Chapter 2: Just One Perfect Village
The Perfect Little Village of Ponyville
Chapter 2: Just One Perfect Village
Vinyl Scratch carefully poked her head up over the edge of the basket and looked around.
The balloon had landed in a square in the center of town. Off to one side was a fountain with a statue of a frolicking earth pony. Standing around, staring politely at her, were a multitude of earth ponies and unicorns, many of them carrying baskets, as if the landing was a brief interruption for them. This was then proved when many of them turned their heads away after a moment and proceeded to walk down the street and into and out of the shops that lined it. Not a single pegasus was to be seen.
There was something off about this, but Vinyl couldn’t put a hoof on it. The buildings showed signs of meticulous cleaning and all the windows sparkled in the sunlight, but the ponies appeared to have atrocious grooming habits, as all of them were covered with a fine white dust or dirt, which was kicked up and circulated among them as they walked past each other. The ponies walked with perfectly even spacing between them, entering and exiting the shops at regularly spaced intervals. They always waited their turn when talking to each other, instead of trying to yell over each other as was common in the shops of Canterlot’s town square. When it seemed like two ponies carrying groceries were certain to crash into each other, they suddenly pirouetted around each other.
It’s like the entire square is some sort of clockwork toy, thought Vinyl. Dancing to a waltz that nopony but they can hear.
In response to this suggestion, the “cool” voice in Vinyl’s head began to sing precisely in beat to the movements of the ponies, accompanied by a Techno/Trance ensemble:
Dancing bears, painted wings,
Things I almost remember.
And a song someone sings,
Once upon a December.
Just as with the rock song earlier, this was a song that Vinyl knew, but didn’t know how she knew.
Someone holds me safe and warm.
Horses prance though a silver storm.
Figures dancing gracefully across my memory...
Who are you? Vinyl asked the voice.
How should I know? it answered with a smirk. I’m in your head, remember?
One of the buildings stood out from the others because of its height: the city hall. Standing in front of the hall was a small group of ponies in formal attire, led by a tan earth pony with a gray mane and wearing spectacles. There was an odd sort of grayness in their eyes, like they had let the dust settle even there.
The always-awkward Vinyl held back and waited for Spike to make the first...wait, no, she actually jumped out of the basket and approached the group by herself. A startled Spike quickly scrambled out of the basket and in front of her to introduce her: “Announcing the Princess’ representative for the Millennial Summer Sun Celebration: Vinyl Scratch.” He gave Vinyl a brief surprised glance before turning back to face the others.
The group all bowed their heads for a few seconds, all but a white unicorn in the back, who glared at her for the briefest of moments before joining the others. This motion also displaced a cloud of dust, revealing the dignitaries to be just as slovenly as the others.
The tan pony stepped forward. “Welcome to Ponyville,” she addressed Vinyl in a grand voice, sweeping a foreleg to encompass everything around them. “I am the mayor of this village, and all of our resources are dedicated to the service of the Princess.”
“The representative requests the opportunity to review the arrangements that have been made for tomorrow morning’s activities,” said Spike.
The mayor’s eyes had been on Vinyl, so she had to search around for a few seconds before finding the diminutive figure who had just spoken. “Oh! Yes, that is quite acceptable. You will need a liaison to show you around, and as I’m personally supervising the work in the Town Hall, I will not be able to perform that honor myself.”
“That’s alright,” said Vinyl. “We’ll be happy with whoever you are able to spare.”
“I do believe that I am available, your honor,” said the white unicorn from before. The crowd parted to let her pass. She seemed by far to be the dirtiest of the ponies, but as the dust was the same color as her coat, this was only apparent when she walked. Her mane and tail were two elaborately arranged geometrical arrays of purple, and her cutie mark, which was hard to make out, appeared to be a cloud of tiny sparkles.
Spike fell in love with her at first sight.
Well...I think he fell in love with her. He was supposed to, but...hmm.
