To Live Again

by _No_One_Remains_

Vivi Day Two: Pinkie's Party

Let’s see now…where exactly was I? Oh yeah, the welcoming party! So Rainbow Dash had just introduced me to all of her closest friends and taken me to Sugarcube Corner. From what I gathered just by looking at the outside and the stuff I’d been told about Pinkie Pie, the building was a shop for hundreds of different kinds of delicious pastries and desserts. Anytime there was a party in town, Pinkie would whip up her best stuff and get the place decorated for the occasion.

I was told that every pony in town, with a few exceptions, showed up at one point or another to a Pinkie party, if for no other reason than to keep her off their backs. I can’t blame them, really. She really scared me this morning, so I could see why it would be best to attend the party anyway.

I won’t go into too much detail about the party itself. I don’t really see the point; it was just me chatting with a bunch of different residents of the village. A few of the ponies I met were really nice and interesting, but others were just kind of bland… Then again, who am I to talk about bland, right?

It wasn’t until towards the end of the party where things started to get interesting. I’m not sure what this stuff is, but it’s definitely related to Gaia’s Mist in some way, because I learned that I can still use my magic!

…

I stood toward the back of the building, a cup of punch in my hand, with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy chatting away. I honestly liked their company, all things considered. Boco sat on my shoulder and chirped his thoughts in every once in a while, but for the most part it was just an ordinary party.

Almost out of nowhere, Pinkie Pie appeared face to face with me, causing me to flinch again. My punch would’ve gone flying if I hadn’t recovered my nerves when I did. The pink party pony cheered, “Ya enjoying the party Vivi? I put it together just for you! Why don’t you go talk to some more ponies?”

The question overload caught up with me again. I focused on her last question and sighed, “I’ve already met just about every pony here…” I blinked once or twice, but the pony never budged an inch.

She giggled, “Well, have you done any dancing?”

I’m pretty sure I started to panic when she asked that. I shook my head vigorously and nervously chuckled, “I-I-I can’t dance, Pinkie! But thanks for the offer…” Suddenly, all three ponies’ eyes were locked on me.

Fluttershy giggled, “Aw, I’m sure it can’t be that bad.”

“Just look at Twilight, kid.” Rainbow Dash pointed to the purple unicorn in the center of the dance floor.

At least, I thought it was Twilight. There’s no one else it could’ve been. For a few seconds, I was overwhelmed with panic at the sight in front of me. I mean, Twilight looked like she was having a seizure the way she twisted and jerked around on the dance floor. Once I realized that that was just her way of dancing, I cracked a smile and let out a soft chuckle.

Returning to the matter at hand, I insisted, “I really can’t dance! I’m more of an audience than an actor.” I adjusted the rim of my hat again, as I always do in awkward situations.

Pinkie Pie finally backed off a little. She tapped a hoof on her chin a couple of times before smiling widely. She pointed across the room and cheered, “Then we should cut the cake early! If you won’t dance, you might as well have some delicious snacks!”

She was persistent, to say the least. Rainbow Dash added, “Y’know, I could go for some cake myself. C’mon.” She started a slow trot to the table where dozens of different pastries were laid out. Pinkie Pie wrapped a hoof around my neck and pretty much dragged me with her.

The pink pony picked up a large bell from beside the cake and waved it in the air violently. The noise immediately flooded the room and drowned all of the random chatter, attracting every pony’s attention in an instant. The pony playing the music immediately silenced it and lifted up her sunglasses to focus on the bell.

All eyes locked on to Pinkie as she picked up a large knife and placed it over the giant pastry. It was now that I took the time to examine the delicacy in full. It was an odd color, a little blue, brown, and black. Near the top were two golden circles of icing. Just as Pinkie’s knife severed the first piece of the cake, I realized what it was supposed to be. It was an effigy of me…in my image and current state.

