Hey folks! Hope June's going well for you! By the time I'm writing this, it'll be just a little after New Year's!
Anyways, we're finally back with more of "Mind"! Last time we left off, Rarity got herself a dream job as a costume designer at Equestria Land under Vignette Valencia! But in the process, she may have wound up causing Applejack to get jealous…
I think I'll let Xiaomei fill in the other details for the time being. Enjoy the chapter!
MIND
Welcome back, everyone. Did you enjoy how we started the second half of this story? Well, I suppose everyone has their thoughts on what happened.
With the Mind Stone split into two for the moment, our heroes are looking to find the missing piece from the Black Order, while they're vying to do the same. But in the process, they also have to go and visit Rarity at the newly opened Equestria Land. And it seems as if she's made herself a new friend… to the disgust of some others.
Oh, I can only imagine how this will turn out. Goodbye for now, everyone. I'll let things unfold as they are.
"Huh…" Pinkie shuddered out.
"You okay, Pinkie Pie?" Rainbow asked in concern upon noticing, getting her attention.
"Yeah… I think so…" she responded, rubbing the back of her head as she looked around in search of the mysterious voice she was hearing. In the meantime, Applejack was just glaring and growling. The fact that Vignette and Rarity had already gotten so close to each other rubbed her the wrong way.
"Everyone, this is Vignette Valencia," the fashionista introduced, gesturing to her employer, who was busy texting on her phone, "She runs PR for the park," she said, "and she's my boss," she mentioned, causing the social media star to perk up.
"I told you not to use the 'B' word," she noted to Rarity, getting her attention, "I'm your… 'friend'…" she corrected, "who gets to boss you around!" she mentioned with a gleeful smile. The fashionista nervously laughed in response, wanting to make a good impression. She gestured for her friends to do the same, which they all did except for Applejack, who was still mad, and Pinkie, who looked confused. None of their multiversal colleagues laughed either.
"I don't get it…" the puffy-haired girl said after a moment.
"Heh…" Rarity chuckled out, zipping over to her friends, "So this is Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, and Fluttershy," she introduced as the girls each made their own gestures or motions in greeting. Applejack was surprised she didn't get introduced as the fashionista stood in front of her. Irritably, she cleared her throat to get her attention. "Oh! Ha…" she yelped with a laugh, "And Applejack," she mentioned in introduction, "Sorry, you were standing a— I-I didn't see you," she claimed apologetically, "Oh, and there's also Laura, Deku, James, Azari, Torunn, and Henry," she introduced on, gesturing towards the multiversal guests.
"Um… hi," the One For All inheritor greeted with a wave of his right hand.
"Hmmm," Vignette hummed out, seemingly focused on her phone more her employee and her friends.
"They're my friends," Rarity noted, gesturing to the group as a whole, "So… I thought you'd like to meet them," she pointed out, holding her hands together behind her back.
"Mm-hmm," her boss responded, completely uninterested. The fashionista realized that she needed to steer the conversation in a different direction.
"Uhhhh…" she uttered out, followed by widening her eyes as she remembered something, "fun fact – uh, we perform together in a band called the Rainbooms," she told the social media star, much to the embarrassment of some of her friends as they blushed. Hearing that made Vignette finally look up in surprise.
"Rainbooms?" she repeated, "Why is that familiar?" she wondered aloud, "A hundred thousand followers?" she assumed as she furiously tapped on her phone, "Focused consumer-centric demographic, too?" she guessed on, "Does your curated content consistently aggregate across multiple platforms?" she inquired of the group with a smile.
"…I'm sorry… what?" Francis questioned, arching an eyebrow.
"We sing songs together!" Pinkie finally replied for herself and her friends. A sharp gasp left the social media star's lips.
"I am going to turn you into the centerpiece of tonight's light parade!" she decided, much to the surprise of the girls and Rarity's delight.
"Uh… the Rainbooms?" Rainbow inquired with an arched eyebrow, folding her arms underneath her chest.
