Chapter 5
Later that day while eating lunch, Flurry and Pumpkin told their friends what happened earlier at Night Shade’s class.
“And then he came back in and told us we gotta leave early. He looked really sad,” Pumpkin explained.
“Did he tell you why he had to do it?” Pound asked.
“He just said something came to his attention. That was the only explanation we got,” Flurry answered.
“I’m worried about him,” Pumpkin said with her ears down.
“I don’t like it,” Stormy said after taking a sip of his drink. “That guy’s keeping secrets.”
“Now Stormy, let’s not just go jumping to conclusions,” Spike warned.
“Yeah, he’s probably just having a rough time,” Chip suggested.
“Maybe he got a phone call with some really bad news like a relative in the hospital or something,” Annie added.
“I don’t think that’s it,” Flurry interjected. “It’s that zebra manager of his: Zeb. He demanded that Night Shade go in there with him right now. That guy always gives me a look when he sees me. I think there’s something wrong with Zeb, not Night Shade. I saw them arguing between songs last night.”
“Why doesn’t he get a new manager then? What kind of zebra names their son ‘Zeb’ anyway? That’s like if our parents named us ‘Pone’ because we’re ponies,” Stormy blurted.
“I think it’s short for ‘Zeboro’, Stormy,” Spike explained to the cheeky pegasus. “It’s a common Africolt name for zebra stallions. Anyway, Flurry, Pumpkin, I wouldn’t ask Night Shade what’s going on tomorrow. Just focus on those lessons for the last day and don’t bother him about it.”
“I know. I just wish there was some way we could help,” Pumpkin sighed.
“You know who could help? Coloratura!” Annie beamed.
“Oh that’s right, Annie! I forgot Rara used to be friends with Night Shade.” Chip told his sister.
“Oh yeah! Pumpkin, Rara’s over at Sweet Apple Acres this weekend catching up with Applejack. We can ask her this afternoon,” Flurry told her friend.
“Flurry, you’re a genius!” chimed Pumpkin. “Okay, we’ll go to Chip and Annie’s and see if she can tell us anything.”
“I’ll take you two over after lunch. Just be prepared, girls,” Spike warned them. “You might find out some pretty shady stuff about Zeb.”
“Probably, but I’m sure Rara will clear it all up,” Flurry said, confidently.
Later that afternoon, Spike took Flurry and Pumpkin over to Applejack and Tex’s house to visit Coloratura and ask about Night Shade. They knocked on the front door and were greeted by Tex.
“Spike! Girls! Great to see you!” he said, warmly.
“Hey Tex. We’re sorry to bother you, but is Coloratura still here?” Flurry asked.
“Yeah, we’d like to have a quick word with her,” Pumpkin added.
“Rara? Sure! She’ll be here till Sunday. Come on right in!”
Tex stepped aside to let them in. Over to the right, they saw Applejack and Coloratura sitting on the couch, waiting for them. Coloratura, or Rara as she was commonly called was wearing her hair just like how she did after she stepped away from her management years ago. She no longer donned heavy makeup or studded clothes and wigs. She only wore dresses for special occasions and concerts. She preferred to not make herself too flashy anymore now that she was free of the music industry.
“Howdy, girls! Howdy, Spike!” Applejack greeted.
“Hey, Applejack!” Spike responded.
“Coloratura, it’s great to finally see you!” Pumpkin said, nervously.
“Princess Flurry Heart! And I’m sorry, what’s your name, dear?”
“I’m Pumpkin Cake. I don’t know if Pinkie Pie’s ever told you, but my family and I are close friends with her.”
“Oh, that’s right. The owners of Sugarcube Corner. Applejack ordered some tarts from there earlier. You guys make great treats!”
“Hehe, thanks!”
“Speakin’ of which: y’all three want me to get ya some cider and some of those tarts in the mean time?” Applejack asked, getting up from her seat.
“Sure, Applejack!” Spike responded.