While I admired the pony’s dexterity and aesthetic sense, it did disturb me a little. It looked like she was cutting my hand off, and considering there was more of me back home, that was a very good possibility…

As soon as the first piece was lopped off onto a paper plate, the entire group of gathered ponies cheered. Before I realized what was going on, I had a paper plate in one hand and my cup of punch in the other. Pinkie poked a fork into the cake on my plate and directed me toward a table where I could put my things down and taste it. Every pony watched in anticipation as the guest of honor was getting prepared to essentially give the okay for them to try the dessert themselves…

I didn’t want to disappoint the crowd, so I took a large bite, getting as many different parts of the cake as I could at once. I was surprised by the sudden burst of flavor… I mean, so many different kinds of icing were packed into the small cake, almost as if it didn’t have any real cake, and was just icing. It was delicious, to say the least, but the overload of sugar made me dizzy for a few seconds as I tried to swallow the bite.

Vanilla, chocolate, cream cheese, strawberry, there were so many different icings… I won't lie, Pinkie's culinary skill was starting to remind me a lot of Quina...

I finally managed to choke the concentrated sugar down, and raised a thumb at the crowd, which then flooded toward the pastries on the table. I guess that my signal was the universal sign for ‘dig in’. Pinkie Pie teleported beside me; her large grin was just as disturbing as ever.

“So do you like it, Vivi?” If she had any fingers, I would say she was crossing them. She held her hooves awkwardly waiting for my answer.

I washed the sugar down with punch and chuckled, “It is delicious Pinkie! You really went all out, didn’t you?” I dug my fork into the slice again, about to attempt another bite.

Pinkie squealed, “Yay! I’m so glad you like it! I made it just for ya, y’know!” She clapped her hooves excitedly and darted back toward the crowd of ponies taking turns cutting the cake.

I don’t know what happened. I didn’t see the details myself. If I had to guess, I’d say Pinkie didn’t stop fast enough, but I can’t be sure. All I remember is the cake went flying across the room, past me, right toward the opposite wall. As soon as my mind registered what the flying object was, I leaped from my chair and dashed toward it.

Of course, there was no way I could get to it before it got the wall. My mind raced through a bunch of options for how to let it play out. I finally decided to do something that could be just as bad as it could be good. I raised my hands toward the flying dessert, my palms flat and fingers stretched out. I waited for the right opportunity, and then…

“Stop!” I screamed as loud as I could, not caring for being subtle.

A small gray orb surrounded the cake, stopping it dead in the air. The icing, the toppings, and the momentum all vanished within the spell’s area-of-effect. The effect wasn’t permanent, but it should’ve lasted long enough to get the cake on a solid display. I admired my quick reaction, noting how close the dessert actually was to the wall.

The music and chatter stopped completely when I shouted out my spell. All of the guests’ eyes were on me and the orb. I felt almost like an alien, intruding on the locals’ way of life. It must’ve been weird for them too. I mean, at the time I hadn’t seen any powerful magic besides telekinesis, so I didn’t know how the ponies would react to an actual power. On top of that, any spell I’ve seen cast had to be actively used to maintain effect. When I put my hands to my sides and the cake stayed stationary, another round of gasps filled the room.

Twilight Sparkle was the first to break the silence with a simple, “Ooh…” I couldn’t tell at the time whether it was in awe or disgust, but she sounded dumbfounded.

Then came Rainbow Dash with a fractured, “That’s…something…” She was obviously confused by my spell.

Suddenly leaving his perch over by Pinkie, Boco rushed to my side and chirped, “Kweh! Kwehh!” He tried to reach his beak up at the floating delicacy, but fell short by a few feet.

I looked around the room once to note every pony’s expressions. I adjusted the rim of my hat and chuckled, “Uh…the cake’s fine, everyone!” I walked over to the dessert and lifted it from the bottom of the metal pan.

Pinkie Pie met me halfway back to the table. She cheered, “That was amazing Vivi! You came out of nowhere and just saved the thing! Where’d you learn to do that kinda stuff?” She almost jerked the pan from my hands as she darted back to the table to put it down before my spell wore off.