"Shhh…" Vignette shushed as she zipped up to the athlete and put a finger onto her lips, "Are you ready?" she asked quickly, "BYBB," she spelled out as she wrapped her right arm around Rainbow, almost accidentally hitting Sunset with her phone, "Be yourself, but better!" she exclaimed, shoving the rainbow-haired girl off of her as she started to walk around the group, all while Applejack continued glaring, "That's been my power phrase since I started my first company," the social media star told the others, "A middle school girl selling artisanal handmade mascara," she pointed out, wrapping her arms around the cowgirl and Fluttershy upon approaching them, much to the former's annoyance, "'But isn't that just melted crayons?'" she paraphrased, referring to a complaint she once received, "Heyyy~," she sang, "neighsayers gonna neigh," she remarked as she walked away, "But I say… BYBB," she finished proudly as she stopped and turned away.
"Ugh…" Francis groaned out, "After dealing with her, I just wanna GTFO…" he muttered.
"Dude!" Azari whispered, smacking him on the shoulder with his right hand.
"Um…" Fluttershy uttered out, "how many people will be watching us?" she asked worriedly.
"All of them!" Vignette answered with a clap of her hands, "What do you say?" she inquired of the girls.
"Well, if it's gonna help out Rarity…" Sunset began, followed by a plethora of agreements from her friends, save for Applejack, who merely huffed in frustration.
"Like, like, like, like, like, like," the social media star repeated as she made sure to follow each of the girls on the app upon her phone, "Upload and post it, ladies," she requested, "This'll trend fer sure!" she exclaimed, "I'll at you later with the exact deets," she promised, "BYBB, Rare," she remarked in farewell to the fashionista, who was still smiling as a blush formed on her cheeks, "V, out," she said, walking off.
"That was quite the character…" Torunn noted afterwards as she approached Rarity.
"I know…" she sighed out in response, "She's amazing, right?" she inquired of her and the others.
"She sure is... somethin'…" Applejack grumbled out through clenched teeth, still having her arms folded over her chest.
"Logistical question," Twilight chimed in as she stepped forward, "How're we supposed to get our instruments?" she asked.
"Pfft, kuh!" Rarity scoffed dismissively with a wave of her hands, "Vignette will handle everything," she assured, putting her extremities onto her hips.
"I got a question, too," Applejack said, raising her hand, "When you said she's your 'best friend at the park'," she began to the fashionista, making an air quote gesture with her fingers, "did you mean 'best friend, comma, at the park'?" she inquired.
"Did I say that?" Rarity asked, letting out a light gasp of realization, "Listen, tonight's a huge opportunity," she pointed out, "And not just for me now, but for all of us!" she excitedly mentioned.
"I guess by 'all of us', you mean you and the girls, right?" James assumed, arching an eyebrow.
"Ah, uh, well…" Rarity stammered, clearing her throat to compose herself, "You know what I meant," she stated, enticing the Avenger to roll his eyes.
"Let's go see the park!" Rainbow insisted, zooming off instantaneously and returning with a stick of blue cotton candy. Pinkie pulled out a guide map from her hair, looking it over with Fluttershy. Twilight and Sunset were seeing which attractions they'd want to visit first. All the while, Applejack stood off crossly to the side, looking away. Noticing, the fashionista frowned in annoyance as she walked up to her.
"Honestly, I don't know why you're giving me your frowny eyebrows…" she pointed out, folding her own arms underneath her chest.
"Huh…" the cowgirl sighed as she turned her head away, "It's nothin'…" she claimed as Francis and Torunn watched on from nearby.
"Uhhh, well, uh…" Rarity stuttered, brushing her hair back with her left hand, "enjoy the park!" she remarked, unsure of what else to say as she walked away, "I'm gonna be super-busy preparing for tonight," she noted while checking her phone for updates, "So let's meet in the staging area for sound check and run-throughs," she advised of her bandmates, "I have three minutes' break at four o'clock and I can give you two of them," she told the girls, "BYBB!" she exclaimed with a laugh, "Rare, out!" she yelled as she hurried off.
