Things Are Not What They Seem: CYOA Part 5

Twilight probably knows her best, being her unicorn bud and all.

 

"Hey, Twilight, could you do the honors?" Rarity eyes you suspiciously as you step away, allowing Twilight to come forward.

 

"Sorry, Rarity, but I need to ask you some questions, just to make sure you're, well, Rarity."

 

"That is quite all right, dear. As long as you answer my questions when we're done."

 

"Certainly. Now, question one: how did a tree get into my house during your sleepover?"

 

Rarity grins, giving a cute laugh at the memory. "Ah, that would be Applejack's lasso."

 

"Next question: where did you get your cutie mark?"

 

"Ah, is that a trick question? I got my cutie mark backstage at a school play, but I discovered my calling in the middle of nowhere in front of a hollow rock filled with gems."

 

"Good, good. You should have no trouble with this one, then: what were you doing in your spare time when you visited Canterlot not long ago?"

 

In a display unlike the cool, collected Rarity you'd seen, she bit her lower lip. "I... uh... I made you a dress. For your birthday."

 

"Excellent! You're definitely Rarity!" Just like with Rainbow, Twilight gives Rarity a big hug, though Rarity returns it with some unease. Twilight is blissfully ignorant, while you and Rainbow are still a touch cautious.

 

Hmmm....

 

>(A) Ask Rainbow what she thinks

>(B) Drill Rarity on her hesitation on answering the last question

>(C) Ask Celestia to zap Rarity

>(D) Introduce yourself to Rarity

>(E) Open response

 

 

 

 

>(A)

 

You turn to Rainbow, grabbing her attention then motioning to the hugging unicorns. She looked back and forth between you and them, offering a shaky shrug.

 

"I dunno. The answers were all correct, and Twilight's pretty thorough... though she sometimes misses the more subtle things of conversation. You saw Rarity bite her lip, right? I just can't help but think I'm missing something." Rainbow paused, narrowing her eyes at you. "Since when did you value my opinion? I still have my eye on you, possible changeling."

 

'Rough at times,' Twilight had said. You see what she meant.

 

Crossing your arms, you consider the possibilities. Rarity showed no sign of stress until that last question, meaning she was confident about those answers. And even though she panicked a bit at the end, she still got the answer right.

 

You lean in toward Rainbow and whisper your thoughts to her. "You think she might be nervous about something other than the answers? The dress, perhaps? She did get that last question right, regardless of how she nervous she was."

 

"Maybe. I don't get dresses. Twilight seemed perfectly happy with it."

 

Truth be told, there wasn't a whole lot of information to go on.

 

What is your decision?

>(A) Rarity's a changeling. Have Celestia zap her with the ID spell.

>(B) Rarity's the real deal, she's just nervous about something else.

>(C) Accept her for now, but keep an eye on her.

>(D) Open response

 

 

 

>(C)

 

Best not make a fool of yourself by pointing fingers right away. You need more information to tell if Rarity's really a changeling or not. For now, she seems fine.

 

"Ahem."

 

You look down, finding Rarity standing in front of you, staring.

 

"I-I do not believe we have met, fine creature. I am R-Rarity." She offers a hoof.

 

With a friendly smile, you shake it, noticing it's a bit shaky. She must not be comfortable with strange creatures, though she's doing her best to hold it together.

 

"I am Anon, a human. Pleasure to meet you."

 

She nods and returns the shake, a bit of her composure returning with your polite greeting.

 

"If I might ask... where are you from? A mare can't help but be a touch curious."

 

"Uh," you shift uncomfortably, realizing you never told anyone where you came from. Didn't seem important. "I'm from Earth. I don't think it's anywhere around here."

 

"I would venture to guess you're right about that." She then turns to Twilight, asking various questions about the situation. While Twilight fills her in, you think about where to go next.

 

>Analytical: You feel you're running out of time to gather everyone. The changeling spy who replaced Pinkie spoke as if things were already in motion. The streets are also conspicuously empty. A princess and her entourage would draw attention, you think.

 

>RP: R: 30 (Good first impression)

 

What next?