The unicorn with the purple mane introduced herself. “My name is...”
“...Rarity!” exclaimed Vinyl Scratch.
What! How?
She had instantly recognized the voice of her fillyhood friend.
The moment she said this, Spike wheeled around and gave her a look of utter confusion. “How do you know...?”
Rarity in contrast drew back as if she had been attacked by a cobra. “I am going to have to echo your dragon friend’s question, Representative Scratch. If I am not mistaken, we have never met before.”
“We...” she began, putting a hoof to her forehead.
Vinyl thought back. Her memories told her that she had been born in Canterlot, and this was the first time she had ever left the capital. And she was certain that she had never seen this unicorn before this meeting. And yet she was equally certain that she did know Rarity.
Spike looked back and forth between the two unicorns with concern before stepping forward. “Obviously, Vinyl was briefed about every pony of importance she would meet in Ponyville. Including you, Miss...uh, Rarity.” It was obvious to anypony that Spike was not a very good liar.
“Oh yes,” said Rarity, recovering herself. “Obviously.” She glanced back at the mayor and nodded her head. In response the gray pony led the others back into the hall.
Rarity turned towards Vinyl and Spike and stepped forward, offering her hoof in greeting. “I am the village’s official clothier, and may I echo my mayor’s wish that you be embraced with open hooves by the citizens of Ponyville.”
Vinyl shook the offered hoof, and immediately sneezed as the ubiquitous dust got into her nose. “Oh dear!” exclaimed Rarity, using her upraised hoof to hide a sinister smile. “I hope you’re not coming down with something.”
“There’s something about this air...” muttered Vinyl. She suddenly felt unsteady on her feet. “Do you mind if I sit down for a bit?” she asked, gesturing towards an unoccupied table and three lounge chairs a few pony-lengths away. “This trip appears to have drained me.”
“Oh, certainly!” said Rarity, guiding Vinyl to a chair. “I must apologize for the climate here. Ponyville is naturally drier than Canterlot, and with the lack of pegasus attention, it has only gotten worse. Now I need to arrange to have your balloon stored somewhere where it will not be in the way. Is that alright?”
Vinyl nodded wearily.
“Excellent. You stay right there and I’ll be back in just a few minutes.”
Vinyl took off her sunglasses and massaged her closed eyes for a minute.
As she did this, she tried to figure out how she could possibly know Rarity. Her mind then wandered over to the rock ‘n’ roll tune she heard just before hearing the Rising Song, and found that she was still completely unable to remember the name or performer of the song, or when in her life she could possibly have heard it before.
Spike climbed up onto the chair next to her and slid a bowl of ice water under her nose. “Drink this,” he told her, then watched her carefully as she did so. “Vinyl...?”
“I have red eyes,” she said in wonder, looking into the small pool of water left in the bowl.
“I’ve always thought that they were very pretty eyes,” he told her.
Vinyl replaced her sunglasses and self-consciously pushed them further up her muzzle as she looked down into the bowl. “Spike, do you remember a song that starts like this...” And she gently tapped the following rhythm on the tabletop as she watched the ripples in the water: tap-tap-tap-tap-tap! tap-tap-tap-tap-tap! tap-tap-tap-tap-tap! tap-tap-tap-tap, tap-tap-tap-tap...
Spike thought for a few seconds. “‘Gimme Some Lovin’? Wait, that would be more like this...” And he tapped out his own rhythm on the table with one claw: tap-tap-tap-tap-tap, bam! tap-tap-tap-tap-tap, bam! tap-tap-tap-tap-tap, bam! tap-tap-tap-tap-tap, bam! “Naw, I’ve got nothin’. Where’d you hear it?”
“That’s the thing,” said Vinyl, “I don’t know where I heard it, but I think it’s really important. And...another thing. I...I think I’m losing my mind,” she said, raising her head to look at him. “I’ve got...it’s like...there’s these voices in my head. My voice, telling me things I should know. But I don’t know, Spike, because they’re not real. Nothing before the moment I woke up in that basket was real. And now everything is wrong. Everything but that song.”