“Yeah! They sound delicious,” Flurry added.
“We won’t be long; we just wanted to ask Rara about something we thought she could help with,” Pumpkin told her.
Applejack and Tex both went into the kitchen to prepare the refreshments. Flurry and Pumpkin sat next to Rara while Spike stood next to the couch.
“So Flurry, how’s your time in Ponyville been so far?” Rara asked.
“I’ve been having the time of my life!” Flurry said, happily. “Spike’s been watching after me and I’ve made some great friends like Pumpkin.”
“Plus all the crazy adventures we’ve been through,” Spike added. “I’m sure Applejack’s told you about some of these villains we’ve been encountering like General Scutellum, Cozy Glow, Anatankha and Tirek.”
“Yeah, that’s pretty amazing what you did with Anatankha and Tirek last week! Also, congratulations for winning at Night Shade’s concert! Did you learn a lot from his lessons?”
“We sure have! I’ve even figured out how to sing a lot better now and he’s gonna teach me to moonwalk tomorrow,” Pumpkin told her.
“Yeah, but we’re having a bit of an issue, or rather we might have noticed one,” Flurry said as the mood of the conversation dropped.
“Uh oh. Is there a problem with him?” Rara asked.
As Rara spoke, Applejack set a plate down with small treats and two cups of apple cider for the girls.
“Thanks, Applejack,” Flurry said before returning to Rara. “Well, we’re not sure it’s Night Shade.”
“Let me guess. Zeboro?”
“Yeah…Zeb. Do you know him?” Pumpkin asked.
“What did you girls see Zeb doing?”
Pumpkin turned to Flurry as if to say she would be better at explaining this. Flurry finished chewing her tart and then spoke.
“Well, he gives me this scowl every time he looks at me and he sounds like he controls everything Night Shade does. He looked like he was arguing with Night Shade last night at the concert after we sang with him on stage. Even more worrisome was when Zeb pulled Night Shade out of our class this morning to talk with him about something important. He came back in all moody and said he needed to cut the class short because something came to his attention.”
“Flurry, has Night Shade said anything wrong to you?”
“No, he’s been fine aside from cutting our class short. I think Zeb made him do it.”
Rara took a sip from her drink as Flurry told her this. She had a very somber look on her face and didn’t seem surprised at hearing this. It was almost as if she knew what the girls were going to say all along. She closed her eyes and sighed before talking.
“I know what this is all about,” she said as she put her cup on the table. “You see girls, back when I was a popular artist, I befriended a lot of the other artists in the industry, and Night Shade was one of them. I first spoke to him a few years before I left it all. He was very friendly. We had good conversations and he learned a lot from me, but everything changed after the Ponyville concert where I finally reconnected with Applejack and my true self. You have to understand, when my old manager Svengallop left me, I not only lost my contract, I lost practically everything else. My bank account was hit hard and I had to move out of my mansion. I even lost the trademark to some of my songs, most of which I didn’t write anyway. I was thrown out and shunned by everyone in that industry. I lost all the friends I made there, and Night Shade was one of them. I remember talking with him one last time after my exodus. He seemed fine at first, and that’s when I saw Zeb. He came in and whispered something into Night Shade’s ear. Night Shade then told me he had to go and Zeb grimaced at me. That was the last time we ever spoke. From then on, Night Shade just kept snubbing me every time I tried talking to him.”
Rara took a moment to reflect. The girls could do nothing except exchange worried looks until she continued.