"Huh…" Applejack sighed sadly. As glad as she was to see Rarity in such high spirits, she really disliked the fact that she had made such a popular friend like Vignette. Not to mention the fact that she seemed to be so absorbed in what she was doing. It made her regret convincing her to take the job a little.
"Well…" Rainbow chimed in as she leaned over to the cowgirl, getting her attention, "looks like Rarity doesn't need us as much as you thought," she pointed out, causing Applejack to look away ashamedly, "So…" she continued.
"Should we practice for the parade?" Fluttershy asked of her friends, while Pinkie put her map back into her hair, "It's a little… daunting, isn't it?" she assumed with a light gasp of realization as to how big of a crowd there was going to be.
"We know every song by heart," Rainbow assured as she zipped over, wrapping her arms around Fluttershy and Pinkie, "Wouldn't you rather go have some fun?" she inquired excitedly while pumping her fists up. Everyone except for Applejack and the multiversal guests cheered in agreement.
"Should we still be sticking with you as usual just for safety's sake?" Azari questioned, chiming into the conversation.
"Oh, that reminds me!" Twilight yelped in realization, taking her backpack off and unzipping it, "I made one for each pair in our party," she noted as she pulled out one of recently made nitrogen bombs, handing it over to Sunset.
"These are the brain freeze bombs?" she inquired, feeling just how cold it was in her hands as she shivered.
"Ooh!" Pinkie exclaimed as she grabbed the rest, handing them off to Rainbow, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Twilight while keeping a pair in her hands.
"This is just a precaution in case one of us happens to run into one of those Black Order guys," the spectacled girl of the group affirmed, adjusting her glasses, "I know how important it is that we not play anything safe," she mentioned with a firm shake of her head.
"Thank you, Twilight," Sunset said in gratitude, "And yeah, we'll stick around in pairs," she confirmed additionally to the others, "That means Rainbow and Deku, Fluttershy and James, Henry and Pinkie, Applejack and Torunn, Twilight and Azari, and me and Laura," she listed off. Hearing her name, the mutant girl huffed, stuffing her hands into the pockets of her denim jacket.
"Guess that means I gotta go back and 'guard' Rarity…" Francis realized as he grabbed one of the nitrogen bombs from Pinkie, putting it into his quiver.
"Uh, I think she's just fine on her own fer now," Applejack assured, chiming into the conversation, "Why don't ya come with me and yer girlfriend?" she offered with a shrug.
"Hmm… that is tempting…" the archer admitted as he gave off a teasing smirk.
"Oh brother…" James grumbled out.
"We shouldn't just leave Rarity by herself if we're so worried about getting ambushed…" Sunset noted.
"But she sounded really busy," Henry chimed in, "Honestly, I think if even one of us was there now, she'd probably lose focus on getting everything done," he told the others.
"Then I'll go with Torunn," Francis decided, wrapping his right arm around the shoulders of his demigoddess girlfriend, "Besides, if anything happens, Rarity'll let us know," he assured with a grin.
"Then off we go!" Rainbow exclaimed as she zipped off instantaneously.
"Hey, wait!" Izuku yelled, making green sparks of energy crackle off of his body as he hurried after the athlete. James and Fluttershy both sauntered off in pursuit.
"Good luck being a third wheel," Azari remarked as he saluted to Applejack, who frowned a little. She took a quiet, deep breath, following the rest of the group as they ventured through Equestria Land. Little did they know that magic was afoot and that they were about to encounter it before tonight's parade…
ROLLERCOAST OF FRIENDSHIP
PART II
People screamed excitedly over the rainbow-themed rollercoaster with cloud-like portions the cars went through. Watching it from below were Rainbow, Izuku, Fluttershy, and James. The aspiring veterinarian of the four shuddered at the noise of everyone screaming, while the athlete was drinking a soda.
"Pretty great, right?!" she called out in question to Fluttershy, getting her attention as she was still shuddering with fright.
