Arpeggio - Chapter 5 Pt. 2: Dig a Pony

>"But Anon, there's just one problem."

"And what would that be?"

>"We don't have tickets and they cost 50 bits a piece!"

>You cringe from your victory pose you had taken once you thought the plan had been completely formed

"Okay, that -may- be a problem...Rainbow, how much money you got?"

>She shakes her head

>"Sorry, Anon. Weather patrol doesn't pay much at all. They only pay big to Unicorn ponies who help with magic."

"That's a bummer. Twi, you have any cash?"

>"The only source of income I have is Princess Celestia. And I only get it when she commissions me for research. And even then I -only- use it for new books and materials."

"Well that's a bummer. I'm not even sure how much money -I've- got."

>You sit on Twilight's bed and place your head in your hands

>Think...Think...Think...

>Alright, the last time you checked you saved up about 30 bits for grocery shopping a couple weeks ago

>...Then you went grocery shopping

>Any change left over?

>...

>It should be...sitting in your undies drawer wrapped in your favorite pair

>You did buy quite a load of groceries, though. There may not be much change left

>Anything is better than nothing, you suppose

>You stand from the bed. Twilight and Rainbow look to you

"Alright you two, we're going to need to find a way to make 150 bits in one day. Twilight, check that paper for odd-jobs that need doing. Rainbow, check the bulletin board at City Hall for any work as well."

>"That sounds good."

>Twilight yawns

>"It's kind of late. And we have one day before we actually -do- this. Let's all just get a good night's sleep so we can get started on this tomorrow."

"Alright, I'm fine with that. Rainbow?"

>She nods

>"Goodnight, you two."

"Night, Twilight."

>"Later, Twi."

>You exit the library with Dash

>It's really dark outside

>Almost pitch-black thanks to a large patch of clouds passing in front of the moon

>You begin walking along, the sound of flapping wings close behind you

>After a few second you feel a tug on your shirt

>"Hey, Anon. It's really dark and I'm kinda worried about getting home. Think I could stay at your place tonight?"

"The fearless Rainbow Dash is worried about flying in the dark?"

>"Hey, I don't even know if I'd make it home if I flew home right now. Besides, if it were anyp0ny else I wouldn't be askin'."

>She's right

>If someone besides you were walking with her she might've flown off by now

>You laugh

"Of course."

 

>The walk back took less time than the walk to the library

>You turn the knob and push your door open, leaving it open for Dash

>Dash closes the door behind her as you make your way upstairs, the clopping of hooves following you

>You enter your room and walk around the bed to the guitar stands, taking Nelson from your torso and sitting him on the empty stand next to Cyrus

>You pull your shirt off and pull off your hair tie, jumping into bed and closing your eyes

>Your door creaks slightly and is shut

>Wind blows upon your face as you hear the fluttering of wings pass over you

>Rainbow then allows herself to drop on the bed

>She promptly begins to wrap herself up in the blankets, not leaving much for you

>You grab one end of the blanket and pull hard in your direction

>This causes Dash to roll into your side

>You wrap an arm around her as she gets comfy

>She rests her head on your chest

>"Don't try any funny business, y'hear?"

"Only if you want me to, Dash."

>You both share a laugh before you close your eyes and bury your head in your pillow

 

                            --------------------------------------------

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BokEvEqiVA

>A bright light from your window shines upon your eyes

>You open your eyes only to cringe and cover your face from the source of the light

>Lo and behold, it's the sun

>You uncover your face once your eyes adjust and yawn

>Today's the plan of action

>Today's the plan of valor

>Today you get yourself some damn money to attend a concert

>You sigh and look over to your right

>Rainbow Dash is still fast asleep

>Somehow she kept from stealing the blankets in the night

>You smile and get up from bed

>You walk over to your drawers and open the top one. Your underwear drawer

>You search and find the plain black pair of boxer briefs, unwrapping them

>The undergarments reveal a small sack which you pick up and open

>Five bits...great

>A thirtieth of the way there

>You shrug and grab some clothes from the drawers

>Screw showering today. There's important work to be done

>You walk over to the windowsill and grab your hair tie, tying your hair into a p0nytail

>You pull up your pants and socks and throw on a shirt before nudging Rainbow

"Hey...Dash...Wake up, dude. Important stuff today."