“I learned the hard way that the industry really doesn’t like outcasts or anyone that chooses to go against manager orders or get too close to their fans. Svengallop hated that I was doing charity work and hanging out with fans, and Applejack and the others exposed him that day. Again, I lost everything, including my reputation in the music industry. They won’t allow their artists to associate with someone like me, and that’s what brings me to this now, Flurry: you’re a princess and you’re directly related to Twilight Sparkle. This is hard for me to tell you, but the industry hates the royals. They hate Celestia and Luna, and they hate Twilight and her family and anyone they’re friends with for that matter. They don’t agree with the Equestrian royalty’s way of governing and are against the constitution. There’s no doubt in my mind Zeb is keeping Night Shade away from you for this reason. And since you’re friends with her, that unfortunately means you too, Pumpkin. I know you don’t want to hear this, but Night Shade is too infatuated with his career. I do believe he cares about his fans to an extent, but if Zeb threatens to let him go, he’ll put his job first. It also doesn’t help that Svengallop is now the CEO of the very record label Night Shade has his music under, or so I’ve heard. For all we know, he could also be pulling some strings.”
There was a long pause. Flurry and Pumpkin shared glances again. Spike had his arms crossed and looked very apprehensive. Flurry looked back at him and he nodded his head back and forth slowly.
“Rara, I don’t understand…” Flurry said, trembling. “Why do they hate me and my family so much? What did we ever do to them?”
“It’s hard to explain. Twilight helped expose Svengallop with her magic, which explains why he has such a gripe with her, but they hated Celestia and Luna before that. It’s sadly the way things are.”
“You really think Night Shade would do that?” Pumpkin asked. “He seems so nice. It just doesn’t seem possible.”
“I hope I have this all wrong, Pumpkin. I really do. I miss Night Shade and all the other artists I knew. The artists you admire may produce really good content, but most of them have this same problem. Thankfully, I hear the industry is decentralizing. Independent artists are starting to gain popularity too. I actually just befriended one recently.”
“And what about Night Shade? Can he not go independent and leave it all behind like you did?” Spike asked.
“I don’t think he could be convinced to. He’s already making so much money; he can’t lower himself any further. I think he cares more about the art than the money like a good artist should, but if he can’t express himself through said art, he’ll do whatever it takes to keep it. Some artists are waking up to all this; I just wish Night Shade was one of them.”
Pumpkin lowered her head and sighed. Flurry put her wing around her.
“It’s okay, Pumpkin,” she said. “Maybe I could just not come to the lesson tomorrow and I’ll try to say goodbye to him real quick when he gets on the train to leave. I’ve already had enough singing lessons as it is.”
“I don’t want you to feel forced to stay away from him,” Pumpkin replied. “Besides, since we’re friends, I’m probably just as much of a problem for him now as you are.”
“I’m sorry, girls,” Rara said as she put her hoof on Flurry’s shoulder. “This is just the part and parcel of being a singer. It’s why I’m more relieved than ever to be rid of it. I eventually found myself a home and settled in not too far from Ponyville. I learned to leave it all behind and frankly, it’s been the best thing to ever happen to me.”
“Thanks for letting us know all this, Rara,” Flurry said as she and Pumpkin hugged her.
“Any time girls. Here, let me get you something real quick,”
Rara got down from the couch and rummaged through her purse. She took out a small CD case. On the front was a picture of a yellow pegasus mare with blue hair, brown eyes and a cutie mark of musical notes. She was sitting before a grand piano with a guitar in her hands. The case read “Restored: A Collection by Melody Heartsong.”
“This is my friend’s album. It’s only got six songs on it and she’s just getting started, but she’s really good.”
Flurry carried the CD with her magic and looked at the back of it. The songs on the back were Always Love You, You’ll Get There, Never Too Late, Come Home My Child, Restored and My Past is Gone featuring Coloratura.
“You’re in one of these songs?” Pumpkin said, with a smile finally forming on her face again.
“Yup. She and I met a few years ago and I helped her get back on her feet after she went through a rather impoverished life. We decided to collab on My Past is Gone. It’s such a great song.”
“I’m guessing she’s more of an acoustic artist judging by the guitar and piano,” Flurry observed.
“That would be correct. Restored is an instrumental piece she played solo on guitar. We mixed in a bit of modern pop with My Past, but she’s really good on both piano and guitar.”