"What?!" she yelled back, unable to properly hear her friend.
"Can you hear me over all the screaming?!" she asked loudly as she tried to project her voice.
"I can't hear you over all the screaming!" her shy friend shouted over the noise of the rollercoaster rushing by on the tracks. With it, the noise finally quieted down. "Oh…" Fluttershy uttered out, clutching her guide map to the park tightly in her hands, "I wish I'd gone with Sunset and Twilight. Or Pinkie Pie…" she admitted, "Or… anyone else in the entire park…" she added sheepishly.
"Look at it this way," Rainbow said, getting her attention, "It's the perfect opportunity to conquer your fear!" she pointed out as the rollercoaster cars arrived, coming to a screeching halt.
"Can't I conquer something a little smaller first?" Fluttershy requested, looking through the brochure for something that she could at least stomach in terms of a ride.
"Hey, good idea!" Rainbow agreed as she stood beside her, "A warm-up before the big game!" she noted metaphorically, "Ooh! What did you have in mind?" she asked excitedly, "Dragon Lands Drag Racing?" she guessed, "Ooh, the Appleloosa Runaway Train!" she pointed out, "Ooh, Neighagara Falls Barrel Flume?!" she inquired, hoping that would be her friend's ultimate choice.
"Mm-mm," she responded with a shake of her head, smiling upon spotting one particular attraction and pointing to it. Moments later… "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" she shrieked… riding in the last car of a kid-friendly coaster with Rainbow as they just went over one of the small drops. The shy girl hyperventilated, calming herself down. "Oh…" she uttered out, seeing how excited the passengers seated in front of them were, "these kids are so brave…" she noted proudly.
"Ugh…" her athletic friend groaned in frustration, putting her right hand onto her face.
"Well, that's one way to have a warmup…" James noted as he shrugged, sipping on a soda as he and Izuku were watching the girls from afar.
"From what I know, Missus Regulus is a lot less scared of these kinds of things in the future," the freckled teen pointed out, putting his hand onto his chin, "I know one of my classmates got to meet her during our multiverse assignments that one time…" he mentioned curiously.
"At least she's working herself up to it," the Avenger said, earning a grin of agreement from his colleague. However, he then sheepishly rubbed the back of his head upon remembering something.
"So, um…" he started to say, getting James' attention, "what was thing Barton was saying about you having a… sister complex?" he inquired curiously. The Avenger's eyes bulged open as he spat out his soda in surprise.
"I don't have a sister complex!" he argued.
"I-I wasn't saying you did!" Izuku stammered in claim, waving his hands frantically, "I'm just wondering why the others think that…" he affirmed.
"Huh…" James sighed, calming down, "Before Barton came along, Torunn, Azari and Pym were basically family," he told the One For All inheritor, who blinked in surprise, "So yeah, I kinda thought of Torunn as my sister… and didn't want her to get heartbroken or whatever…" he admitted on, blushing a little out of embarrassment.
"You really do care about her," Izuku realized with a smile.
"…Yeah, guess I do," James confirmed in response, "Maybe I oughta' tone it down though…" he assumed, sharing a chuckle with his colleague. They heard Fluttershy scream yet again, enticing them to look and see that the mini rollercoaster had traversed the small drop once more, all while Rainbow rolled her eyes in frustration. Elsewhere in the park, Applejack had just arrived at the prep area with Francis and Torunn behind her.
"So… where's that big ol' sword yer always carryin'?" the cowgirl asked of the demigoddess, getting her attention. She cracked a small grin, extending her right hand out as the umbrella upon her back flew out to it. "Oh," Applejack uttered in surprise as she blinked.
"My father helped teach me how cast an illusionary spell in order to disguise Megingjord in public," Torunn explained, setting the umbrella onto her back again, "No fiend will ever expect that it is my fabled sword," she affirmed on confidently.
