And They're Going to Better Places

[sailorlaughter]

Who: Whoever
What: Nemo's funeral goodbye party
Where: One of the commune fields (one not full of artichokes)
When: Saturday morning
Warnings: ANGST
Prose or Commentspam: Whichever

This goodbye party had been a lot easier to set up, with all the help, than the first one. Between everyone that had shown up, the field was quickly set up with tables for food and cider and a stage for the music. Pinkie, being Pinkie, had somehow or other already gotten Bertie's piano up on it, as well as a small framed picture of Nemo surrounded by flowers. Finding the picture was the hard part, honestly; she'd ended up getting one of the Twilights to print one from an old scroll entry.

Zetta had been right. This wasn't a funeral, exactly - and Pinkie did know what funerals were, even if she liked calling them goodbye parties instead. So she hadn't made everything black, though the decorations and mood were more somber than usual for one of her parties. The mare herself lingered by one of the tables, for lack of a door to greet her guests at. It wasn't like they were her guests anyway, right? This was Nemo's party.

Comments

[tinkertytonk]

Bertie's at his piano, still slightly mystified by Pinkie's abilities to set up a party (no matter the occasion) in hardly any time at all. He'd promised Surprise he would play what he was feeling, but a gloomy number fit for storm clouds hardly seemed the sort of thing Nemo would want at a party in his honor. And Valvatorez had given him some hope that the fellow might have found a way home.

When he begins to play it's more classical than his usual jazz affair, but he'll wait for a partner to liven the show up. Jeeves might even approve of his musical selection... for the moment.

[stormbroken]

Flare couldn't miss this. Even if she wanted to, even if she had every excuse, she... couldn't live with herself, with the thought that she'd failed Nemo by being unable to protect him. It wasn't the worst case of survivor's guilt she'd ever had - no, that was probably the very first time she'd had to face the prospect of death, as a blank-flanked filly. This was nothing compared to that, but it still ate at her... and she almost made a lot of mistakes because of it.

She doesn't make her presence obvious, though (surprisingly for a mare her size) so Bertie might not even notice her before she's right by his side, pulling out a sheaf of sheet music from her saddlebag and placing it on the bar. It's obviously not a piano piece (it actually looked like it was meant for the guitar), but as far as the guardsmare knew, music was music, and the clerk at the music shop hadn't done anything to change her mind on that.

"Hey." Even her normal gruff bark of a voice is somewhat subdued, low. "I'd originally gotten this thinking of maybe givin' Butch somethin' to play that didn't remind me of my ma, but something in the pit of my gut tells me its place is here, right now. Y'ever get that? That... instinct that you gotta do somethin'...?"

[tinkertytonk]

Bertie's startled to find the mare rather looming over him, but he manages not to start too terribly. Jeeves has that habit, himself, and while it's still shocking, a chap does grow somewhat accustomed. He glances at the sheet music as Flare speaks, touched by her thoughtfulness... even if it's not something he's entirely sure he can work out how to play be guitar chords.

"Oh, frequently," he replies, smiling up at her. He tries to lighten the mood as she's looking more than a little downtrodden. He's feeling downtrodden, but no sense making a pair of them. "Oft's the time I've seen fellow in a smashing set of togs and had the immediate sense I simply had to inquire after his tailor." It's not what she means, but he hopes it will rile her a bit, at least.

[millionbitpipes]

Harvey, for his part, hadn't known Nemo at all. Hay, he'd never even really spoken to most of the people living on the commune. But Bertie'd known him, Harvey considered Bertie a friend, and he knew precisely how hard funerals could be, especially when it just came outta nowhere like that. It seemed only right to show up.

He didn't bother with the refreshments, and managed to somehow duck Pinkie Pie as he made his way over to the stage. Leaning against the edge, he looked up at Bertie and listened for a few moments before speaking. "Hey, kid."

[tinkertytonk]

"Hullo, Harvey," Bertie replied, switching over to another quiet number. This was the partner he'd been hoping for to liven the scene. His heart wasn't in some fruity jazz number to make everyone smile just yet, much as he'd like it to be. It wouldn't hurt to check if the other stallion would be willing to perform, anyway, and wearing a long face is entirely the wrong impression. They're here to celebrate Nemo, not despair for the poor fellow.

"Thanks awfully for dropping by, old sport. I don't suppose I could tempt you for a song? My hoof to Celestia, it's not all elevator music I'll be playing this afternoon. Ms. Flare Star brought round a dashed interesting piece, though it looks like it's made for some sort of guitar."

