, right?"

"That sounds about right." He smirked a little. "Where did you learn that from?"

Pinkie pointed off into the distance. "You're not the only human, remember?" She leaned closer, ears trained on him. "But I don't have an internet to give you, sorry... Hm... What part of it was the best part?"

He considered softly, eyes mostly-closed. "Mmm... I... usually played games."

"Ooo! What kinda games?!"

"Adventure games?" He sat up. "I guess I liked the idea of... being someone important, saving people, being a hero..."

"Eh, it's not all that once you're doing it, but somepony has to, right?" She shrugged softly. "Oh! But I know just the thing! I mean, I know two things actually, but one of them needs a bunch of people and we know how that wouldn't work out."

She vanished in a puff of pink smoke, off to get... whatever it was. The prince snorted gently at her absence as he let his eyes finish closing. The sun was nice. The soft noises of happiness from the other ponies was pleasant, he decided. He was content with the moment.

But what was she getting? He wondered dimly as he tried to relax, but the question kept poking at him. He sat up with a little grunt, unable to get into proper relaxation. "Where'd she go?"

"Right here!" She was back, pulling along a wagon with something in it. "Button Mash was willing to part with one of his old games. You'll love it!"

He blinked at the package as it came closer. Button Mash actually existed? He thought that was a 'fan' thing... Well, they had to get it right once in a while... "You mean the foal?"

"Uh-huh." She bobbed her head. "Nice colt, a little distracted at times. He's already beaten this one a bunch of times, so he said we can borrow it for a while, so be careful with it." She pulled the wagon up beside him and pressed a comically large button at the back of it.

With a soft humm, its screen came to life. 'Adventure Scroll!' displayed on the screen. She grabbed a controller with a sticky hoof and offered it towards the prince. "Go on!"

The prince reached for the controller, but his hoof was not nearly as adhesive. It took some work to cradle it properly before he realized. "Oh duh." It was meant be placed between his legs. Then he could move the joystick with his left hoof and press the buttons with his right. "Let's... try this."

He depressed one of the buttons with his right hoof and the game began. He was a little pixelated pony. The animation was woeful. The graphics were worse. The sound effects were nothing but little chip-tune squeaks and chirps. The plot was paper thin.

None of that stopped him from playing it. He got the hang of the controls and was soon moving his little adventurer around, beating up other little pixels and taking their stuff, which translated mostly into points. Sometimes they had keys to open doors, which he quite happily did.

"You're smiling."

He glanced up at Pinkie, having forgotten she was there in a strange twist. "Huh?"

"You're smiling." She reached out a hoof and gently brushed his cheek. "It's nice... I'm glad you're enjoying it." She stood up and turned away. "I'll let you have fun. If you want another awesome job, you just tell me. I'll check in on you later, unless I get an awesome answer."

He was left warm in the cheeks. "It's not that big of a deal..." He smiled all the time! Right? He frowned a little in thought before a sad noise from the game informed him that his little pixel pony had met a lamentable fate. "Damn it..." He pressed the button and restarted the game, all the more determined to get further.

Would she ever forget him? Would that be a good thing, or a bad thing? He frowned a little as he moved his character around on the screen. "Damn it..." He was getting used to having her around. The idea of her... not being there was starting to be a sad one. He wondered if the game might even be just a tiny bit more fun if Pinkie was there, rooting him on, or making inane observations about it.

"Friendship sucks." He reached and pushed the big button on the little game console, turning it off. He took a slow breath and slipped from the chair he had been sitting on. He collected the joystick and set it onto the wagon the game came with and Pinkie had left behind. "Guess I better make sure this gets back to her." He didn't want her to get in trouble. Did the wagon also come from Button Mash?

He pulled the wagon along, leaving the hotel and looking around. Meeting that little colt could be fun, he decided. Especially if they could just play games. Maybe he had some competitive games. Would a pony fighting game exist? That would be... pretty rad.

There! He saw not Button Mash, but his mom. It was hard to not recognize her, the MILF that the fandom had drooled over with enough saliva to float a boat in. He raced towards her as quickly as the wagon allowed. Suddenly she was quite a bit larger, growing to great stature and the wagon seeming to get heavier.

"There you are, Button. I have been looking everywhere for you." Cream Heart smiled gently at what she thought was her son. "Were you off playing games?" She nodded towards the wagon he was pulling. "I swear, little colt, I don't know what to do with you."