"Got good tricks, beautiful," her boyfriend complimented, making her giggle. Applejack grinned, rolling her eyes. Now she knew what Azari meant when he said that she'd be a third wheel to the couple. A moment later, they entered one of the prep buildings to find Rarity hard at work, delegating task after task to the performers and workers.
"Rarity!" the cowgirl called out, getting her attention.
"Oh, there you are!" she exclaimed in greeting as she quickly skipped over to her and the others, "I'm so glad you could come and see just how insane this all is…" she mentioned with a nervous chuckle as she looked around at what had already been done.
"Sure seems like it…" Francis muttered in agreement as they walked alongside her.
"This parade is a living, breathing dance of light and sound!" she exclaimed with excitement in her tone. A trio of her assistants then approached with materials of their own for her to inspect. "Love it, lock it, stitch it," she quickly told them. Before she could continue her conversation with her guests, her assistants zipped back over with more designs for the fashionista to look at. "Beautiful, perfect, I just threw up, love it," she quickly commented to the group's surprise as they kept walking onward, "Now hurry up! I need these done yesterday!" she insisted of her employ.
"My word…" Torunn uttered, "You are quite dedicated to this role…" she pointed out.
"Yeah, you were born for this, Rarity," Applejack complimented, "Anythin' I can do to help?" she asked as they came to a stop.
"Play a great show tonight?" the fashionista requested, placing her left hand onto Applejack's shoulder.
"And what shall we do?" Torunn inquired curiously for herself and her boyfriend.
"Be a great crowd!" Rarity insisted in reply with a bright smile and two thumbs up.
"Eh, guess that's not so bad…" Francis admitted with a shrug as his arms were crossed. At that moment, the fashionista took notice of something that made her widen her eyes in abject disgust.
"Excuse me!" she exclaimed angrily as she turned to the culprit in question, "I know I am not seeing a lapped zipper on that faux fur!" she yelled to an assistant that was dressed as what looked like a yellow seahorse with a red gemstone upon its chest. The assistant lowered her head from inside with shame. "A lapped zipper is simply a stuck zipper waiting to happen!" Rarity pointed out emphatically in frustration, "Ugh!" she groaned into the air, "This is what I'm up against," she noted to her colleagues while gesturing to her assistants bumbling about. She then walked off.
"So, uh…" Applejack began, "wanna take a break and go get a caramel apple?" she offered, motioning to the exit.
"I'd love to, darling," Rarity started to respond as she was checking more things that her assistants were showing her, "but I am a tad super-insanely busy…" she pointed out with a nervous chuckle.
"Of course," the cowgirl noted in reply as she raised her hands in a placating manner, "I-I just thought…" she stammered out, glancing off to the side as she rubbed her left arm, "Uh, never mind," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand, "You're right," she realized, "I wouldn't wanna rain on your parade," she confirmed with a small smile.
"Rain?!" the fashionista repeated in shock, grabbing at both sides of her head, "I didn't plan for rain!" she realized in a panic, grabbing an approaching assistant by her shoulders, "Get me one hundred ponchos, stat!" she screamed demandingly while shaking her, running off afterwards.
"…Yikes…" Francis uttered out.
"She seems… quite unwell…" Torunn noted as looked on in concern.
"I'm sure it's just the stress o' the job," Applejack chimed in, "Y'all wanna get caramel apples with me?" she offered to the two Avengers.
"I am curious to know one's taste," the demigoddess replied with a small smile.
"Yeah, we're down," Francis confirmed. As they started to walk off, the cowgirl looked back at Rarity, who was frantically getting things together quickly as she could. With her being so busy, she wouldn't be able to enjoy the fair with her friends. And that saddened Applejack.
X
"Whoa…" Izuku uttered, making sure he was securely buckled in his seat on the sky-themed rollercoaster, sitting next to James. In the car in front of them were Fluttershy and Rainbow. The former of the two girls was trembling with fright. Giving in to her friend's insistence, she was now on the ride she dreaded the most.