[personalgentlepony]

Jeeves stands by Bertie at the piano, his expression solemn. He never had the chance to meet this 'Nemo' of Mr Wooster's, but from what he can be given to understand, the man had been quite close to Mr Wooster in his own way. Not an improper way--thank goodness, no--but in a more fatherly way.

Poor Mr Wooster. To have lost his parents at such a young age and then to have lost a second father figure...

[honeycombing]

And then, there was Honeycomb. She didn't look very sad, which, to some, might have been insulting. But, this was a farewell party, right? This was to celebrate someone's life, right? So not everyone and everything should be sad or gloomy, because...why should a party be all sad and gloomy, right?

"Hiiii, Pinkie Pie!"

[sailorlaughter]

"Hey, Honeycomb!" Pinkie perked up instantly upon having someone to greet - she didn't like just standing around not doing anything. Instead, she hopped up to the pegasus. "Thanks for coming! You want some cider or something?"

open

[trustme]

The Doctor hadn't known Nemo very well but he still showed up to pay his respects and check on Pinkie, Bertie, and perhaps if he was around, Handy. He made small talk with some of the other guests and stood around with a drink in hand, glancing at times towards the commune in silence, remembering the night Nemo had gone.

[sailorlaughter]

"Oh, hey, Doctor." This wasn't technically Pinkie's party, but seeing as she'd set it all up, she still felt obligated to do her usual routine of checking in with all her guests. "I didn't know you were coming."

aimed at Pinkie, but others can tag

[faunafriend]

Fluttershy brought some flowers with her to the farewell party. She arrived with a basket of them but quickly realized she wasn't quite sure where to put them. There was no grave. Looking around, she spotted Pinkie and made her way in that direction to ask.

[stormbroken]

Before Fluttershy can actually get to Pinkie, she's accosted by a rather large mare, one who blinks and tilts her head.

"...Posey? Is that you?"

A simple case of mistaken identity, it seems.

[sailorlaughter]

"Oh! Hey, Fluttershy!" Pinkie trotted up to her friend happily, though she was still conscious enough of the whole situation to not bounce. "Ooooooh, you brought flowers! Here, you can put them up by the picture of Nemo if you want! I'm pretty sure that's what you do."

open

[deciderly]

The food was perfect, at least AJ thought so. But she still felt sad about being here. She didn't know Nemo, and was hoping that she could learn more about him, or at least understand what made him so special to Pinkie Pie. She was friends with everypony, so at least she'd be able to shed some light on who he was.

The earth pony was grateful to see that there were no black colors around, made things seem less dreary. She would keep quiet and watch for now. And listen.

[bluesuit_hoofy]

"Excuse me." The paint pony brushed past Applejack on his way to needlessly check on the buffet table again. He'd spent the entire party thus far moving about, as if expending his energy keeping pitchers of cider topped off meant he wouldn't have to think about why they were having this party in the first place.

[bluesuit_hoofy]

Handy was fine. Really, he was absolutely fine, and there was no reason at all for him to need comforting. Not when Disciple had been so much closer to Nemo, or when Bertie was obviously taking it hard despite his efforts to hide his feelings. There was no need for him to take up anyone's time with his irrelevant feelings when there were causes to investigate and ponies with real heartbreak to console.

He helped out where he could, though he felt a bit like he was going through the motions -- how many friends had he lost who were never buried? Once the party began he found himself at a loose end, and went wandering around to fuss over the food and furniture, fastidiously fixing up things that didn't particularly need fixing up.

[soulofblue]

Pollo hadn't known Nemo at all, really, certainly nothing more than a passing acquaintance. He'd mostly shown up for the sake of his friends who did live on the commune, and also because...well, he thought he should be here. He could have tried harder to stop Don from running off, after all. He could have continued that fight, and maybe he even would have won.

Of course, he had absolutely no idea how to conduct himself at a funeral, especially as this one seemed to be rather unconventional from what he knew. So when he saw Handy milling about, he was quick to make his way over. "Hello. How are you doing?"

SOMETIME NEAR THE END OF THE FUNERAL - open to all

[ponymeisters]

It had been a party, a wonderful one. Nemo would have been proud to see his friends honor him as they were. Singing songs, drinking, talking, remembering him in a better way than he went. If only the night could last like that forever, without interruption or problems.

Clearly somepony out there felt that was not going to be possible.

Its started with a strange hum, followed by a sudden, bright light in the field. An exploding rainbow light. Just like the ones that brought ponies to Equestria. Just like the one which took Nemo away from it. It was quick, harsh, just like always. Several moments later, more rainbow lights burst into view, followed by one final, multiple rainbow bursts. And it is centered in one area.

The artichoke field.