Spike rested a clawed hand on Vinyl’s hoof. “I don’t know what’s going on with you,” he said softly, “but I’m here for you, no matter what.”
“Spike, do you think I’m the same pony you knew from before I woke up?” she asked.
“Yes! No...I dunno. I’ll tell you one thing, though: something is very wrong with this town, and that Rarity is in the center of it, I just know it! The moment I set eyes of her, I knew she was like the flaw that ruins an otherwise perfect gem.”
OK, scratch the “falling in love” thing. Wow. You think you know a dragon...
Vinyl’s brief illness was suddenly gone, replaced by outrage. “What are you talking about!” she exclaimed, jumping down from the chair. “This town is the most splendid place I have ever set eyes upon, and Rarity is a paragon of Truth, Justice, and the Equestrian Way!”
“Oh, I am most flattered to hear that,” said Rarity, settling into an available chair with an air of victory. “But of course it is the mayor who deserves the credit. I am merely her devoted assistant.” If she had overheard any of Spike’s opinion of her, she pretended otherwise.
“This is a most perfect little village, isn’t it?” the clothes-mare continued, craning her neck to take in its clockwork inhabitants. “The complete triumph of order over chaos! Every pony with a place, and a place for every pony! Did you know that five years ago Ponyville had the worst Winter Wrap-Up time in all of Equestria? Well those days are gone forever, and last year this town set the Equestrian record for shortest time with no mistakes. All thanks to m...my dear mayor, and her tireless quest to improve conditions for all who live here.”
Vinyl had spent the entire speech nodding rapturously, while Spike paced impatiently back and forth behind her. “A most perfect town indeed!” the musical pony exclaimed. “Although it is a pity about the weather.”
“Yes, well the Revolt has put the weather ponies out of the jurisdiction of the municipal government,” Rarity said sadly.
“‘The Revolt’?”
Rarity pointed upwards in reply.
Vinyl craned her head up to scan the air above them. A few small clouds dotted the sky. In the direction of Cloudsdale, she could see a couple of very high thin clouds, and she could just make out dark round shapes sticking out of them. The heads of pegasi, watching them.
The sky was a very light blue, darkening somewhat towards the horizon. Ringing the horizon at a height of five full moons was a band of rainbow color—the permanent symbol of The Revolt.
Vinyl’s memory dutifully informed her that this ring had been there, day and night, ever since the day the Pegasus Revolt against Equestria began ten years ago. That was the day that Rainbow Dash (now Empress Rainbow Dash) had created the Sonic Rainboom that had broken the sky forever. Since that day the weather ponies had performed their duties only to the bare minimum necessary to prevent the complete fall of pony civilization, and so things would remain, until Celestia agreed to surrender control of Equestria to the Rainbow Empress.
“Would you ever do that?” an anxious Vinyl Scratch had asked her mentor at the time.
“No,” said the Princess. “But neither will I provoke a war of pony against pony. I have never coerced any pony into obeying me, and I never will. As long as the earth ponies and unicorns wish me to be their ruler, then I have no choice but to resist the demands of the pegasi until they become reasonable.”
And so affairs have remained, for the past decade.
It was curious, though, that Vinyl had gained her cutie mark and hatched Spike on the exact same day as Skybreak...
“Vinyl,” said Rarity, looking up into the sky with Vinyl Scratch. “I have a question to ask, if I am not being too bold.”
“No, you can ask...anything,” Vinyl replied, her voice growing increasingly hazy with every word uttered.
