(Open) After The Show

[Ashton]

                                                                                                                                    

 

Overhead the fireworks were lighting up the Las Pegasus sky as Celestia's sun started vanishing past the horizon, The crowds were still cheering and no doubt enjoying the post-show festivities --- and so were the wonderbolts.

 

...well... all except one...

 

a cerulean pegasus was leaning against the gate, her uniform already put away in her saddlebags, standing outside of the stadium already, but also transfixed by the pyrotechnics. Why was she out there when all the action was still going on inside? Why wasn't she showing off for the crowd or with her fellow bolts, celebrating the show with adult refreshments? The former perhaps was part of the bolts curtailing rash from doing any more stupid unplanned stunts, as for the latter...

 

Dash watched the fireworks a moment more, then turned her head as another pony made her way out of the stadium "Ready Squirt?"

 

The little orange pegasus hurried after he idol "Yeah, but why can't we stay? I can tell them I'm an adult!" she said, hopefully joking

 

Dash laughed "I think even with having your cutiemark now, they would question a full mare of your size, kid"

 

Scootaloo sighed, but managed to smile, at least she was spending time with Dash, so even if she did miss out on the 'adult fun' going on in the stadium and the 'backstage' area, this was still a very happy time for her. "Alright, can we go get something to eat though? I'm hungry!" she whined almost teasingly, knowing that Rainbow was even more hungry

 

Dash laughed "Sure, why not, let's see what we can find, maybe this little town has at least a two-star dinner in it" she joked

[SteelEagle]

Twilight Sparkle wasn't a big fan of Las Pegasus, if she was being completely honest. So much of it seemed artificial. Artifice designed to appeal to that gilded element within a soul. If you tracked down the source of most of Equestria's less savory elements chances are it would have originated from this very city. And all of that was just her larger concerns...well, some of them. Highest crime rate, highest homelessness, highest in many things that weren't good...but for all of her massive issues with the city, she had to give it some credit for what it did right. You couldn't find anywhere near this level of entertainment anywhere else. And if you wanted to party you would be hard pressed to find a place that was ready-made for anything you had in mind. A lot of ponies liked this place and it was a major economic powerhouse, the most important cog in the economic machine this way west of Manehattan.

So she sucked it up and went to Las Pegasus with Spike when Rainbow brought up the idea of a fun get together after a show. Not that she would need a reason to have a get together with her friends but Las Pegasus presented some different options. Personally she would have enjoyed a nice trek to the world's largest private library outside of the Royal Archives, but she wasn't the one making the plans. She wasn't the only one who had been invited and indeed if she remembered correctly there was a number of ponies that she may not be entirely familiar with. That was very exciting in and of itself. The chance to get to know ponies better was always one she was willing to 'roll' on.

Did she use that right? Probably not. Oh well- the point was that as she came in for a landing at the casino that her friends were supposed to be at, she was excited to spend time with them. The rest was simply window dressing.

[SirAizen]

It was easy to get lost in a place as large as Las Pegasus.

 

Hyper Jack was finding this out at quite the rapid place, though he had only just arrived. The colt wasn't some kid, yeah (the term was relative; he was still considered one by most stallions), but that didn't mean he automatically knew what to do and where to go in a place like this. He was used to the peace and quiet of the bar back home, or his room in the back. There, at least, he could just sleep. . .

 

But noooo. He had hyped himself up on caffeine and agreed to a trip to a place like this, to 'meet some friends', as the old stallion who owned the bar back home had said. Apparently, he needed the sun. Or the company. He didn't remember. He did remember, though, that he has wanted to to have a nice relaxing weekend with his select few friends, and maybe play some arcade games out for the night. It was always fun to play with his fans and friends, but it was. . . taxing. He had a lot of fans, so he had gotten used to hiding his fatigue. That didn't mean he never slept, though. He slept on. . . Saturdays. . . Mondays, and Thursdays. Not entirely in that order. It shamed him to admit that he didn't always follow  that schedule either.

 

Nevertheless, he was here, in this bright, bustling city, trying to 'make friends'. Right now, he was fine. The caf hadn't worn off yet. He could always go get some coffee if he was getting tired. But eventually he'd crash somewhere (if he didn't crash in the street somewhere). For now, though, it was time to see what all the talk was about this place. He had heard enough. Colors, lights, performances, and other fun things. . . but he was here to introduce himself to the other gamers. For now, at least.

