lincolnshirepony

Blue Note had a great time at the sing-a-long. Broadhay stars performed, show tunes were sung, and the holiday was celebrated. The musical community of Manehatten united under the joys of friendship and unity. She enjoyed the togetherness, and even found herself singing along. The afternoon had been truly spectacular. Now, came the part that made her the most nervous...

Blue Note entirely missed Sterling's attempt to pay for her meal as she dug out ten of her own bits. "Here's the money for my meal," she said, pushing it towards Chemm. She looked at Sterling's 15 bits obliviously. Was he really going to leave Chemm a 25% tip? That was a lot, even for quality service.

"Yes," Blue Note said. "Will you bring the check, or do we pay at the counter?" Blue Note was eager to move on to the next portion of the day. The sooner she could put this rude waitress behind her, the better. There were far more important things to be attended to.

"Don't worry about it," Blue Note said, taking a final bite. A portion of her salad remained unfinished, but she was full. "It certainly was excellent food." She wondered idly how long it would take for Chemm to bring the check. Would she keep them waiting out of spite, or would be she eager to get rid of them?

Blue Note joined the others in their confusion. The pieces of the puzzle were not fitting together. If they were both on the side of the princesses, a miscommunication must have occurred somewhere down the line. She and Sterling had missed being personally tasked to find the assassin by the mayor, only warned of his presence. She realized that she did not know anything of motives of the pony before her. It seemed that he was against the mayor, and believed the mayor to be against the princesses. Somepony had to be in the wrong somewhere.

Well, it appears I've been summoned here again, and the answer I gave last time is woefully outdated, so here's round two: Forum Crush: If I borrow @Sterling Crimson's criteria of friendship, then he's it for me as well! Pony Crush: I don't have an actual crush on any of the ponies. Um... Twilight Sparkle is my favorite pony though? IRL Crush: No one at the moment. The closest thing I have to a crush is the attractive waiter at a restaurant I occasionally go to. I always I hope I get one of his tables.

Blue Note was barely a quarter of the way done with her own salad. "And I thought I was hungry," she said. She continued eating her food, savoring how fantastic the dressing was. "I wish I could afford to eat here more," Blue Note said. "This is delicious." She continued to eating until she felt full. "They're generous with the portions too."

"You're really hungry, aren't you," Blue Note said. Sterling was devouring his salad. Her stomach was still rumbling, so she couldn't blame him. She leaned down to take several dainty bites. "I'm famished." She continued to eat her salad, and found it to be enjoyable. "The food here isn't so bad."

"Best Hearth's Warming ever!" she said. "The pageant was spectacular. I prefer the Broadhay actors to the celebrity casting of Canterlot." There was a lot about Manehatten she preferred to Canterlot. The company she was able to keep being the most important thing. "And building a snow pony in Central Park was fun. More fun than I've had in awhile."

"House salad," Blue Note said briskly. She did not feel like exchanging pleasantries. At least she didn't make any rude comments; that would have sent Blue Note over the edge. Instead, Blue Note tried to think about the fun that was still in store for the day. Going to see musical numbers would be a highlight for sure.

"Eh, whatever. She's stuck here working, and we're having a good day," Blue Note said. She looked down at the menu. "I wonder if the house salad is any good." She didn't want to think about stuck up ponies; she much preferred thinking about Heath's Warming. However, had she thought a little more about the spirit of the holiday, she may have been perceptive enough to wonder why Chemm was working on Hearth's Warming instead of celebrating. Had the full context of the holiday occurred to her, she may have even questioned if her hostility was the best way to deal with her rude classmates.

"It's no mystery why," Blue Note said, glaring at her as she walked off. "Her customer service skills are terrible. She's certainly not getting a big tip from me. Is she jealous of you or something?" Blue Note was no stranger to irrational dislike, but she had yet to understand it entirely. Some ponies just seemed like they were born disliking everything and everypony.

@Sterling Crimson "Be careful," Blue Note whispered. She slowly edged back to Sterling, who was just regaining consciousness. Her breathing had mostly evened out, thankfully. "The assassin is here." She didn't take her eyes off of him. She knew that much about being threatened. One movement of the knife and she could be dead if she didn't react.

