• Published 5th Dec 2012
  • 1,336 Views, 34 Comments

Masquerade - AlkapwnZ



Second person fiction starring You and Pinkie Pie

  • ...
2
 34
 1,336

Chapter 5: Luna's Labyrinth

You stumble a bit as Pinkie drags you along the dark maze, and you look back at the maze entrance, the warm glow of the party fading as you were dragged along. You look at Pinkie Pie, who was still smiling excitedly as she bounced through the dimly lit streets, which were covered up and decorated to appear as the halls of a dungeon. Nervousness and uncertainty permeated your gut, as you couldn't recognize which street you were in because of the decor. Pinkie didn't seem fazed at all by this, as she was still bouncing as she always did, her usual smile plastered on her face.

You and the mare delved deeper into the maze for another half hour, and you finally put your hoof down and force the both of you to stop in another small corridor with red torches lined down the walls. "Pinkie, stop! We're lost!"

She tilted her head a little to the right, looking at you curiously. "We are?"

You nod, getting frustrated once again. "We've been running through this damned maze for over half an hour! We should go back to the entrance. Venture should be away from the other exit by now. It's obvious we won't find the maze exit in time to find the Professor!"

Pinkie giggles, shaking her head. "Silly, don't worry! My trusty Pinkie Sense can lead us out of this maze!"

Now it was your turn to tilt your head in curiosity. "Pinkie Sense?"

"Yep! It's when I get all these funny twitches and feelings on my body that predict the future!" She nodded like it was the surest idea in the world.

You paused for a moment to take this in, eventually hanging your head. "Are you even..."

"No, I'm not kidding you!” Pinkie declared with a grin. “My friend Twilight couldn't even figure it out. Whenever my tail twitches, it means something is going to fall! When my back gets all tingly, it means it's my lucky day! I even get combos, sometimes! It just works, so trust it!"

You sigh, adjusting the mask on your face. "Fine, fine....what does your Pinkie sense say about the exit?"

"No idea!"

"But....then how is it going to get us out of here?!" You look at her with a mixture of frustration, confusion, and disbelief.

"I dunno! I can't control it; it just comes on its own!" Before you can argue with her further, Pinkie suddenly covers your mouth and pulls you around a corner. You give out a muffled yelp of a surprise, but she quickly shushes you, putting her poofy tail to her lips to emphasize. She peeks around the corner, and whispers "He's here...."

You groan in frustration, but this too was muffled by Pinkie's hoof. She calmly releases you, allowing you to look around the corner and see for yourself. Sure enough, there was Venture, wearing his mask and calmly strolling about the maze without a care in the world. You pull back around the corner, and whisper urgently to Pinkie. "Okay, NOW the entrance is blocked. What's the plan, miss sixth-sense?"

Pinkie rolls her eyes, and patted your head jokingly. "Silly! We move in the opposite direction until my Pinkie sense tells us where to go next!" You nod hesitantly, and ever so quietly, move away from Venture's direction down the corridor.

You took a moment to admire the decorated streets, amazed at how much they truly appeared as that of a dungeon. Luna's Labyrinth had a few decorations that referred to the princess it was based on, with stand-still robotic figures of Nightmare Moon, Luna's evil counterpart, appearing on occasion. Rather cheap to be honest, but most of it was pretty detailed. You remember Luna's Labyrinth was only a recent addition to the Masquerade, as another way of honoring Princess Luna's return to the kingdom. The Masquerade was first celebrated a few centuries after she was imprisoned within the moon, so this was actually the princess's very first Masquerade.

You let your mind wander into wondering how she was spending the Masquerade, while you walked along aimlessly with Pinkie Pie. Wait....hold on, where's Pinkie Pie?! You feel your heart skip several beats as you realize you were no longer walking along with the perky pink mare, and instead were completely on your own in the Labyrinth! You must've wandered away from her direction without realizing it while you let your thoughts wander! DAMMIT! Calm down, breathe, you can handle this.....this is no time to panic. You just have to retrace your steps, and seek out Pinkie Pie quickly before Venture finds you. You turn around, only to find yourself faced with three different corridors. You had no idea which one you just came out of.

Okay, so maybe this WAS the time to panic. You then begin running aimlessly through the maze, your breathing escalating as your panicked calls for Pinkie echo throughout the streets. Soon, you no longer care which direction you're going, your panic rising beyond common sense just as your heart rate ascended further.