 

Snapping out of it with a slap to the face, Jack continued on through the chaotic mix of ponies and fun, until he made it over to where most folks had ended up in: the casino. He didn't expect there to be, well, arcade machines in a casino; he wasn't that naive. But he did expect some players, possible some high-profile people. As he suspected, nobody payed him more than a glance as he walked by, most likely appearing confused and exhausted (based off of the rings under his eyes and slightly ruffled mane). He only hoped that he looked like he belonged there. . . not like he was some poor young colt that had just gotten cheated out of everything he owned. That probably would have earned him a few more glances, though, so he was probably fine.

 

Of course, this was Las Pegasus. . .  folks weren't exactly known for being nice, from what he'd heard. . . 

[Alivda]

Ruby smiled, having found a park close to the stadium where the Wonderbolts had been playing. Hopefully, the crowd leaving were still hyped up from the show, and would toss a few bits her way. She slung down her table, the legs telescoping out, and got ready, pulling from compartments in the table some records and a pair of headphones linked to the table.

 

Picking something slow in pace, but high in intensity, she wanted to build up before dropping truly sick beats. It was a simple way to start her one mare show, in a city of thousands, if not millions, of showponies. Madam Luck seemed to be smiling on her, however, as she noticed a bright stock of rainbow hair nearby... Rainbow Dash, one of the fastest fliers, Wonderbolt, and performer of one of the coolest stunts, the sonic rainboom! Almost knocking over her table in her haste, she rushed over, excitment clear on her face. "OH MY GOSH! It is you! Rainbow Dash! While I haven't had much opportunities to see Wonderbolt shows, you're my favorite!" Ruby said, letting out a adorable squeal that might have ended very high pitched, her areion nature getting the better of her. Her words were fast paced, almost running together in her excitement. However, it was then she noticed a smaller pegasus nearby, and quickly reeled herself in. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't see ya... or introduce myself. My friends keep telling me to calm down when meeting new ponies, but it's Rainbow Dash! The fastest fliers I've ever heard of, and she's just amazing! Oh, right, I'm Ruby! I'm a DJ... See! Got my own table and..." At this point, she realized that she had left her table behind. Letting out a gasp, she raced back to it, hugging it close to her with her wings, making sure the needles and such were not damaged. Packing everything back up, she headed back to Rainbow Dash. "So... Why ya not at the after party? I mean, not that I mind, I couldn't get in, so if you were, I wouldn't be talking to ya, but still! Party! Am! I! Right!?" 

[Ashton]

Scootaloo stood there and quietly stared for a moment, completely taken back since the only mare she had ever met with this amount of energy was Pinkie, but despite the fact some ponies might have felt upset meeting a fan of their hero, scootaloo just smiled, happy for Dash.

 

Dash herself for a split second had no idea how to react to the rapid-fire verbal assault, also feeling the similarity, though it only lasted less than a second before her eyes started sparkling and just from the slight shift in her posture, Dash's ego was inflating fast and hard, though surely to the shock of anyone that knew her, the inflation seemed to stop, or at least pause when Ruby asked Dash about the after-party

 

The rainbow mare smiled a little "why am I not at the party? Well there is one very important reason" she said, reaching out with her wing and pulling scootaloo over "This one's a little too young for a party like that and I couldn't just abandon her here"

 

Scootaloo though had gotten more distracted by the Table and was looking at it "woah, that's so cool, its like a small size of the one Vinyl uses!"

 

((I'm rusty and out of practice, I feel like I gave dash WAY too much humility there, but in my mind having scootaloo present kinda makes dash think twice about things and think about scoots first like a mother-instinct... even if that is probably the opposite of cannon >.<))

[Alivda]

Ruby nodded, understanding of the type of party Rainbow was talking about. Some parties were just not healthy for little ones, or even musicians, for that matter. She was about to respond when the little one mentioned her Table, and all the gears slammed in her head, as she quickly put it down and smiled widely. "Like it? It's so cool, a friend of mine in Canterlot helped me find a inventor and enchanter to make it, and she helped pay for it... Look, it's got places for records, and extra needles, even a little box for bits... and the strap here so I can carry it with me. It even has this here, for... what did she call it... 'Thaumicly charged latticework'...? Something like that... Anyway, that's what makes the sound!" 

 

Ruby was very animated as she spoke, pulling the compartments out of the table, some of which, if it wasn't for the enchantments on the table, wouldn't fit. She was really proud of it, as without it, she wouldn't be able to play her music for other ponies, which put a thought in to her head. "OOOHH! We could have our own Party! I mean, I have the music, and You guys can dance... We can have it in the park over there, or maybe by the fountains! Or maybe..." She trailed off, lost in thoughts about the potential party, how her music would draw curious ponies, who would start moving to the rhythm. She didn't notice that she had started to pull certain records out, her wings moving in practiced motions as she spun discs around, before seeming to change her mind and put them back... She didn't even notice her stomach rumbling, her last meal having been that morning...