Unfortunately, it didn't matter - anyone who tried to get to the artichoke field would somehow find that there was nopony there, no matter how fast they might be. Whoever was there, was gone. One light, followed by several more, and then...? What did they leave? A ruined field with large chunks of artichokes hastily scattered about. And, for some strange reason, chunks of a white mineral are scattered among the now-ruined crops.

But, of course, it wasn't simple vandalization. Not when someone looked overhead or far enough at an angle.

It was another message. Only this time, the writer did not get to finish it...

((OOC: For those who cannot see what the message says: 'Help Me Meulin Prepa-'))

[tinkertytonk]

Bertie was not the first pony to go dashing off toward the artichoke fields. Rainbows had taken on a decidedly sinister bend in his mind, featuring prominently in nightmares. Their appearance, and in quantity, so near made his spine curl like a... well, like a thing that curled in excess. As others hied forth, though, he couldn't be the only one left behind. He had promised to himself he wouldn't let anything else happen at the commune.

Given the benefit of wings, he was still one of the first to arrive over the field. There were no new ponies and there were no apparent mass murderers in view. There was, however a message that made his hair stand on end:

'HELP ME, MEULIN. PREP-'

The name was familiar, as though he'd heard it once, but he couldn't place it. The message is clear enough regardless. "Oh, Celestia..."

[stormbroken]

Flare's not far behind Bertie, of course - even the slowest pegasi has the gift of flight to make them faster.

And to make the message clearer.

She can't make heads or tails of the message - who the buck was 'Meulin' and who was she preparing to help? The dead? No, what got her was how it happened, and that symbol at the end.

Rainbows.

And the Pale Pony.

Whoever was responsible for the vandalism was responsible for this entire mess. Someone was openly screwing with the newponies and all of Equestria.

She couldn't tackle this alone. She needed to speak to... somepony in charge, anypony.

Silently, she flaps her wings and rushes off of the commune, pushing off strongly enough to start that dissipation trail behind her again.

[sailorlaughter]

Pinkie Pie, despite not having the gift of wings, went running off as quick as the two pegasi. Or maybe even quicker; she'd been known to outpace Rainbow Dash, in her time. It didn't really matter anyway, as she was still the only pony on the ground when she got there.

"Woooooooah." The mare carefully hopped over and around the burnt lines of artichoke, which from her much lower vantage point seemed more-or-less random. "Weird! It's like a crop circle or something!" Her hoof bumped one of the larger pieces of white stuff, and she looked at it for a moment before scooping it up and sliding it into her saddlebags. Hey, how many times did you get to take away a piece of rainbow-alien-chalk-stuff?

There were plenty more, but she left those where they were. Twilight was gonna flip when she saw this! "Hey! Hey, Bertie!" she shouted up into the air. "We should take a picture of this so everypony else can see! Before it gets all messed up!"

[whickers]

The Disciple hadn't been much for the party honestly and on the outskirts, she's one of the later people to get there. Tracing the words in the field, she stops when she gets to the end of 'help me'. Nothing coming from this can be good and she traces the next 'M' and 'E' hesitantly.

U. L--I. She stops in the middle of the field and sits down. She doesn't really need to see the N to know it's there. It's a sick joke honestly and she takes a deep breath to clear her mind.

"R-Really? Really, what kind of prank is this?"

mod input?

[trustme]

The Doctor wasted no time. As soon as he could reach, he began to scan the area of the message with the sonic screwdriver. Perhaps it would have a similar reading to the statue at the gala if it were really a message from the same mysterious person(s). And what was this white material spread in the area?

He looked back around at the other ponies crowding around the message to call out, "Meulin? Is that any body's name here?"

I'm sorry I'm late, but OTA

[ihasahoe]

Jack hadn't known Nemo all that well, a few hellos when he dropped by the communion on days off. But a death was a death, especially in a small community like Ponyville. He felt he should be there.

He paced the field idly, looking around at the concessions and listening to the music. It reminded him all too much of the wake that spring afternoon. He remembered how the eldest of the village drank and sang, declaring that it should be a joyful sending off. Not that anyone else was really interested in celebrating.

After a time, he settled by the buffet, watching everypony else. There wasn't much he could say, but maybe he could console some of the guests.

We can be late to this thread together!

[downtoearthpony]

Applejack has come to the funeralgoing away party to pay her respects like most of the other ponies. She might have not spent a lot of time interacting with Nemo, but she remembers showing him and Bertie around the farm as well as helping start out the commune's fields. She even remember bringing him some artichoke seeds...

Heavy with these thoughts, Appeljack has meandered over to the food to get something to drink. She was hanging her head, so it wasn't until she got to the table did she noticed Jack nearby.

"Oh, you came here too, Jack?"