"I'm proud of you," the athlete said to her shy and scared friend, "You know that?" she inquired, putting a reassuring hand onto her shoulder as she was holding onto the handlebar with both hands for dear life, "You're facing your fears head-on," Rainbow pointed out, "Just like I always did as a kid," she boasted as Fluttershy clenched her eyes shut, "I mean, look," her athletic friend continued as she leaned over to get a better look of the rollercoaster they were about to fully experience, "a four-hundred-foot vertical drop right into these loop-de-loops and a corkscrew?" she listed off. And suddenly, she started getting nervous at how high up they were, widening her eyes as she sat back down in her seat. "You're probably super-nervous about that, I bet…" she quickly noted, crossing her arms over her chest and trying to act collected, "Heh…" she laughed anxiously, "And that next part where it goes backwards?" she mentioned, feeling a little more panicked, "Uh… how are you feeling… Fluttershy?" she asked with an awkward smile, seeing her shy friend frightfully clench her teeth as her eyes remained shut.
"Um, is everything okay, Rainbow?" James asked, getting the athlete's attention.
"Y-Y-Yeah!" she stammered in reply as she looked back him and Izuku, "N-Never felt better!" she claimed with a stutter… right before turning around to grip the handlebar like the girl beside her. At that moment, a squawking seagull flew by to her surprise. "Is it even safe to be this high up?" she wondered aloud, "You're probably thinking, 'Stop the ride! I want to get off!'" she assumed of Fluttershy, who still had her eyes shut, "That's what you want, right?" she guessed as they were about to make the drop, "Right now?! You're about to yell it?!" she questioned frantically, bracing herself against the seat, "Stop the ride!" she screamed, "Seriously! Please, somebody stop the ride!" she yelled on, "STOP THE RIIIIIIIDE!" she shrieked as the rollercoaster made all the twists, turns, and loop-de-loops before finally arriving back at the station.
Needless to say, it seemed like Rainbow and Fluttershy had switched demeanors during the whole ride. The former looked traumatized as she tightly gripped the handlebar, while the latter was smiling gleefully. Izuku and James seemed content, getting out of their seats once the handlebar automatically went up. They watched as an attendant had to help the rainbow-haired girl out of her seat once she was unbuckled, bumbling onto the platform as her legs wobbled.
"Uh, are you—?"
"I'm good…" she claimed, interrupting the One For All inheritor. A moment later, the group of four exited through the cloud-shaped entrance to the rollercoaster, with Rainbow stumbling out in a dizzied state.
"That was actually kind of… fun!" Fluttershy admitted with a giggle.
"Totally!" Rainbow agreed as she was still trying to find her equilibrium, "That's why I didn't want to get off!" she claimed as she gestured to herself with her right thumb, "I was just saying what you would've said…" she mentioned, letting out a nervous laugh, "That's all," she said. The shy girl gave her an understanding grin, knowing that she had been scared during the ordeal.
"You were very brave," she complimented, putting a hand onto her friend's shoulder as her legs were still wobbling.
"Heh…" she chuckled out, blushing as she rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, "You, too... by the way…" she added in reply, taking a few steps forward to regain her balance… only to fall flat on her face.
"Miss Dash!" Izuku exclaimed, quickly going over to pick her up.
"Ugh…" she groaned, "Okay… definitely need to sit down…" she realized in frustration. Fluttershy giggled at the sight. Just then, she heard her phone ring as it buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and accessed the notification.
"Hmmm…" she hummed curiously, raising an eyebrow.
"What's up?" James asked. She showed him the notification she received, causing him to blink in surprise. "Hey, Deku!" he called out, getting the freckled teen's attention as he wrapped Rainbow's left arm over his shoulders, "Can you and Rainbow wait for us here?" he requested, "Fluttershy and I gotta check up on something," he told him.
"Is everything okay?" the One For All inheritor asked in concern.
"Oh, I don't think it's much for you to worry about," Fluttershy assured with a shake of her head, "We'll be back soon!" she promised, heading off alongside the Avenger.