“I was wondering why Ponyville was selected for the Summer Sun Celebration this year? Is it possible that word of our improved efficiency has reached the ears of the Princess? Does she harbor certain...suspicions? Because unlike a certain egotistical pegasus, I have...err...I mean the mayor, have no ambitions of extending our program. All we want is Ponyville. Just one perfect village in a world of pain and disappointment, is that so much to ask? Can’t you see how happy everypony is? I have provided for all of them! And in return I have given up my hopes and dreams of becoming a world-class designer. Surely the Princess has no need for one little village?”
“I...um...I’m not sure what exactly the question is,” mumbled Vinyl, still looking up. “The Princess picks the cities several hundred years in advance, but she felt it best to keep that fact a secret, because...because, I don’t think she ever told me the ‘because’...”
“So she is still ignorant of my accomplishments?” asked Rarity. “Interesting...somewhat disappointing, but interesting...”
While Vinyl and Rarity were busy staring at the sky and talking, Spike reached out a claw and plucked one of the numerous bits of dirt off of Vinyl’s hind leg for closer examination; the stuff had sort of spontaneously sprouted out of her coat all of a sudden. He squinted one eye to get a closer look at it, tried in vain to smell anything distinctive about it, and finally, with some reluctance, put it on his tongue. His closed eye sprung open in shock. “Diamond dust!”
Well, to be precise, it was a mixture of the dusts generated by grinding up seventeen different gems and precious stones, including diamonds, but certainly not entirely or even predominantly diamonds. The grinding process neutralized the effects the crystals had on the diffraction of light, resulting in a light-gray substance that one might be misled into thinking was purely the result of pulverizing crystalline carbon. But...for the sake of a more-streamlined narrative, I suppose I could be willing to live with the simplified term.
Rarity glared down at Spike upon hearing his deduction. “I had forgotten about you, reptile!” she hissed. With the sound of a snake-charmer’s flute, Rarity’s horn glowed, causing the fabric of a nearby awning to quickly unravel and bind itself around the body and snout of a very startled Spike. She then turned her attention back to Vinyl’s scan of the sky, changing her hateful expression to one of sweetness. “Oh Vinyl, darling!” she cooed.
“Yes, Mistress?” sighed Vinyl blissfully.
“We must hurry if we are to get through your inspection. Now with me to guide you, surely you won’t have any need for your assistant, correct?”
“Spike?” asked Vinyl weakly looking around. “What’s happened...?”
Rarity quickly stepped up to Vinyl and began speaking directly into her ear. “Why the poor dear has become so exhausted that he’s fallen asleep! That is what you see, is it not?”
Spike tried in vain to struggle against the magically enforced fabric. He attempted a desperate cry for help.
“Um...yes, yes of course that is what I see, my Mistress,” droned Vinyl.
“Excellent! Let me arrange accommodations for your friend here in town, while we continue on our way.”
“OK.”
“Now I believe the first pony you would need to meet would be Applejack, as she will be providing all of the food for tonight’s celebration. You just head down that road, and I’ll catch right up with you!”
“If you say so,” Vinyl said, wandering off.
Spike continued to try to attract attention, but no one in the entire town seemed to notice, except for Rarity.
Rarity tapped the table three times, and a group of police ponies, their uniforms thoroughly saturated in diamond dust, appeared before her. “We have here a spy of...the Dragon Emperor,” she coldly informed them. “Find me the evidence I need to convince the Princess of that fact. Oh, and lock him in the dungeon, first.”
The police saluted silently, then picked up the bound dragon and made their way to the town hall (which sat on top of the Ponyville Dungeon), the other ponies instantly parting way and then acting like nothing unusual had just happened.
Spike didn’t even resist his arrest. Instead he spent his time pondering...um, the injustice of the world? I swear I knew what he was thinking just a second ago! What happened?
Spike spent his time pondering the last words of Mistress Rarity. He was going to be framed for committing treason in the name of the Dragon Emperor. He knew for a fact that there had been no dragon emperor for nearly seven thousand years, and there certainly was no dragon emperor now. And yet his memory told him that he had been hatched as part of a mad plot by the Dragon Emperor’s chief spy, a plot foiled by Vinyl Scratch on the day of her testing before Princess Celestia. Her musical skills alone were enough to reverse his growth spurt and corruption.