"PINKIE?! PINKIE PIE?!" You cry out, stumbling blindly through the dimly lit streets. Your heart felt as if it would burst any moment, and every corridor you ran through looked just like the last.

You couldn't tell how far you ran, or how close you were to the exit, or even how long you've been lost. You had no clue where to go, or what to do. You just kept running, feeling the blood pound in your ears as your panicked cries grew more desperate by the second. Your hooves ached for a rest, but you pushed through, searching desperately for your only friend in this Celestia-forsaken party. Hardly an hour had passed before things went wrong! You never should have done this; you should've just stayed at home to rest and get back to earning bits. Hard work is the only way to get anywhere in this world!

As you galloped around a corner, your vision was blurred as you crashed into somepony else in the maze, sending you tumbling backwards. You grunted as you fell onto the solid concrete, your mask nearly having fallen off. You quickly adjusted it back to its original position before pulling yourself up, brushing off the dirt on your extravagant costume. You turned to whoever you had crashed into, set to apologize before you froze in place upon seeing his face.

Venture grunted as he pulled himself back up, brushing himself off. "Sorry about that... I heard somepony yelling, and I ran inside to see what was wrong," he pulled his mask back up and pulled it onto his face. "Were you the one yelling?"

Just perfect, you berated yourself. Your yelling had probably jeopardized your efforts completely! Now what were you going to do? The second you spoke, Venture would recognize your voice and everything would fall apart. You stood there, mouth agape as you struggled to figure out your next move. Good thing you wore a mask. Think, think...

Before Venture could question your sudden pause, you gave your response using the best Trottingham accent you could muster. "Ah, yes, I, uh, was looking for my, erm... date," your face burned underneath your mask as you said ‘date’. "She and I got separated in this bloody maze, and I was just calling for her."

That's it. You're officially screwed. There was no way in Tartarus that Venture was going to buy your offensive attempt at appearing like a visiting Trottingham citizen. You weren't able to read Venture's face through the mask, and as his pause drew on, you were about to apologize and reveal your face.

"Ah, I see! Maybe I can help out," Venture chuckled heartily, before you could say anything else. "Where were you two last together?"

As Venture walked up, you managed to hold back a surprised chuckle. You had no idea how or why Venture believed your wretched attempt at masking your voice, but then again you'd best not stare luck down. You gave a short cough and looked away.

"Well, uh, I really don't know..." you fidgeted with your front hooves, "I just ran through this place without thinking, honestly..."
Venture laughed gently. "Well, I'm sure she'll come up," he turned around and started walking off. "Come on, I'll show you the way out. We'll get somepony to help you find her."

You didn't necessarily want to stretch your luck in actually fooling Venture with your fake accent, but you did need to find a way out. Besides, Pinkie couldn't have gone too far. You'd be able to go look for her after you got out of this labyrinth.
As you trotted alongside Venture down the dimly lit road, the relaxed stallion turned to look at you. "So, what's your name? You're from Trottingham, I take it?"

You scratched the back of your head as you struggled to think up a fake name to give Venture. You certainly couldn't give him your real name, after all. "Erm... my name's Ember Topaz," you remembered the name of your old friend from high school. "And yes, I came down here from Trottingham. Bloody place was getting old, and I thought Ponyville ought to be an interesting place to go visit, especially during this famous Masquerade."

You didn't want to overdo your accent, but you couldn't forget to use it either. You felt a drop of sweat beginning to trickle down your spine, as you worried about how long Venture was going to try to chat with you.

The stallion grinned and gave a chuckle. "Nice to meetcha, Ember. I'm Venture. So, tell me about your date," he gave you a gentle nudge, eager for details. "What's she like? Is she from Trottingham too?"

You blushed underneath your mask once again and gave a nervous chuckle, trying to think of a possible description to give your "date". It's certainly possible Venture might run into Pinkie, so it was likely best not to lie too much about her.

"Well, she lives here inside Ponyville," You fiddled with one of your boots. "We were pen pals for a few months before the Masquerade, and we made plans to meet here during the Masquerade. A perfect opportunity, as we had both believed."

Venture smirked. "Well, that's fine and dandy, but what's she like? I live here in Ponyville too, maybe I know her?"