"Ugh…" Rainbow groaned out, "Bye…" she said, weakly waving in farewell. Izuku sighed, helping walk her over to a nearby concession stand. He had yet to realize that their colleagues were about to end up in an unkind situation…
X
"Jeez… this place is huge…" Francis noted as he, Applejack and Torunn were trekking about the rest of Equestria Land, "And I've been here a few days…" he mentioned, folding his arms over his chest. The cowgirl was looking through the map on the brochure she had. She was growling with frustration as she couldn't find the one stand where she wanted to go. Ultimately, she crumpled the map and stuffed it away in her pocket.
"Perhaps I could search from the skies?" the demigoddess suggested as she approached beside her.
"Uh…" she uttered.
"Probably better to not make a scene, beautiful," Francis advised, getting her attention, "We don't want those Black Order guys to know we're here…" he pointed out. His girlfriend arched an eyebrow.
"Yet you flaunt your bow and arrows…" she noted.
"Hey, these could be for those target games they have at carnivals," her boyfriend claimed, causing her to chuckle as she rolled her eyes.
"Apples!" a familiar voice called out, causing the trio to perk up as they finally took notice of the caramel apple stand. And manning the booth was none other than Micro. "Caramel apples over here!" he yelled, holding up a red-candied treat, "We've got red and green and everything in between!" he remarked loudly as he grabbed another apple to show the people nearby.
"Uh… wasn't the job for a caramel apple girl?" Francis asked of Applejack, who seemed completely baffled.
"Micro Chips?" she said, approaching the stand. The nerdy teen took notice of her.
"Caramel apple?" he offered with a smile
"Uh… Applejack," the cowgirl responded, thinking he had forgotten her name for a moment, "You're who they hired to be the caramel apple… girl?" she inquired, quite shocked by the revelation. And also a little disturbed.
"Vignette said she wanted cool nerd chic," Micro told her in reply, "I'd say she found it," he boasted as he gestured to himself and his apple-themed outfit, "Wouldn't you?" he assumed with a smirk.
"Uh… sure, pal…" Francis responded, watching as the nerdy teen put the apple in his hand into the bucket of caramel to coat it. However, it got stuck, forcing him to grunt as he tried to pull his way out. He did so successfully, but at the expense of getting other caramel apples stuck to him around the stand. All the others could do was watch on, hearing the clattering and splatting as Micro found himself covered with caramel and candied apples.
"Ahem…" he coughed, clearing his throat, "Do you by any chance have a knife or samurai sword or several tiny but very sharp nail clippers?" he asked of the trio before him as he attempted to pull the caramel off of himself. Applejack just shook her head, while Francis rolled his eyes. Meanwhile, Torunn took notice of James and Fluttershy walking by behind them with Vignette.
"Hey, what are they up to?" she wondered aloud, causing her colleagues to look over and spot them as well.
"Eh, the chick's probably giving her pointers for the show tonight," the archer assumed with a mere shrug, "I mean, she's the shy one, isn't she?" he inquired.
"Perhaps we can ask them about it after we assist our friend here…" Torunn suggested, gesturing toward the struggling Micro.
"Yeah," Applejack agreed as they went over to the booth. Meanwhile, Vignette was leading Fluttershy and James to a section of the park with a sweets-based theme. She had been the one who contacted the shy girl earlier, wanting to talk about an idea she generated.
"I know what you're thinking," the social media star said, having her hands upon Fluttershy's shoulders as they walked along, "'But, Vignette, how can I ever thank you for coming up with such a brilliant idea for the parade?'" she paraphrased dramatically.
"Uh…" James uttered, walking beside them.
"I don't understand…" Fluttershy admitted as she brushed her hair back shyly, "You want me to pretend I'm someone else tonight?" she inquired of the social media star as her arm was still wrapped around her shoulders.