“I just kinda picked it up back home. It’s not that big of a deal…” I adjusted my hat slightly as Boco fluttered up to my shoulder.

Twilight scoffed, “Not that big of a deal?! There are only a few creatures that aren’t ponies that can use magic! This is a huge deal!” She looked utterly amazed, as if she’d just seen a miracle in front of her eyes. She remarked, almost under her breath, “I have to tell Princess Celestia about this…”

I only barely caught the last statement, but it sent my thoughts in motion and set my nerves to work. I choked, “Wh-what did you say?” She didn’t answer my question, instead getting lost in her own thoughts.

It didn’t take long for the commotion around my spell to die down, as every pony returned to the snacks and dancing. Honestly, I was relieved when Vinyl Scratch (the local DJ—whatever that is) started the music back. Of course, another pony from the crowd came over to talk to me not long after the party restarted.

He was a red stallion with an orange mane. I’d heard his name earlier that night, but couldn’t quite recall it under the current situation. I had noticed he hadn’t said much to anyone at the party, except for the usual greeting.

Applejack, the farm pony from earlier, had introduced me to him. I think he was her brother. Anyway, he walked right up to me and mumbled, “That was some fancy magic ya went and used, partner.”

I didn’t know how to reply to that. I chuckled, “You really think so? I don’t think it’s too cool…”

“That’s cause you’ve known it your whole life, ain’t it?” he remarked with a tone of almost-irritation.

“Not really my whole life. It’s been a long time, though.” I started to feel uncomfortable. I couldn’t help but think he was judging me under his indifferent expression.

He chuckled, “Ya oughta relax, kid. I ain’t gonna hurt ya or nothing…” He smiled innocently, trying to seem less intimidating. When you’re as bulky as him, you have to know you’re scary to newcomers… He continued, “What did ya say you were again?”

I didn’t understand the question at first, but then I noticed his eyes scanning my figure intently. I sighed, “I’m a Black Mage. I come from a world called--…”

“…Gaia. Eeyup.” He sent me a frightening look. I didn’t know what to think about his interruption.

The only ponies I had told about my world were the first three I met. How could he know about my home? I shook my head and groaned, “How did you know that Mister?”

“You ain’t the first Black Mage to come to town. There was two others. They came to Sweet Apple Acres with a white-haired fella. They wanted to thank my Granny for some cider she sent em.” He explained about the other three foreigners in Ponyville.

“But if they went to the Acres…wouldn’t Applejack have met them?” If she knew I wasn’t the only Black Mage, wouldn’t she have made some kind of comment?

He chuckled, “She did. She told me earlier she thought ya were just runnin’ another errand for the white-haired guy.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I wasn’t alone in the world…

I started to get excited. I asked, “How long ago did they visit?!”

He cleared his throat and looked away. “Uh…I think it was a bit over a month ago. They got in late one evening, stayed at the Acres, then left before sunrise. Not many ponies met em except my family.” He trailed away for a few moments.

I muttered, “This is amazing… I’m not alone…” I looked up at him and cheered, “Did you catch their names?!”

He took a seat beside me, obviously getting tired of standing. I couldn’t blame him, because he was carrying a large wooden yoke around his neck. He laughed, “They had some weird names. They went by numbers, aside from the weird fella. There was a Mr. 33 and Mr. 111. And the white-haired fella never said his name.”

I’m certain my heart skipped a few beats. My jaw dropped, though you couldn’t tell by looking. I cheered in undecipherable chatter, “Oh wow…33…I can’t…”

Boco caught on to the numbers and chirped, “KWEHH!!” I think he was excited to know that his guardians were still alive and well.

The stallion laughed, “I take it y’all are friends?”

“You could say that, yeah! This is amazing news!” I thought about being able to see them again for a few minutes.