The spy had been caught and convicted in the highest court in the land, but the Princess showed mercy. The culprit would be allowed to survive, with a magical brand that forever identified her. From that day forth, the pony behind the plot would be known as “The Traitor, Twilight Sparkle.”
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Alright, this chapter not only explains the title, but also contains the first of the AU Mane Six ponies.
I've read at least a dozen alternate-universe Nightmare Moon fanfics, and my favorite part has always been the AU Mane Six. I definitely have my favorite in this story, but we'll see which one the readers like best, and which one(s) get the accusations of being completely out of character.
I'll be introducing one pony per chapter.
I won't lie I am after reading both chapters 100% lost as to what is going on. It sounds like it should be a reasonable story but I don't know my mind just can't pick up what is happening.
I can't tell if it is an Actual AU or if maybe discord went and bucked with her mind or if she is just having some wierd fantasy dream.
then again she could be just insane as you stated earlier. I am at a complete loss as to what occuring. Maybe as a few more chapters unfold I can pick up whats happenin or something.
Did you mean 'tan'?
And there, I think you meant 'Rarity'.
Loving the concept here, man.
"The Traitor, Twilight Sparkle*
*brain pops a clutch* Wait, wat?
I am so confused... Continue.
Oh wow. Suddenly: Conspiracy.
All is not well in this clockwork village
1277342
Yeah, you got me. Two QA-spotted bugs found...and fixed.
Wow... just wow.
I was not expecting the AU Mane Six to be the way you represented them, although in hindsight it makes sense.
I am eagerly awaiting more updates to further explore the perfect village of Ponyville.
-CD
After having finished that second chapter, I can say that I'm loving this even more. It's giving me some serious Doctor Who Silence in the Library vibes, which is nothing but a good thing.
"Oh... oh yes, I had forgotten that."
"And then... you remembered!"
I think a blood vessel in my head blew up trying to make sense of what I'm reading. Doesn't matter, I'm enjoying this none the less.
When the hell did I start reading a Twilight Zone episode?! Seriously, "Rarity" reminds of that kid from that episode "It's a Good Life". Fucking reality benders, I detest them so!
THE SUMMARY IS FULL OF AWESOME!!!
Have not read it yet, but SHAKING in EXCITEMENT!!!
ZOMG, eager to read~!!!
Ohhh, and I thought I had a handle of this story when it started...I was wrong. Ok, lets see where you take up on this ride
1277481
Looks more like the effects of an aerosolized drug than a reality warping character. Pretty strong implication that a good, solid downpour would wash all the diamond dust off.
1277481
Err...nopony's changing reality (not yet, anyway). This is more like good old-fashioned brainwashing.
I've seen Rarity described as a "social rogue", for her (supposed) unconscious ability to manipulate crowds. Now just take that ability...and crank it up to 11.
1277522
And there's not going to be a downpour, so long as the pegasi are on strike.
1277527 So somewhere along the line Rarity had a major mental breakdown and forced everypony into her own little psycho world? Though I am grabbing at straws here.
Dude, your world is broken.
I hope you tell us why eventually.
A+ for effort.
IS IT FUNNY?!
Ohgod.
This world is just getting plain confusingdl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/emoticons/misc_Lyra_ooh.png . So are we going to get to see what the "old" universe was like?
i38.photobucket.com/albums/e117/slpknt1226/JokerRiiight.jpg
1277653
Err...not yet. Assuming my sense of humor isn't completely broken, I do think there are some lighthearted moments in future chapters.
1277696 I can wait. If you mean like funny as in mlp:fim the cartoon is funny.... then I will never laugh.
As far as pet fandom characters go, I'm not extremely fond of Vinyl. But I love the added dimension of ex-blindness to her character - makes her more interesting than just a standard music geek - and you really sold me on (Apparently) Evil Rarity. Absolutely no clue where the plot is going from here, and I like it that way!