"Oh, um..." The prince could hear his altered voice and feel the color filling him. He had stumbled right into a job. Where was the actual Button Mash? It wasn't his job to find that out, just to fill in the hole. He couldn't have been that far. Didn't Pinkie just talk to him?!

"You alright?" She gently set a hoof on his back. "You look a little... lost."

The prince smiled with his new teeth. "Nah mom, I'm fine." Once he decided to do the role, the speech came easier. "I was just trying out an old game of mine."

She looked past him to the console. "Adventure Scroll? A classic. You know, I beat that." She gestured to herself, looking smugly satisfied with her accomplishment.

"Wow, good going, Mom. I'm still working on it." He grabbed the wagon's handle in his teeth. "I'll see you at home?"

"I'm going that way, why don't you walk with me?" She began walking, easily matching his pace through the town. "How are things at school?"

How were things at school?! He didn't know! "Eh."

She smirked at his noncommittal answer. "That sounds about right. I know it isn't the most fun thing, but you have to grind out those experience points if you ever want to see the higher levels."

He went quiet, stunned by the nerdiness of that statement. "Wow, that was... amazing."

"You're welcome." She gently nudged against him, radiating a warmth he had not felt before. He was loved by the larger mare. It was a full and deep connection.

Except it wasn't for him. He was just wearing the suit. For a moment, he was intensely jealous of the colt he was replacing, but it faded in a sputter. He was the prince of errors, as crowned by Pinkie herself. He would gently patch this error, not be a pouty jerk about it. "Hey, Mom... What do you wanna do today?"

Cream Heart inclined her head at him. "That isn't a question you ask very often, hmm..." It was her turn to be in thoughtful silence a moment. "I'd like to take you and your brother to the movies. There's this one I really want to see, but I know it isn't your favorite."

How bad could it be? "I'll watch it if you're there."

"Aw." She nipped his closer ear. "If I learn you did something wrong later and are buttering me up, I'll be very upset."

Author's Note:

Does Button's Mom actually have it going on? Let's find out!

Comments

[badninja]

Now I wonder who is brother is? Also who is their father or is he not important to the plot?

[RadicalDishonesty]

Starts out with Error sarcastically claiming that Button's Mom is lusted after by the internet.

Not a few paragraphs later he is jealous of Button, albeit for a slightly different reason than a crush, but... I'm not sure if it's different enough to not seem like Error will end this without a crush on Buttons Mom.

This story has some really strong Background Pony vibes to it, although I'm reasonably sure you are going to tell me you haven't read it. Which is probably for the best.

[David Silver]

9331012
I... haven't read it. I know it exists, and that's about all I know of it.

[RadicalDishonesty]

9331124

I'm reasonably sure you are going to tell me you haven't read it.

I... haven't read it.

🎵Caaaaalled iiiiit🎵

[FanOfMostEverything]

I may have made this comparison before, but I can't help but think of Quantum Leap, with the prince assuming other lives to set right what once was wrong... without any of those he helps getting to know him. To say nothing of his helper guiding him to those in need.

In any case, there are a few hints for Pinkie to work with. Relations to other ponies manage to stick. Maybe if the prince hauled her around. After all, ponies would... probably notice Pinkie seeming to hover in the air. Or they'd think she was experimenting with baking helium again. This is tricky.

Also, a new game for the Atypo 2600!

I was just trying out an' old game of mine."

Unnecessary apostrophe.

[David Silver]

9334043
Fixed, and if he carried Pinkie around, everyone would... just not really worry much about the pony carrying Pinkie around. That's just Pinkie being silly, she does that.

Who was that carrying her around? Oh, uh... Huh, didn't really look... (shrug).

[Heptameron]

licking the plot lollipop to find more layers

[tsaukpaetra]

*poises the red pen above Creams name* do it... I dare you...

9331124
Sadly that's one of the effects... Or is it? it is definitely a long and deep read though.

[Luckyfanisaac]

The prince reached for the controller, but his hoof was not nearly as adhesive. It took some work to cradle it properly before he realized. "Oh duh." It was meant to place it between his legs. Then he could move the joystick with his left hoof and press the buttons with his right. "Let's... try this."

I’m not really sure about that sentence.

[David Silver]

9932108
Also fixed!

[DerpTape]