Before you could answer, Venture gave a grunt and moved on ahead, and you realized you both had finally reached the Labyrinth's exit. You gave a sigh of relief as you departed the structure to greet the welcoming lights and sounds of the Masquerade.

You saw this was a different location than where you entered the Labyrinth, and for once you were glad to be in the middle of a loud and obnoxious party. "Thanks for getting me out of there," you turned to Venture with a relieved smile behind your mask. "I'll be honest, being alone inside such a place isn't exactly settling."

"No problem!" Venture chuckled heartily. "Come on, I'll introduce you to my friends."

Uh oh. You couldn't come with Venture, you couldn't risk him somehow figuring out the truth. You needed to hurry and find Pinkie Pie, then try to find Professor Test Tube. You couldn't afford to waste any time!

"Ah, thanks for the offer, old chap," You took a nervous step back, trying to look nonchalant. "But I really ought to find my date. You know how mares are..."

You started to walk off, but froze as Venture put a hoof on your shoulder. "Oh, c'mon, man!" he groaned. "We'll find her, but this is just a party. Come on, I'll introduce you to my friends, and we'll all look for her together, alright? You'll find her a lot faster if more ponies are searching, after all!"

You held back a groan, knowing Venture's logic pretty much destroyed any excuse you could think up off the top of your head. You sigh and turn back to look at him. "Sure, I could use the help." You fake enthusiasm as Venture gave a wide grin.
"Alright! Let's go, we haven't all night!" Venture turned to lead you off. "Don't worry, we'll find her soon enough, Ember!"

As Venture turned and started to walk off towards the midway, you gave an exasperated sigh and followed closely behind. As you walked alongside your friend, you looked about the midway, getting your first good look at the games and lights set up for the Masquerade. You saw ring tosses and dunking games as usual, but you also noticed an outdoor bar with ponies drinking and laughing together and the sharp scent of alcohol made you wrinkle your nose. You pulled away from the small group, keeping close to Venture in hopes to avoid any possible confrontations with the drinking stallions.

You turned to look at Venture, and you saw he was already heading off inside a nearby building. As you trotted forward to enter and follow him, you felt your heart skip when you recognized the building as Sugarcube Corner! The decorations around the restaurant had thrown you off for a second; they made the candy-themed building appear as an old-era Istalian restaurant. As you stepped closer to its walls you smelled fresh, dry paint emanating from the bakery. How the Cakes managed to give Sugarcube such a dramatic change in such a short period of time was beyond you.

You heard Venture call for you by the fake name you had given him, and you shrugged off your wonderings as you finally stepped inside. As you passed the threshold, you found the interior had undergone a similar change, despite the familiar sweet smell of cupcakes throwing you off. The restaurant was packed with several groups of party-goers, and you cringed at the loud noises of clanging mugs and laughter. You walked around the tables to follow Venture, doing your best to keep up.
You hoped that Pinkie would come by Sugarcube Corner soon; there was no telling how long you could continue to fool Venture before you slipped up on your accent. Wishful thinking would only get you so far, but it was the most you could hope for at the moment.

Venture finally sat down at a small table crammed into a corner of the restaurant, sitting beside three other costumed ponies. You quickly took a seat on Venture's right, an uneasy feeling filling in your gut as the other ponies looked up from their meals as you sat. You gave each of them an awkward glance, and Venture placed his hoof upon your shoulder. "Guys, this is Ember. Ran into him inside Luna's Labyrinth!"

The first of the three ponies, a mare in a jester's outfit with navy blue fur, gave a snicker. "I assume he got lost?" She teased.

You frowned behind your mask and coughed, mentally reminding yourself of your alibi. "Yes, and I got separated from my date," you spoke in your false accent, your heart racing with worry as you kept focus on the accent. "I'm afraid I don't know where she's gone... "

Venture smirked. "And that's where we come in," he spoke to his three friends. "He'll give us a quick description, and we'll get on the move!"

Venture turned to you, and you began to internally panic as you struggled to think up a possible description for your "date" without getting Pinkie caught. You couldn't afford Venture trying to stick around with Pinkie Pie the whole night; that situation would only extend the amount of time you were going to spend around Venture, which would increase the possibility of you slipping up.