>She doesn't wake up

"C'mon Dash...we need to get going."

>She still doesn't wake up

>You place a hand on her shoulder and shake her a few times before she groans and moves away from you

>You cross your arms

"Well, if that's the way we're doing it."

>You sigh and walk over to Cyrus, grabbing him and plugging him up to the amplifier and adjusting his sounds while softly singing lyrics from a favorite song of yours

 

"Hey lady..you got the love I need

Maybe more than enough.

Oh Darlin', Darlin', Darlin'... walk a while with me

You've got so much... So much..So much.."

 

>You finish adjusting the knobs on the amp

>You turn up the volume a bit before slamming chords out

>You sing out the lyrics just for the hell of it

 

"Many have I loved! Many times been bitten!

Many times I've gazed along the open road!"

 

>Dash jumped from the bed to the ceiling, shaking slightly

>You muted the guitar strings and watched her survey the room like a cracked out bird before spotting you with Cyrus and fluttering back down to the bed

>You stifle a laugh. Rainbow notices and glares at you for a second

>"That wasn't funny, Anon."

>You shrug

"Sorry, Dash. But when there's important work to be done, we can't be held up. Especially by sleep."

>She lets up her glare and sighs

>"Sorry about that. Should we get going then?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

 

>You both walk through town on the way to the library, Nelson on your back

>You had just passed through the marketplace when Rainbow spoke

>"So Anon. Why do you carry -that- instrument around all the time?"

"Nelson."

>"Huh?"

"His name's Nelson."

>"You named your guitar?"

"As I do with all my other instruments."

>"But...why?"

"I dunno, honestly. I just feel a deep connection with them all. When the music flows through me I just...lose my self and feel that I can't do anything this awesome without my...friends. Yes. They're like a group of friends that help me make beautiful music."

>Rainbow seems to ponder on this for a few seconds

>"That's really nice, Anon."

"Yeah...it is, isn't it?"

>You smile at her as you both walk up to the library

>Before you can knock the door flies open

>You sidestep a purple pony before she nearly runs into you

>She halts her advance a few feet after she passes you up, realizing who she almost blew off

>"Anon, Rainbow! I figured out exactly how we're getting into the concert!"

"Awesome. Lay it on us."

>She moves back to the doorway of the library and her horn glows before the newspaper from the night before is levitated to your face

>On the classifieds section there are several articles that are circled red with a number next to each

>On the bottom right of the page are the figures added up completely, equaling the 150 bits you require to get the three of you in the concert

>"As you can see, if we do all of these jobs we'll have the exact amount we need!"

"Twilight, this is brilliant! I'm sure it took some time to do this."

>"Actually it only took me twenty minutes."

>This mare

"Well, we've got our plan then. Let's get started on this list."

 

>Twilight had cleverly created two lists out of the job listings

>One for her and one for you and Rainbow

>Twilight set off to complete her list

>"Alright, Anon. What's first?"

"Let's see here..."

>You look through the list

>The first thing that catches your eye is window washing

>Seems easy enough

>Thankfully there were so many ponies requesting the job it had a category of its own

"Alright, Dash. We gotta wash windows around P0nyville, starting at Town Hall."

>"I guess we better get to it, then."

"Yep."

>You both make your way to Town Hall

 

>You enter the building, immediately greeted by the Mayor

>"Hi there, you must be here for the job."

>You give her a confused look

>Either she's very busy or she really needs this job done desperately

>You assume the former

"We sure are, ma'am. Just point us in the right direction and we'll get started."

>"Splendid! My secretary here will give you the materials you need. Now you'll need to start here and work your way around to Twilight Sparkle's Library-"

"Wait...we're going -that- far?"

>"Well..yes. This job has been needing someone to do it for a while now. The requests just start to pile up, you understand."

>With a blank stare you just nod

>"And with two of you it should be done in no time!"

>You nod again, still staring blankly

>"Well I have some papers that need signing, so just come by for payment when you're finished."

>You nod once again

>The Mayor's secretary produces two sponges and a bucket from under her desk

>Rainbow flies over and grabs them with her front hooves

>You leave Town hall, Rainbow in tow

>You stand outside the building

>Rainbow hands you a sponge and sets the bucket on the ground

>"So how're we gonna do this?"