“She looks really nice. We’ll have to give this a listen later. It might make the girls feel better,” Spike said as Flurry gave him the CD to carry. “Well Rara, thanks for letting us know all this. It’s probably rough to talk about these things, but we appreciate it nonetheless.”
“I hope we at least get to see Night Shade one more time tomorrow. We probably won’t see him again after that,” Pumpkin said.
“Whatever happens, just be prepared for anything, girls. I’m rooting for you.”
“Thanks for comin’ by, y’all,” Applejack said as she walked in. “Sorry to hear about Night Shade. Hope it all works out.”
Flurry and Pumpkin nodded politely. Spike held the door open for them and they left. Flurry and Pumpkin sighed deeply after stepping outside.
“Well I wasn’t prepared for any of that,” said a rather forlorn Pumpkin.
“It’s too bad that’s how the industry thinks of us royals,” Flurry said. “I knew not a lot of ponies didn’t really like us, but I didn’t think it was that bad.”
“I didn’t want to say anything, girls, but Twilight already told me a lot of what we heard in there,” Spike told them. “I guess Celestia warned her how there’s a movement forming over in Gallopfornia that opposes the royals and wants Equestria to change. I won’t bore you with all the political details, but it’s not good.”
“Do they even know what we do to help this country? How we try to spread messages of friendship and love?” Flurry asked.
“Oh they know about it, but…well, let’s just say it’s complicated. Your mother will tell you more when you’re older.”
“Well, now what? Just hearing this makes me afraid to be around Night Shade. It’s starting to change how I view him as a pony,” Pumpkin said.
“I’m sure Night Shade is alright, Pumpkin,” Flurry told her friend. “You saw how nice he was to us. He let me into the class and even invited all of us to be on stage with him last night. It wasn’t until earlier this morning that he seemed to be ignoring us and that was after Zeb pulled him out. I’m sure he really wants to be a good pony; he’s just trying to be careful around Zeb. Maybe he really wants to talk to Rara again, he’s just waiting for the right time when Zeb isn’t around.”
“Yeah, we’d hate for him to lose his job over all this. I just hope he doesn’t say anything mean to us.”
“For now, let’s just pretend none of this happened, girls,” Spike said. “We’ll let the others know, but tomorrow, don’t say anything to Night Shade.”
“Got it. Act normal. Maybe Night Shade has changed a lot since Rara last talked to him,” Pumpkin said as they continued back to Ponyville.
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Not Applewood? I recall Hasbro made a Equestria map with the place that is like Hollywood called Applewood unless Caliponia is a state and Applewood is in it.
Also, do we call pony leg arms? I would assume a wing hug makes more sense for a filly with huge wings
Not sorry about be criticizing a bit. This chapter has been very perfect and also captures how dark the industry really is in real life… it’s so much worst…
Nice to see Rara! I feel bad for Night Shade, he's backed into a corner here
Good to have some words of wisdom from our old friend RaRa, but it’s a shame that Flurry has to hear how the music industry hates the royals. It’s not something the little dear deserves to go through when she did nothing wrong. Then again, even though RaRa lost a lot by getting rid of Svengallop, she still gained quite a bit too, and does seem much happier for it, as she should be. The politics of the entertainment industry always seem to be such a fickle and selfish affair, but I’m hoping Flurry and Pumpkin can find a way to help Night Shade get out from under the pinch of Zeb’s controlling ways.
11464066
I actually use the term "Hinnywood" as "Applewood" never made any sense to me and the former is a way better horse pun. I mention Hinnywood in the last chapter at least once. Caliponia is the name of the state/province and Hinnywood is a city.
I think I've used the term "arm" for ponies before, but it does make more sense to say wings.
11464072
Yeah, it's not really his fault, but Night Shade has to make the right decision.
11464085
It was interesting to write all this, cuz it shows that even in the land of Equestria, there is a darker side of society that runs this way, just like our own reality. That dark society will play a role later on, but even more concerning is how Night Shade will handle this in the next chapter.