The stallion looked over at the clock on the far wall. He sighed, “Well, I gotta get back to the farm. AJ’s gonna be ticked I ditched her to come talk to ya.” He turned toward the door and started to trot out. “Oh, and the name’s Big Macintosh.” he turned back briefly to tell me as he approached the exit.

…

After Big Macintosh left, the party started to die down. None of the ponies seemed bothered by my actions, and most of them just left secretly. I can’t blame them, because I would hate to get Pinkie Pie on my case for ditching a party.

Fluttershy was one of the first to leave, so I took the opportunity to walk her home and escape from the inevitable barrage of Twilight’s questions. Based on what Rainbow Dash told me, Twilight became obsessive once she found something interesting. I was almost worried about what would happen now that I’d piqued her curiosity with my spells, but I decided to cross that bridge when it came.

Now I’m here, thinking about everything Big Macintosh told me. If he was telling the truth, and Boco’s owners are in this world with me, then I’m not alone. I’m not the only Black Mage. I’m sure the little chocobo would love to see them too. I should look in to going to Appleloosa to see them sometime…

But I wonder who the white-haired guy is… I can’t think of many people with white hair from Gaia. Well, that’s assuming he was from Gaia. There’s only one guy I can think of, but it can’t possibly be him.

It can’t be him, can it? I mean, he was evil… Why would he get a second chance?

He destroyed a world… He nearly killed us all… Kuja…

Comments

[MadPonyOfGames]

kjand kljghnk ljhdfgjkldshgfsdkfjlgh A FFIX CROSSOVER!!! I NEVER SEE THESE I WILL BE SURE YOU TO READ!!!!

[Ian Hooligan]

A story about Vivi in Equestria?
How much money do you need to keep writing this story?!

It must continue!

[Atticon]

I'm scepitcal, but I'm gonna give this a try. FF IX is by far my most favorite game of all time, mostly because of Vivi. Don't screw this up.

[Doomande]

Is that... It is! VIVI!

Altroug I am almost going to read it just because of the picture, are there nothing in your description that draws me in sadly. So just a good luck from me, with Vivi can't it go wrong

[afterceasetoexist]

It's rare that you get 84 likes and no dislikes. Congrats, yo.

[MoldyShishkabob]

FFIX?
YEAH!!!

I LOVE FINAL FANTASY!!!
AND I LOVE MLP!!!

And you know what this means?

[Blankscape]

This spoils it for me even before I ever played FFIX; Vivi dies

[Dirty Bit]

Now this is what it's when worlds collide~....Now this is what it's like~...

[Flintlocke]

1750756 Sad as it is, all Black mages are basically golems powered by magic, and they have a very short lifespan. Within the game itself Vivi never dies outside "Game Over"s, but the prospect of it is touched upon often.

[AhugeAcidTree]

i know one thing for sure that if Vivi gets into a fight with Kuja, Vivi gonna kick his ass

1750756 Vivi doesn't die :P

[_No_One_Remains_]

1750831 You gotta understand, at any point where he talks, he both sounds and uses words reminiscent of a child. They call him kid because he is short (even by pony standards) and acts like a child with his mannerisms.

1750756>>1751683 Actually...yes he does. He even says that he 'wishes he could've gone on more adventures with everyone' and that 'his memories will be part of the sky'. That plus his ticking timer, he did die, some undisclosed time after the game's end.

1750359 I'm kind of banking on the fact that people know who Vivi is.

[Doomande]

1752298
Final Fantasy is a rather big serie of games. And there is a lot out on the interweb that even like 9 better than 7. So await a lot of comments and views because of that picture dude. And good luck from me about your story

[Pony Vegeta]

Another excellent chapter. I do look forward to more great ones!

[Professor Litmus]

is there a reason chapter three is password protected?

edit: it might just be FIMfictions new layout messing up.

[_No_One_Remains_]

1775438 Have you tried again? I never placed a password on it (and I didn't even know you could...), and other users haven't had trouble...
Perhaps just try again...