...also, dude, STOP SPOILING YOUR OWN STORY!
Empress Rainbow Dash?
The Traitor, Twilight Sparkle?
Evil Stepford Rarity?
I can see that happening. Cool world you have here.
Argh, my mind... it is full of buck.
I must say that the story is taking an interesting turn. At first what I considered a simple "X Pony replaced X" story, it turns into this... this... conspiracy story of presuming Rarity having taken mind control over ponies in the entire village, along with the pegasi with assuming diamond dust. Though, given the fact that it was also mentioned to where the Revolt happened when 'Empress Rainbow Dash' broke the sky with her Sonic Rainboom, so it couldnt possibly be Rarity! But at the same time, maybe she altered those thoughts onto the people around her and got them to spread the dust here and there? And maybe this is all out of spite towards Twilight Sparkle!? And what if Tomatos are actually a meat product!?
*Brain thusly implodes*
Though honestly, this is a seriously immensely capitvating story with the sudden TWIST and presumed to have future TURNS! Though we will soon see, it seems! Good luck on the story, and don't tell us of what is to happen; the last time I read such an interesting story was so long ago... Allow us to find out on our own, and keep up the good work!
~And as always, to be continued~
music-based magic, Pegasi war, Supreme Dictator Rainbow Dash, Ponyville the Lotus Eater town, ultra-manipulative Evil Rarity, Dragon Emperor, Twilight Sparkle being an evil spy, Vinyl Scratch going insane over non-linear memories...
i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/322/428/fcc.gif
i just know i'm going to love this story, it's already shaping up to be quite the wild ride.
oh damn. this is going to be one hell of a ride.
you know, I always wanted to write something in the vein of 1984 but I think you beat me.
ALL HAIL THE RAINBOW EMPRESS!
Yes, do that...
OH and this is already getting rediculus, and I LOVE IT!
Vinyl used to be blind before entering this new world, right? Well, you should describe how she perceives the beauty and convenience of sight. Also take advantage of enhanced senses due to the result of said disability.
Well, to be precise, it was a mixture of the dusts generated by grinding up seventeen different gems and precious stones, including diamonds, but certainly not entirely or even predominantly diamonds. No KFC joke? You could say 11 different gems...
This is actually pretty damn good! I really like where this story is going, and I'm looking forward to meeting more of the AU mane six!
Fluttershy and Pinky particularly frighten me
This is... different. In a good way. I LOVED the descent in the basket- the revelation Vinyl having been blind and now seeing made my eyes snap open- it threw me for a loop. I hope you keep using that confusion and near panic- she should not simply shrug and come to accept it The foreign memories, the juxtaposition of magic and sound, all of them are definitely DIFFERENT and create great opportunities for Vinyl to be put off balance and out of step with the world.
If there's any advice I can give, it's don't let her blindly accept these events. You have created a wonderful tension and sense of urgency with them, and it would be a shame to just let them pass- the story would get much more bland without them.
On the other side, I like the use of her glasses as a kind of personal armor or shield- sort of a counterbalance to both her former disability and potentially now to help her keep apart from events that are seemingly irrational. I also love the unusual twist of Celestia not pushing the issue with the pegasi- not allowing that conflict to fall into a black-and-white situation seems to open up a whole range of potential plotlines/interactions- I'm hesitant to mention any because I just want to see how you develop it. (The detail of the pegasi heads poking over the clouds made me laugh, as well!)
Dude, keep writing, and keep it off-kilter. This is some of the most interesting storytelling I've seen yet!
lh4.googleusercontent.com/-qKBcF6Pnvco/UE410Hyh7II/AAAAAAAAGKM/2U00NttUXYY/s1600/MLPRainbowDashVersusTheWorldSnake.png
My brain is ready!
