The Gondola Collective
Turns out mom had a rather interesting interpretation of what I meant when I suggested an act of kindness. I was certainly quite amazed when instructed to report to makeup and styling at five in the afternoon to have my mane and tail done, and to prepare for regalia fitting.
Pipp was there too, and pretty confused as well. "Any clue what's going on?" she asked.
"Nope," I replied, as the staff moved different things around. "Only thing I do know is I don't like this at all. Seriously, why do our tails need doing? Nopony's going to see them!"
"We should always aim to look our best," Pipp replied. "Besides, that should be easy for you. Your mane's entirely on top, and therefore easy to wash. Mine flops all over the place. Do you have any clue how long this takes to get presentable in the morning?"
"No," I replied. "But I suspect it takes a while, based on mom's mane and tail."
They then brought out the regalia, and I was both concerned and a little embarrassed. Seems that whatever this event was, we were dressing up. Mom then arrived, looking like she was off on a state visit to another country rather than something inside the palace, having been fitted into a rather posh gown. "Ah! You two are looking excellent!" she said. "Remember to thank the stylists."
"What's going on? And why are we being decked out in... well, all that?" I indicated to her clothing.
"You suggested an act of kindness towards them, yes? I've organised a special banquet for them, which will allow us to break the ice and introduce them to pegasus customs. Not to mention it allows us to showcase how splendid the palace can be!"
I kept my objections to myself. When mom was off on one of her ideas, there was no stopping her. Trying to get her to slow down was like trying to stop a freight train with no brakes.
Well, it could've been worse. I've never been one for dressing up or posh meals. I'd probably have ordered in McWings and had a casual Ogres and Oubliettes session in one of the drawing rooms. But everything had to be done properly, it seems.
Although adapting to multiple courses and eating with this stuff on proved to be difficult (seriously, you try eating with both a restrictive gown impairing your movement and large amounts of metal on your chest) and wasn't easy, I did it eventually. The others eventually began speaking to us, and mom was convinced they were safe too. So they could now wander the palace as they saw fit, provided they didn't leave.
This was perfect for me. With the Royal Celebration in a week's time, I could finally move the plot forward and get us closer to reuniting! But I had to be careful. Too much fast movement and the cover could be blown. I began to plan out my idea in my mind as the music continued to flow and the conversation rattled back and forth.
This was mostly my memory of the movie talking, but I felt I could trust them, and that they would be vital for securing that crystal that currently sat in the crown.
Shame Misty's theft had thrown a spanner in the works. Thanks to that incident, mom was refusing to take the crown off. She was even sleeping and showering with the thing on! I could only imagine that quickly got very unhygenic, but I pushed that to one side. We had to secure the crown and the crystal, or else this would all have been for nothing.
Eventually, the meal came to an end, and we retired to another room for cheese and other things. I wasn't sure if I was in Zephyr Heights or an Edwardian period drama for a moment.
A week passed, and after a visit to the station I outlined my plan to my friends. Izzy stated that she needed a replacement crown for the plan, and requested a box of macaroni, a tube of glue, fourteen gooey bunnies, and three jelly beans. And a lot of glitter. That was oddly specific, but I guess she needed them all for something in order to assemble the fake. I popped into town on the Wednesday before the Royal Celebration and looked in several of the shops for the resources I needed. It was a good thing I'd identified on Canternet that several stores had the things in stock. Such a random assortment of items bought at one shop would surely raise eyebrows.
I collected the items and stuffed them into a single bag, and then made my way back to the palace before dropping them off in Izzy's room. I then went and did other things whilst waiting for her to finish her work.
Had I known what I know now, I wouldn't have asked for it. But I didn't know what I know now then, so I left her to it. I kept to myself for a bit, keen to ensure nopony realised what was going on in actuality.
Have to say the crown was pretty good when I saw it for the first time. Izzy's quite skilled as a junk modeller. All we had to do was wait until the night of the event.
The night of the event came, and my stage of the plan went into action. As with every single event the entrance to the Palace was swarmed with papparazzi. Hopefully there wouldn't be any chases or accidents. As per the agreement I would be making my way into the palace via the front entrance, which would distract the ponies taking pictures. That allowed Sunny and Izzy to sneak into the palace via the side entrance and access the backstage area around the back (one of the places they weren't allowed into, as it harboured our dark secret).
As the cameras blared and became blinding (I'm glad I brought sunglasses to protect my eyes from the glare), I briefly spotted the duo using a side entrance. Good. They're in. I continued on my way into the building and saw huge amounts of preparations currently underway. Things were being pushed around, light controls were being brought in, and other display items were being placed to make the concert easier. Naturally this included light controls to hide cables and wires. I found my way to the access steps and made my way up to the makeup and harness room. Not for vanity's sake, you understand. It was needed so I didn't look odd under stage lighting.