11464176
Indeed, he should. But will he?
11464194
A good question...
Poor Flurry! This line almost feels like it could be Flurry reacting to her real world haters. She never deserved to be hated and I always loved her.
I hope her and Pumpkin can do something to help Night Shade get out from his controlling abusive manager.
If Only They knew the situation that he's in
Sometimes we questioned about these names but yet it worked sometimes
11464197
Yes, we shall see then...
That's actually convenient that she's here and maybe that's a good thing too we need her help
And Chrysalis is still out there unfortunately
11464286
Lol, I didn't think of that parallel. The music industry in this is meant to represent American entertainment companies that really hate American patriotism and the working class and such. Of course in this case, it's the royals they hate most, but that's only cuz Celestia and her successor are so close to such ponies.
We will see if they can do it in the next chapter.
“I learned the hard way that the industry really doesn’t like outcasts or anyone that chooses to go against manager orders or get too close to their fans. Svengallop hated that I was doing charity work and hanging out with fans, and Applejack and the others exposed him that day. Again, I lost everything, including my reputation in the music industry.
That's so much corruption in the music industry how can anybody let this happen especially of all ponies Svengallop to be in charge of this and that always makes me mad about that
Oh flurry heart I'm so sorry that you had to deal with this hatred from other ponies and creatures especially from Svengallop it's basically another situation of blame the sins of the fathers the children had to suffer from people who thinks of them negatively towards their family even if you didn't do anything wrong
And that is why I hate politics it brings the worst out of people
I know you're hurting pumpkin pie I get it but don't take it too personal I'm sure he's not like that the only problem is it's the corruption of the business I just hope they stopped them and poisoning the minds of people
Sigh I knew there was something going on and of course it has to be corruption and it's very heartbreaking and angry reducing that this is happening especially to kids so anyway flurry hearts and the others have conversation about the situation what just happened to nightshade the only way to find out is to talk with Rara since she used to work there and it's really awesome to see her she was really awesome but when the two girls and Spike got to the farm they met up with her the girls talk about nightshade and she gave them a really bad news about Nightshade and pretty much anything to the music industry apparently managers like Svengallop had a huge grudge against the royal family including Twilight and anybody whose friends with her or related would be blacklisted and that really hurts and basically he's misusing his power just to spite against Twilight and her friends and basically flurry heart and pumpkin pie got in the middle of it which that's so unfortunate no now they had to figure out what they're going to do tomorrow but things will be very awkward between them and Nightshade that is so heartbreaking that happened I hope they can stop them well I guess we'll find out next time
11464346
I wonder if this will be a bigger plot point for the series
11464504
Probably 😥
Wow, now this chapter hit me hard. Feels a bit like the author is trying to bring up something very personal to him. But I do like how Night Shade made sympathetic instead of another jerk celebrity, how he's a victim in a very unforgiving and punishing system. I'm especially interested in the Ponies that want to abolish the monarchy and would love to see more of them in future chapters/stories and hope it's given more depth.
11470156
Well you're talking to the author here. :P
It wasn't based on real life events, though I did have a friend who left me and blocked me on all social media sites a few years ago due to our differences. Unlike Night Shade, he didn't seem very sympathetic and pretty much told me off in a very rude manner. He did so on his own accord, though due to the nature of the group he was part of, I think they poisoned him against me until it happened. Ironically, he was also a musician.
Those ponies who hate the royals will come into play later, but it will be a while before we get to that story.