"Everyone in the band has a new role," she told the aspiring veterinarian as they came to a stop, putting her hands onto her shoulders, "It's part of my BOLD, NEW VISION!" she exclaimed while getting way too close for Fluttershy's comfort, "All caps, Helvetica, sixty-five," Vignette mentioned, "'Fluttershy: Bad Girl'," she proposed, "Spiked hair, ripped tights. I've already commissioned an A-list graffiti-slash-sneaker artist to tag up a custom guitar," she quickly explained to the shy girl's shock and horror, showing her some templates on her phone "How do you feel about skulls?" she inquired finally. Fluttershy was just flabbergasted. The idea of taking on such an image for the parade… was not ideal. "B…Y…B…B," Vignette slowly spelled out for her, "And your boyfriend can join in, too!" she mentioned to James' surprise, "I'll commission some new materials for him, and you'll be the baddest of bad couples!" she proclaimed excitedly.
"Okay, hold the phone," the Avenger chimed in, awkwardly clearing his throat upon realizing that social media star was actually serious about the idea, "I'm not her boyfriend or in the band…" he pointed out, "It's fine for me if I just watch…" he mentioned as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"And uh, maybe I, um…" Fluttershy started to say as she looked away for a moment, backing up a step, "shouldn't do it…" she admitted, "At all," she added quietly. There was an awkward moment of silence as Vignette frowned for a second, but she then cracked a small smirk, which James noticed.
"You're right," she said, "If collab-ing isn't your thing, that's your life decision to make," she pointed out as she walked over to the pair, "But I just thought of a way for us both to get exactly what we want," she affirmed confidently, placing her hand onto the shy girl's shoulder.
"You did?" she questioned, quite surprised but glad that she hadn't hurt the feelings of the social media star.
"Of course!" she exclaimed in reply, "Getting what I want is what I do best, sweetie," she boasted, "Now say 'cheese!'" she requested, holding up her phone to aim the camera lens at Fluttershy. She snapped the picture with a flash of light, causing the aspiring veterinarian to suddenly transform into a hologram that was sucked into the phone.
"Fluttershy?!" James yelled in shock, widening his eyes.
"Sorry, Fluttershy," Vignette apologized, "You'll thank me later," she remarked confidently with a shrug, about to leave.
"Hey!" the Avenger shouted, getting her attention as she stopped and glanced back at him, "What did you just do her?!" he questioned angrily before lunging out at the social media star. Unfortunately, she whipped her phone out quickly and snapped a picture, causing him to morph into a hologram that was also sucked in.
"Hm," she huffed with a grin, "A nice little bonus," she noted to herself, walking off.
"Whoa!" James yelped as he stumbled to a stop, finding himself within a vast white space, "Where the heck am I?" he asked aloud.
"James!" Fluttershy's voice called out, getting his attention as he turned to see her there.
"Oh, Fluttershy…" he breathed out in relief, "You're okay," he noted with a smile.
"But… where are we?" the shy girl questioned, hearing her voice echo.
"No idea…" James replied as he shook his head, "But it had something to do with Vignette's phone…" he remembered, "You know anything?" he inquired of Fluttershy.
"Mm-mm," she responded with a shake of her head.
"Huh…" James sighed, turning around… and almost tripping over a salad bowl, "Whoa!" he yelped, managing to find his balance. Fluttershy came over and arched an eyebrow curiously.
"Vignette, are you there?" she called out in question as her voice still echoed, "Do you mind if I eat this salad?" she asked aloud, "I'm… feeling stressed…" she admitted, going down onto her knees.
"You and me both…" James agreed, sitting beside her. With no idea where they were, all they could do hope was someone would be able to find them soon…
Already, Vignette's picking off our heroes and heroines one by one. Only time will tell if she can get everything she wants for tonight's parade. But I suppose we'll have to wait and see…
Until next time, this is Xiaomei, signing off!
END
Man, I haven't written short chapters like this is a long while. Next few should be better, but I didn't really have much to work with from the adaptation itself. As I said, this isn't a story in the Equestria Girls I'm particularly fond of.
Anyways, we're back to "The Challenge of a Lifetime" starting next week! There'll be a brand new opening and ending to celebrate the penultimate arc up ahead!