>After some careful thought, and hopeful thinking, you reply

"I think I've got an idea."

 

>After nearly breaking several windows, you finally established a system of window washing with Dash

>It consisted of you quickly wiping them down with both sponges then moving on to the next while Dash super-dried them with her wing power

>Thanks to this, you had finished the job pretty quickly

>You and Rainbow ran back to town hall to get your payment right after finishing the last house, which happened to be Twilight's library

>The Mayor graciously recieved you both and handed you a sack of bits

>You pocketed them and moved on to your next job site

>Applejack needed help at Sweet Apple Acres

>Rainbow followed close behind as you made your way onto the farm

>You were about to knock on the door when you heard the sound of hooves knocking the shit out of a tree

>Applejack was in the orchard

>You made your way over to her location as soon as you spotted her

>She bucked another tree before noticing you and Rainbow

>"Howdy you two. What brings ya'll 'round here?"

"Hey, AJ. We read in the paper you needed help with a job?"

>"Sure do. Big Mac's done and gotten himself injured again-"

"Again? How the hell does he always do this to himself?"

>"Yer guess is as good as mine, sugarcube. Anyhow, the apple cellar needs some renovations on the shelves. Second, our barn is fallin' apart. We need that ta be taken down so a new one can be built."

"Sounds cool. You wanna take care of the shelves first, Rainbow?"

>"Yeah. Get the boring stuff out of the way first."

>"Ya'll can find the tools in the cellar itself."

"Gotcha."

>You both make your way to the apple cellar

 

>It's dark in here, but thanks to the open door and several candles there's enough light to work

>You begin by grabbing a hammer. Rainbow hands you nails as you grab the shelves and hold them in the right position

>You place the brackets holding the shelves at just the right spots and hammer them in the wall before moving onto the next set of shelves

>This goes on for a while until the job's finished

>Relatively easy work. Not really difficult

>An easy first half of the job, in your book

>But now the fun part begins

>You and Rainbow exit the apple cellar and catch Applejack just as she's leaving the orchard

"Job's done, Applejack."

>"Alright, now all ya'll need ta do is break down that there barn so ah can pay ya."

>You nod before she tells you to grab the tools from inside the cellar

>Both you and Rainbow grab a pair of goggles

>You take a sledgehammer and hang it over your shoulder

>Rainbow quickly flies out of the cellar while you follow her outside

>She's already taking shots at it, flying into it wildly and breaking it apart while making it look easy

>You quickly run up and begin slamming away at the supports

>You break a few down, watching as the barn sort of wobbled with its own weight being pushed around on the dwindling support

>Rainbow shouts at you before she flies high in the air

>"Anon! Get some cover! This is gonna be a doozy!"

>You comply, running and jumping in a nearby ditch next to a tree

>You creep your head over the edge of the ditch, watching as Rainbow began a steep dive straight at the barn

>She soon collided with it, creating a giant rainbow-mushroom-cloud and sending debris flying

>Thankfully none of it collided with the Apple family home

>That would've been pretty bad

>After a bit of clean-up, Applejack gives you a sack of bits with a smile

>Confirmation of a job well-done

>As you're exiting the farm, Rainbow speaks

>"So what's next, Anon?"

>You check over the list

>Only...one more job? That's a relief

>All the relief leaves your body once you read the description, though

>"Anon?"

"We have to test new cupcakes at Sugarcube Corner."

>"Oh, cool! The Cakes' should have some good ones ready!"

"That's just the thing. It's not the Cakes' cupcakes."

 

>"HI YOU GUYS!"

>You and Rainbow both utter a reply, not ready for Pinkie's antics

>"OMIGOSH, IHOPEDSOMEP0NYWOULDHELPBUTIDIDN'TGETJUSTANP0NYIGOTACOUPLEOFMYBESTFRIENDSTOHELPMEYOU'REGOINGTOLOVE-"

"Uh, Pinkie?"

>"Yeeeeeees?"

>She moves closer to you as she extends her 'yes'

"Could we test these cupcakes, today please?"

>"Of course, silly. Why do you think you're here."