>(A) Find AJ

>(B) Find Fluttershy

>(C) Split up (specify who should find whom)

>(D) Open response

 

 

 

 

>(B)

 

"Twilight, who would be more vulnerable to a changeling attack? Fluttershy or Applejack?"

 

"Definitely Fluttershy."

 

"Alright, lets head toward her place, then."

 

Twilight nods and leads the party toward Fluttershy's cottage.

 

Who do you talk to?

>(A) Twilight

>(B) Princess Celestia

>(C) Rainbow Dash

>(D) Rarity

>(E) Open response

 

 

 

 

>(B)

 

You walk over to Celestia, tapping her on the shoulder. She turns, a hint of surprise flashing on her face.

 

"Oh, Anon! Hello. I must admit I'm not used to my subjects approaching me so openly in public. It's often Twilight is the only one comfortable enough to speak with me. How may I help you?"

 

Flashing her a smile, you pat the back of her neck as you would pat a friend's shoulder back home, attempting to rouse her from the strict formality she'd settled in to. "You know, technically, I'm not one of your subjects. An ambassador, as you said. And I don't really need help with anything, I just wanted to talk."

 

It seems like your attempts to warm her up have some effect, as she allows herself a small, genuine smile. "I don't often find myself in a situation where somep0ny wishes to 'just talk'. Comes with the job," she says, motioning to the mark on her flank. "But I would be more than happy to chat. Are you feeling better since our last talk?"

 

Covering your mouth, you attempt to stifle a giggle. Celestia raises an eyebrow at you, not sure whether to be offended or laughing along with you. "Care to let me in on your train of thought, Anon?"

 

(cont.)

 

 

 

 

"Well, it's just..." you pause, choking down another guffaw, "You're really a leader. Through and through. I mean, you're the princess, the head of this country, but not only that, you're Twilight's personal teacher and a representative to one of only two of your race, if I figure correctly. And today, you come down to Ponyville, personally, to organize the Elements against this impending threat, keeping your cool the entire time, and when you're finally offerred the chance to cool off a bit, have a friendly chat, the first thing you do is ask about my well-being."

 

Celestia opens her mouth to speak, but takes a moment to formulate words. "I'm afraid I don't exactly follow. Are you telling me I should relax?"

 

You wave her off. "No, no, not that at all. Far be it for me to tell you how to do your job. I'm just your average citizen. I guess what I'm saying is... I'm a little jealous? You seem to have everything together, and you make it look easy when I know in fact it isn't."

 

Turning back to the road, Celestia continues her walk, lifting her head a bit higher than you think she used to. Her smile is still there, despite her attempts at taking the praise modestly. "T-thank you for the compliment, Anon. But, truly, all I can do is what I see is best. We cannot be more than we are." She lets out a sigh. "It is good to know I have the approval of an ambassador."

 

"C'mon, Celestia, we're in together pretty deep here. I think 'ambassador' is a bit stale. How about, 'companion'?"

 

"Companion it is."

 

>RP: PC: 44 (+4)

 

 

 

After your short talk with Celestia, the group had made their way to Fluttershy's cottage. As you all approach, you notice you're not the only ones interested in finding her. Two changelings are battering her door, attempting to break it down. Several animals are unconscious in the front yard, along with two other changelings. They must have had quite a fight to get through, but it looks like they still came out on top.

 

They're too busy trying to break in, they don't notice your party come up from behind.

 

How do you handle this?

>(A) You easily outnumber them. Attack!

>(B) Flank then attack

>(C) Sneak up and try to knock them unconscious with a single blow

>(D) Open response

 

 

 

>(C)

 

You hold up your hand the moment you see the changelings and everyone freezes. It's best to use your element of surprise to your advantage. Now you just need a way to take them out with one blow. Looking around the immediate area, you find a sizable rock and a sturdy dead branch. You hand the branch to Rainbow, who seems like the best brawler of the bunch, and take the rock yourself.

 

Turning to the rest of the party, you put a finger to your lips, then start walking as softly as you can toward the changelings. Rainbow follows, hovering right next to you.

 

You cringe when the bridge over the creek in front of the cottage creaks underneath you, but the changelings are making too much noise with their barrage to notice. After crossing the bridge, you're only ten feet behind them, but the door is visibly damaged, ready to fall at any second.