"Diet soda," Blue Note said frostily. There was something vaguely familiar about this pony, and Sterling apparently knew her. Her tone was unimpressive. "You know, it's bad business to insult your customers." Blue Note was not about to let this pony get away with calling Sterling a dweeb, whoever she was. The day had been enjoyable thus far, and having a rude waitress put a damper on it was the last thing she wanted to deal with.

Blue Note was so relieved to see the group; she dropped the spell immediately. Sterling had fallen beside her, and she did not feel very steady on her hooves. She breathed loudly, in an effort to catch her breath. It took her a small eternity to be able to answer DJ's questions. "Tried to find you... Escaped a python... Cast a spell to hear you... Wanted you to know we were coming... So much running..." She hated speaking in fragments, but she couldn't quite catch her breathe. Seeing the pony menacingly levitating knives caused the first thing DJ said to register. "Assassin?" Her eyes widened, and she took a step back. She thought that they would be able to avoid him, but it looked like he wanted a confrontation. She tried to think of a spell to use, but the combination of exhaustion and panic prevents any ideas from forming. Her magic was weakened anyway. She wouldn't be able to do much without rest. Still, she took several steps towards the fight, remaining on the outside. If she had a few moments to gain her bearings, she may be able to pull off a helpful spell or two.

Blue Note followed Sterling in. It was a little odd that there were no decorations. Most stores had been plastered with Hearth's Warming paraphernalia, even the closed ones. Still, she was hungry and the decor was certainly not the most important component of a restaurant.

@Sterling Crimson @Zhooves @Steel Accord @Wayzer @Pripyat Pony Sterling had not said anything to protest, so Blue Note allowed the spell to affect the ground directly under them as well. Her hooves made sounds like horns as she trotted on. She noticed the noise was starting to get softer. She tried to keep her energy going towards the spell. "Just a little more." Soon, her steps changed into trombone sounds. "We must be close. They should be able to hear us soon."

"Well, I don't see anything better." Blue Note shrugged. She was apprehensive of the restaurant being empty, but that could be due to all of the ponies staying at home for the holiday. The other restaurants on the street were dark, with signs offering some variation on the word "closed". "It does look like a lovely, little establishment." She walked up to the door and opened it. "After you," she said.

@Sterling Crimson The trombones had returned. "Yeah, I think we're getting closer." She continued moving forward, as quickly as she could. She was tired, but the thought of not being stranded in this Celestia-forsaken jungle gave her a boost of energy. She focused on holding the spell. "I'm going to change the spell so we make sound too. That way they'll know we're coming. Any objections?" she asked. She wanted his input to make sure that there were not any glaring flaws in her idea.

"Oh, I can't wait to hear those!" Blue Note said. She could get plenty of inspiration from listening to the greatest show tunes in Manehatten. "They're getting the real casts to perform, right?" Was this day even real life? Her stomach growled in reply. "So, what's open in Trot Square today? I'm assuming a lot of places are closed..."

@Sterling Crimson "Yeah," Blue Note said, still panting. The sounds intensified slightly. "I can hear the instruments better now. I still don't think they're moving very much. We should hurry; I don't know how much longer I can keep up the spell." The physical effort of traveling through the jungle, combined with the mental effort of performing the spell was taking its toll on her. As she moved forward, she levitated on of her water bottles out of the bag and took a few big sips.

"It's a classic," Blue Note agreed. "It really captures the spirit of the holiday." Hearing it made her feel happy. "So where are we off to next? There's so much going on today I can barely keep it straight." Her holidays were never this eventful, but she was glad if it. It distracted her from unpleasant realities and gave her a little hope going forward.

@Sterling Crimson "I was just going the way you were pointing," Blue Note said, raising her eyebrows. "Maybe they're stopped for some reason." She slowed down and tried to listen to the jungle. She was noticeably more fatigued than when she had started out. "I hope we find them soon. This spell is really draining me." There was a faint brassy sound in the distance. "Follow that?" she panted.

"That was such a great a show!" Blue Note said. She couldn't stop smiling. It made her feel odd; she wasn't used to smiling a lot. Not she didn't like smiling... It just felt different. "Those Broadhay actors were incredible. Talent like that is not easy to find. And those singers!" She just wanted to gush.

@Sterling Crimson "They might be moving sections," she said. She didn't stop trotting, just changed her course to follow where Sterling was pointing. She wished she had a map of the island, so she could know exactly where it segmented. She also was beginning to feel weaker. She could still hold the spell up, but she knew finding the group soon would be best. She could not continue this indefinitely.