After quite a bit of that, I was then sent over to the cable room for cable fitting in preparation for the big event. Here's hoping things went to plan in other bits of the palace.
We were in the cable room before the show when I decided to give it one last shot. Mom was there, ensuring her stage makeup was applied correctly. "Pipp told me you've been with the others a lot," she said.
"She told you that?" I asked.
"She tells me everything. I wish you would speak with me more." There was a pause, and then a sigh. "I won't be here forever, Zephyrina. We need to make the most of the time we have available, and one day you will need to understand your duties. This crown is a lot heavier than it looks."
That made me feel depressed. "There is something I wanted to talk about."
"See? That's a good start."
"The other races don't have magic. We all lack it. We have to do something or else me may well find oursel-"
"Zephyrina!"
I shifted back. I knew the tone well. The tone was code for 'shut up'.
"I don't know what ideas that Earth Pony or those Unicorns have been putting in your head, but you cannot trust a word they say. They could be spies, for all we know. Besides, you have a comfortable life here in Zephyr Heights. Why would you want to risk that?"
"Because it's a lie!" I said. "The populace should know the truth about what's going on."
Mom sighed again. "It keeps the people safe and happy. Sometimes living a happy lie is better than enduring a horrible truth."
I shook my head. "Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth, mom. Sooner or later that debt is repaid."
Mom snorted. "Don't concern yourself with things that will never happen, Zephyrina."
I rolled my eyes. "Don't concern yourself with things that will never happen. They should put that on our pound notes."
Just then, Pipp was wheeled in, already rigged up to the cable system. "Ah, there she is!" mom beamed. "Your sister understands the importance of maintaining the status quo."
Pipp launched off into her vocal exercises, as mom hit a button on the control panel next to her. "Showtime!"
Well, that was that. No turning back now. As the winding gear engaged, a distinct feeling of dread crossed my heart.
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Last chapter for a bit is now live.
Excellent work on the exchanges, characterizations and future chapter set-up (even though the next batch of chapters won't be until phase three in about four months) in this chapter. Definitely liked the description of the "proper meal", the effort "Izzy" made on making the fake crown for the plan as well as the dialogue between "Haven" and "Zipp" toward the end of the chapter.
VERY definitely going to be looking forward to more of this.
awesome chapter mate keep it up what about the ice cream room? if you're looking for me I'll be in the ice cream room
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As you've probably guessed, the next perspective on offer will be two characters we last saw four months ago.
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I see.
Wow. I wasn't expecting that!!!
I remember when that part happened in the movie I couldn't stop laughing about it.
Saying truth is better than flat out lying!
She's so gonna regret saying that.
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1. Seemingly, neither was Zipp.
2. It's a wonderful bit of bathos in what is otherwise quite a serious moment.
3. Precisely.
4. It's especially serious in the context that's quoting; it's a line from HBO's Chernobyl.
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In the HBO series Chernobyl, the protagonist (Legasov) is threatened by a KGB officer and instructed to stop his investigation into the disaster. Legasov points out a nuclear accident like Chernobyl could happen again, to which the KGB agent informs him 'don't concern yourself with things that will never happen'. Legasov responds as follows:
I think from the hint about hair product in the credits that Zipp is actually quite particular about her mane. It takes a lot of effort to maintain that kind of style!
Interesting! Zipp has totally sent the story into a different direction. They're getting a proper audience before royalty! They're not considered spies!
>So they could now wander the palace as they saw fit, provided they didn't leave.
Interesting. Not impossible. I imagine you would assign a guard to each of them to be sure but not inconceivable.
A whole week! Huh. So Izzy and Sunny are early? Or is the author imagining that much time passing? How far away is Hitch then? Do they suspect he's human? We're going over the movie events but again I feel like we're not getting much information. I want to know what the characters are thinking. Does Zipp not remember the prop crown? Is Zipp's memories replacing hers? It's unclear and this is a bit frustrating.
>They could be spies, for all we know.
Oh nevermind. So still allowed to wander though? Surely with guards then.
"Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth, mom. Sooner or later that debt is repaid."
Good line, Tom. I'm guessing from the A/N this is from Chernobyl?
Onward! Time to mess things up on purpose!
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That is true.
Zipp's memories and recollections are getting intentionally messy, as I'm also incorporating elements of unreliable narrator into the narrative, as well as the character trying to be focused on getting the story moving again. If it's internal thoughts and feelings you're looking for, Rebirth of Magic: the Misfit would probably cut the mustard.
The line is indeed from HBO's Chernobyl, but I feel fits the story very well.