I think I like that this part shows a realistic interpretation of the corruption in the fame industry, especially when you're a well-known artist/content creator working under a bad manager. Given that managers tend to provide most of the stuff that makes artists famous, losing the contract with them is basically the same as losing most, if not all, of your assets. Of course, not all managers are bad; there are some who care for their artists, but there are those that'll take advantage of them, whether it'd be for personal benefit or they plan to get something out of it. It's a sad reality, but the best we can do is raise awareness of it and hope for the better. It'd be a miracle if that'd actually work tho
11472408
We got what I consider to be a taste of that in the "Mane Attraction" episode with Svengallop's behavior. Using him as a background villain for this really helped with writing Zeb and Night Shade, and it's even more interesting when you think about what Zeb is really up to (you'll see in chapter 6).
things getting to something they are
And it seems the cat keeps getting out of the bag. And a rather unpleasant cat as well, which isn't a small feat in this series when Opal is some strong competition.
It's true, at least we got to see Rara again, but what she told Flurry and her friends definitely was anything but happy. Between how far she fell just because she dared to be true to herself and the hatred that the music industry feels for royals, this industry seems to be quite a rotten one in general.
I confess I still am a little bit puzzled that they hate royals so much when all the royals in Equestria seem to be good, except maybe for Blueblood, and even he was nice enough to apparently patch things up with Rarity (going by Sweet and Elite, at least) and to feel for Spike during the mess at the Friendship Games rather than be scornful of him (at least going by his expressions) so I wouldn't call him all bad either.
But at the same time, it just may make a twisted kind of sense. On one hand, it could be jealousy at the royals for being 'better', in the kind of reversal of what you told me in your reply to the last time I brought this up (as in, if the real world music industry disdains the working class for being 'lesser', they may resent the royals for being 'greater'). On the other... in a kingdom like Equestria that promotes friendship, friendliness, and harmony, it just might make sense that a competitive industry wouldn't like those things because they'd have their performers 'taking it easier' and caring about others' feelings rather than wearing blinders and just worry about getting to the top regardless of who they have to trample along the way.
Sense as it makes, though, it's not nice to see. And it definitely isn't nice that Night Shade (and all of Rara's music friends, for that matter) simply dumped her when she dared to be herself, not to mention how much she lost over that. At least like you showed in this episode and like the series hinted, she didn't completely lose everything, so there's that.
(On a bit of a side note, I can't help but wonder if Sapphire Shores and Songbird Serenade are either rare artists who 'think for themselves and still make it big', or if they are more like Night Shade than most would like to see.)
At any rate, at least it was nice to see Rara again! I loved her in the series proper, and wish we could have seen her more there, but at least we're getting to see her here. Also, I couldn't help but crack up at Stormy's comment over what kind of name is Zeb. Seriously, he always makes the funniest comments.
All in all, a nicely done and very enlightening chapter! I very much enjoyed it! I'll try to finish catching up soon. :)
11480592
It might make more sense in the next and final chapter as to why the industry hates the royals.
I really wanted to convey how some people in the entertainment industry can be shunned for going against certain narratives or lose acting gigs over just one little slip up that isn't that big of a deal. Such examples that come to my mind are like Gina Carano. We didn't get to see it in detail, but I have a feeling that's like what happened to Rara after she left Svengallop. She did get to do her concert still, but without him as her manager, I'm sure things were not very easy and she probably wasn't treated too well by them after that, but she at last had real friends in Ponyville.
As for Songbird Serenade and Sapphire Shores, I haven't thought about that quiet yet, but I'd like to think they just have better managers or work for better record labels that don't participate in any of this cult-like behavior.
Lol, Stormy is fun to write for. Little dude's got such a mouth on him sometimes. XD
You know, I can kind of understand what Rara went through. I once worked in a toxic workplace. The thing that made it difficult to leave was how much money it made me. I knew leaving would make the adjustment difficult. Yet, when I chose to leave it felt like a huge weight was lifted off of me. In the time I've left that terrible job, I have gone through hardships, but despite it all, I know I've made the right decision. One of the best things I can take from it is how much happier I feel in the end. It is always worth it to leave a toxic job and look for something better.
Here's hoping Night Shade can make the right decision in the end.
11834987
I am going through that same thing. I haven't left the job yet though, but I'm about to.