>You decide not to pursue this mare's logic

>She zips to the kitchen at speeds unknown to you and comes back just as quick with a tray of four strange multi-colored cupcakes

>You grab a cupcake and examine it

>The frosting decorates the top in a rainbow theme. Even the cupcake itself has a rainbow color scheme

>You shrug and bring it to your mouth, taking a bite

>Pinkie looks to you in anticipation

>Her eyes start to widen before she breaks into a smile

>You look to Rainbow. She's just staring in disbelief

"Uh...is there something on my face?"

>They don't respond. You shrug and move your hand to wipe off whatever's on your face

>Your rainbow colored hand...wait...what?

>You look at your entire arm to see that it's moving between different shades in the color spectrum

"Uh...Pinkie?" You say, still looking at your arm. "How long's this supposed to last?"

>She brings out a clipboard and quill from nowhere, writing something down

>"Not too long. Don't worry, Anon. The effect should go away soon enough!"

>She smiled in an attempt to reassure you

>It didn't help

>Rainbow looked at the cupcake for a moment

>"Hey, Anon. Let me try that."

"Uh, alright."

>You hold the cupcake out, which Rainbow promptly chomps out of your hand

>Her mane and tail turn completely white for a few seconds before her rainbow color seems to fizzle back

"That was interesting."

>"Alright, next up!" Pinkie says

>You looked to Rainbow, motioning towards the tray with your eyes

>"What?"

"C'mon, dude. We're in this together."

>She eyes a green and purple cupcake uneasily before grabbing it in a hoof and munching it whole

>A few seconds pass

>"Feel any different?"

>"Not real-"

>Suddenly her mane and coat changed green and purple respectively

>Her cutie mark had also become a piccolo

>She reeled back from her new colors, but laughed nervously hoping the effect would dispel any moment

>Two more cupcakes...

>Pinkie looked up from her clipboard before eyeing you with a smile

>"Alright. Anon's next."

 

>About ten minutes worth of testing later, you and Rainbow walk out of Sugarcube Corner; bag of bits sitting in your pocket

>Rainbow's color hadn't changed yet. She was starting to get worried

>It was nothing compared to your new pony ears, blue tail, and muzzle

>The muzzle was slowly becoming more flat, hopefully a sign that the effect was going away

>"Anon...when's my color coming back?"

"I'm not sure, Dash. But don't worry about it. The effect shouldn't last for much longer."

>"I hope so..."

>You put an arm over Dash to hopefully lessen her worry

>She leans against you a bit while you walk

>You both slowly make your way to the library

>When you make it, you knock on the door a few times

>Or you would have if Twilight didn't open the door and pull you both in as soon as the first knock hit the door

>She looked at you both expectantly

>"Well?"

"Oh! Right."

>You pull out the bags of bits before Twilight's aura surrounds them and brings them to her desk

>She brings out a few other bit bags and she empties the contents of them all onto the desk

>A large pile of bits sits on the table before you

>Twilight turns to look at the both of you

>"Okay. I'll count these and get the tickets tonight."

"You sure you want to do this alone, Twi?"

>"Don't worry, Anon. I'll get this done quicker than you think."

"Alright..well I'm going home to get some sleep. Don't stay up too late working on this, alright?"

>"I've got this under control."

>She gives a determined look before getting to work on counting the bits

"G'night, Twi."

>"Good night you two."

>You begin the trek to your home, glad that your part in today's events has been done

>Now all that remains is to attend the concert

>Rainbow gives off a somber sigh

>You drape an arm over again to help take her mind off of her coat

>"So...do ya mind if I stay at your place again so we can see Twilight first thing tomorrow?"

>"Rainbow, you wouldn't happen to be developing a thing for me would you?"

>You chuckle to show her you're joking

>"No way! Anon...you're like a brother to me."

>You look down at her in surprise before smiling and pulling her closer

"That makes me oddly happy."

>"Whaddya mean?"

"I mean, I think I like having a p0ny for a sister."

>Rainbow laughs

 

>You make in inside your home and trudge upstairs, tired from today's events

>As soon as you make it in your room, you fall on the bed after putting Nelson back on his stand

>Rainbow follows suit seconds later and before you know it you're out...