Finally, after what seemed to be forever, you quickly spoke. "She wears a long red dress... with, uh, ankle warmers the same color. She also had a pair of cat ears and a feline mask," You hoped desperately that none of them noticed you were pulling this description out of your tail. "Her fur's pure white, and her eyes are bright orange, as well as her mane with a green stripe." You bit your lip, hoping this description was enough to be believable.

The mare in the jester costume gave a short laugh. "Sounds like you scored with her!" She gave you a nudge, giggling.

The other ponies at the table chuckled in agreement, and Venture stood up with a grin. "Alright, guys! Let's get going! Can't let the love-birds be separated for too long tonight!" He teased.

The ponies gave another quick laugh, and they all stood up and headed on outside of Sugarcube Corner. You lingered behind, only to feel Venture's hoof on your shoulder. "C'mon, the group'll split up. They'll cover more ground that way, and we'll find her in a jiffy." He smiled assuringly.

You saw your golden opportunity and jumped for it in an instant. "Gotcha! I'll cover the fairgrounds around city hall!" You were about to head off, only for Venture to grab your shoulder once again and hold you back.

"I'll come along!" Venture grinned. "Maybe we'll run into my step-dad, and he saw her somewhere nearby. I remember he was hanging around nearby there."

It took all you could muster to not give out a loud groan. Damn this persistent stallion! Why did he have such an interest in you? Wasn't it enough he already had his friends running around looking for a fake pony? You sighed and gave a reluctant nod. "Sure... I suppose I could use the help," you started off alongside Venture. "Let's hurry over, alright?"

You made a mental note to ditch Venture the second he wasn't looking. You knew it was rude, but you were getting desperate. You had already spent more than an hour separated from Pinkie, and you needed her help to find Test Tube!

Venture gave his three pony friends quick instructions on where in Ponyville to look, and you both were off towards City Hall. As you walked alongside your friend, you recognized many of the local ponies bustling about inside the town, mingling with the flood of visitors surrounding them. You saw a sky blue pegasus with a rainbow mane in a Wonderbolts costume racing around the sky with several other pegasi from around Equestria, and you saw a light-yellow filly with an Apple-red mane in a cute mobster outfit playing tag with a couple of her friends. You smiled gently at the sight of familiar ponies having a fun, innocent time at the Masquerade.

The Masquerade was usually set up mainly for older ponies, but it was a pleasant sight for you to see the Masquerade altered so younger ponies could enjoy themselves without any chemical influences. You remembered how many of your classmates from highschool used to drink, especially during gatherings like this.

You were suddenly pulled out of your thoughts as Venture gave an excited whoop. "There's my step-dad! C'mon, I'm certain he can help!" With that said, Venture grabbed your hoof roughly and dragged you towards the open doors of City Hall.

As you and Venture entered the building, you gave a sigh of relief as you found it had significantly less ponies than the previous buildings you had been in. You found a few ponies were lined up at the bathroom doors, some getting drinks from the fountain, and others taking a breather at the benches lined up against the walls. You were glad to be in here; even with Venture beside you, the lack of lights and obnoxious sounds were a refreshing change from the usual bustling crowd of the Masquerade.

Venture grinned and led you further down the hall, and you saw somepony in a rather unique costume chatting with some stallion in a Robin Hoof outfit. The pony sat inside a small wheelchair that had been given a few extra parts to give it the appearance of a race-car. He wore a race-driver's helmet, the visor tinted a darker shade to hide his face.

Venture grinned and led you over to him with a rather proud smirk on his face. "Ember, I'd like you to meet my step-dad!"

As the mention, the stallion in the rather awesome costume rolled up to face you. You heard a chuckle underneath the helmet, and he quickly pulled it off. "Ugh, stupid thing's so stuffy..." he looked up with a kind grin, and your heart skipped several beats as you instantly recognized his face. The stallion held out a hoof and chuckled.

"Pleased to meet ya, Ember. My name's Test Tube. Though, you can just call me Test."

Author's Note:

Alright guys, I know it's been a long time since I last updated Masquerade. But, I'm back at writing, and I plan to finish up Masquerade and eventually try writing something new. Special thanks to Zaphod for editing this chapter and giving feedback. I also give another special thanks to Shadowslayer for editing my previous chapters, and a personal apology to him for not being able to wait for him to come online to help with the editing of this chapter. Hopefully he'll be able to come back online again and help with the editing of future chapters! Hope you enjoy this latest update, guys. It's good to be back at it.