 

You don't know how she does it, but Rainbow has kept her wings completely silent the entire time. If you hadn't seen her next to you, you'd have never known she was there.

 

The sound of your steps sounds like sandpaper on sandpaper, painfully loud now that you're paying attention to them. You're getting close, now. Five feet. Three feet. Now they're within striking distance!

 

You turn to Rainbow, nod and bring the rock down as hard as you can on one of the changelings' head. He crumples like a sheet, and a split second later you hear the crack of the branch finding its target followed by the thud of a second body falling over.

 

You and Rainbow share a high-five.

 

>RP: RD: 35 (+2 for badassery)

 

What next?

>(A) Search the house

>(B) Secure the area while Fluttershy's friends search

>(C) Open response

 

 

 

>(B)

 

If Fluttershy is really in her house, then the best thing for her to see first is one of her friends. Given her name, she may not react so well to an alien over twice her height barging inside.

 

"Rainbow, you get Twilight and Rarity and look inside. The princess and I will check and make sure there are no more changelings around."

 

Rainbow gives a salute, but adds, "You're too cool to be a changeling." She quickly collects her friends and make their way inside. The weakened door offers little resistance.

 

In the meantime, you wave Celestia over and the two of you patrol the outside, first walking to the backyard.

 

"Just 'the princess', now? I'm hurt, Anon," teases Celestia.

 

You jab her with an elbow. "Don't forget, I'm neither your subject nor your student. I won't crumple like Twilight."

 

"You speak with such confidence, but don't forget, I have thousands of years experience with this."

 

Wait, thousands of years? You halt in your tracks. "Really?"

 

"My sister loves to tease. I suppose it picked it up from her."

 

"No, the 'thousands of years' part."

 

She smirks, glad to have finally caught you off-guard. "Indeed. Did Twilight never tell you what an old mare I am?"

 

"Huh. No, she didnt." You continue to patrol the area, that little nugget of information now thoroughly wedged in your head.

 

As you and Celestia come back to the front yard, you find Twilight and her friends gathered around a bashful-looking, yellow-coated pegasus. Must be Fluttershy.

 

>RP: PC: 46 (+2)

 

What next?

>(A) Introduce yourself

>(B) Let Twilight or a friend introduce you

>(C) Get the hell over to AJ

>(D) Open response

 

 

 

 

>(B)

 

Fluttershy's probably a little overwhelmed at everything right now. Best let one of her friends bring you over.

 

You stand and twiddle your thumbs for a few moments, occasionally attempting to whistle. You were never good at whistling.

 

Before long, Rainbow swoops over, ushering you toward the group with a hoof against your back. She whispers some advice before you join them.

 

"She's a little shy. Try to go easy on her."

 

Just as you suspected, then. These pony names are easy to decipher.

 

Fluttershy backs off a bit as you approach, but Rarity offers a hoof of support, keeping the pegasus from closing down completely. Not wanting to scare her any further, you crouch down to her level.

 

"And this," says Rainbow Dash, "is Anon. He's pretty cool."

 

You offer a hand. "Hi."

 

She flinches, but slowly extends a hoof and hardly pokes your hand before retracting it. "I-I'm F-Fluttershy. Nice t-to meet you, Anon."

 

"The pleasure is mine. Did the changelings hurt you at all?"

 

"N-no, my animal friends protected me until the girls and you arrived. Thanks f-for rescuing me, by the way."

 

Trying to get her to open up further, you give her a gentle smile. "Glad to hear it. And you're welcome."

 

(cont.)

 

 

 

 

Introductions finished, Twilight spoke up. "We need to get to Applejack's farm. Sorry to rush you Fluttershy, but there isn't much time to be wasted."

 

Twilight's right. Alarm bells were going off in your head, and if Applejack was captured too, that just made the task of rescuing Pinkie all that much more difficult, not to mention you hadn't even encountered the Queen yet. You glance back at Celestia, hoping she'd be enough to keep the Queen from getting inbetween you and the Elements.

 

The day wasn't over, not by a long shot.

 

>RP: FS: 35 (Good first impression)