1277832
QFT. You pretty much summed up everything I was going to say. This looks like an interesting ride. Oh, and loving the whole "music is magic" thing.
...the plot has not developed enough for me to completely understand, but is rather intriguing.
Awaiting further releases!
I haven't been so deliciously confused in a long time.
Please go on.
1277562
She did it all for the greater good.
the greater good.
Huh. I'm not really sure I buy Rarity as the not-the-mayor of a perfectly-ordered and -scheduled dystopia; that's Twilight's thing. Rarity seems more like the thin-facade-over-a-roiling-cesspit-of-corruption type.
1273836 Damn I loved that game.
Wow. Mind control so potent that even the narrator's effected? That's some potent magic right there.
Also, given the fractured nature of this Equestria, eternal night is looking a lot more... well, eternal. Should be interesting to see where things go from here.
Definitely looking forward to more.
This...s not turning out the way I expected, and not in a good way. Sorry, the summery led me to believe that it would be a simple "character switch" piece to see what would happen, maybe with some new mane six. But a dark world like this is not something I signed up for.
The writing is good, the ideas are creative, but if your AU means rewriting all of the Mane 6 - not putting them in different circumstances and seeing how things could have been, but changing who they were from the start (supposing there is such a thing) - then why use them at all? I'd rather read about a devious plan by a devious OC, than a devious plan by a devious OC sharing the name and mannerisms of Rarity.
If you want to make a parallel Ponyville, you could make 6 OCs who map onto the Mane 6 in obvious ways, perhaps sharing mannerisms, without physically resembling them. If you make completely-different characters who share their bodies and names and mannerisms, then the subtext of your story is that there is no such thing as identity, that "person" is an imaginary concept.
encrypted-tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTSMXORPicykdFP0iMIgVkXeCasiQl5JOQ3-kw_e4dHVzieu800
My brain is full of fuck . . . please continue.
Wait a minute....a little town, here everybody's a drone working for "The Greater Good" or something along those lines...controlled by super-charismatic (albeit super-creepy) individual
....this is just like Hot Fuzz
(why do I keep finding references to that movie?
)
Along other lines, this story's getting complicated. I'm intrigued.
1279050
Fair enough. The story does get a bit lighter as it goes along, but it is set in a pretty dark Ponyville.
1279072
I was expecting this.
I'm of the opinion that the mane six appearing here are believably derived from certain aspects of their canon selves. I believe that Rarity worships order, that she's prone to applying abstract notions to the world (like what a perfect romance would be like), and that she can get terribly upset when those notions fail to fit. Of course in canon, she can keep these tendencies in check, and not turn into a crazy cat woman.
Twilight acts similarly, but has a different set of abstractions.
You are of course free to conclude that I have gone too far, and made these characters unrecognizable.
1279072 Oh quit bitching and trust the author to know what he's doing.
hmm the colored text is a nice touch, but unless you can remove the drop shadow effect, it IS becoming more and more of a chore to read. Not to the point of hurting the eyesight, but certainly within the "Do I have to read through it? How about I simply skip it, it's not that long to begin with"
At the start of the story I was like:
I got dis...no problem
Then I was like:
A challenge to understand what's happening... CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!!!
At the start of Chp.2 I was like:
Almost...if I could just connect these 2 points....perhaps if that was what happened ...dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/emoticons/misc_rainbowderp_flip.png
And then we get to how I am now:
I won't give up...even if you managed to melt my brain with your mumbo jumbo words logicdl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/emoticons/sillyfilly_Derpy_Hooves.png
Or perhaps I'll just go bat shit crazy from trying to understanddl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/emoticons/misc_Twilight_crazy_invert.png
...For the moment, following on the premise of Music is Magic, served with a side of Your Vinyl Scratch Was Blind?, and topped with a dash of What the Buck is with All the Fourth-Wall Touching?
But followed all the same.