 

((lol, I thought the same thing about the similarities to Pinkie as well. I think you did Dash well, though I've always considered her to be more of a big sister to Scoots, but that's just me!))

[Ashton]

((@Alivda you skipped Steel and Aizen... I just posted, please wait your turn so you don't confuse everyone. Its @SteelEagle next, then @SirAizen and then your turn, then I start the posting order over again.))

[SteelEagle]

Twilight waited for what felt like forever. Rainbow was supposed to be here now, wasn't she? Had the Wonderbolts show run late? That wasn't unlike them, all things told. Sometimes they had to work the weather around the show to ensure that they had the proper conditions. Other times they had to redo a formation if they missed it, and depending on the crowd after the show it could take a while to disengage from the famously rabid Wonderbolt fanbase. There were many reasons why Rainbow might be late. And if she knew much about Rainbow, she wouldn't want Twilight to waste her time outside of the Casino just standing around. While Twilight had a distaste for it, it would be even more awkward to simply stand outside. Besides, knowing the way the press here worked it would create some sensationally weird and tabloidy headlines.

And so Twilight entered, immediately looking around. The floor was as busy as always. Ponies came her searching to get rich quick if they didn't understand how the house always won in the end., For every one winner, there were a thousand losers, just enough stories to make ponies confident in their ability to beat the odds. Many others came here for festivities that the casinos were all too happy to provide at a much higher cost than it needed to be. Or maybe it was for first class service? Well...okay, most Casinos in Las Pegasus had relatively few complaints in that area considering how many ponies came to this city. She may not like the place but she wasn't going to be blatantly and completely unfair...they did provide a lot of entertainment and a generally high level of service. It was paid in ways she thought were less than honorable, but that was her. She didn't go broadcasting such views.

Twilight cantered across the Casino floor, speaking to the few ponies who seemed cognizant of who she was but mostly just wanting to find a place to wait for Rainbow Dash. As she did so she saw who appeared to be an older colt, possibly a young stallion, who seemed...lost? Exhausted? Defeated? Whatever it was, he didn't seem like he belonged. Twilight walked up to him, a bright smile on her face. Always good to meet somepony new with a smile, put them at ease, and hopefully help them with whatever problem that ailed them. “Hello there! It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Twilight Sparkle and this is Spike!” She said, pointing her hoof at the dragon who hovered above her a few seconds, clearly enjoying his own pair of wings, “so, how are you doing? Are you okay?”

[SirAizen]

Jack truly had no idea how things worked here. It certainly looked like the sort of high-profile place people of that class would hang out, but they weren't anywhere near similar to him. They had no problem surrounded by tons of people, all watching them do whatever it was they did- mainly play for money. He knew how these games worked as well, they just. . . weren't his style. It wasn't like he had the money to be betting here anyway. Games of 'chance' always seemed set, even when they weren't in a casino. Fortune frequently frowned upon the colt. 
 While he searched for others like him- drifting in and out of sight, looking like they were uncomfortable with their surroundings- he noted the multitude of folks that had entered the building. Mainly more players, but a few famous faces. Or so he guessed. He never really got out much, or payed attention to the known faces of Equestria. From what he saw, though, he could guess that a few were from Canterlot. He knew the place, at least. He'd grown up in a fancy place, after all. He wiped the thought from his mind. 
Before he could go, though, the voice of another pony could be heard nearby. It was close too. He jerked his head around, trying to find the source of the voice, and there they were. Oh crap, someone was trying to talk to him? They didn't sound like his regular group. They certainly didn't look it.
The purple unicorn and dragon seemed concerned, though he knew he didn't know them. He tried to summon the words, but the encounter was so unexpected, he didn't say anything for around fifteen seconds, his mouth opening and closing, but no voice coming out. Finally, he cleared his head, and tried to pretend he was just speaking into an arcade screen, not paying attention to anyone, or to his few close friends. He sighed quietly.
"I, uh. . . Hi." Hyper gave a small wave. He rubbed his eyes to try and appear even a little more awake than he already was. He hyped himself up, then spoke again, stronger this time. "Um. . . Well met!" He gave a lopsided smile. "Didn't see you there. . . I was, uh, looking around the place. I wanted to see how the place, er, worked." Jack's voice seemed a bit young compared to his look- perhaps it was simply his fatigue that made him seem a bit like a stallion instead. He tried to appear as if he was a regular there, but only really said what he assumed others would say if they actually belonged. He certainly felt as if he looked like he'd gotten kicked off a bus in a foreign city. "With the. . . games, yeah? I wanted to see the games. . . I'm called Hyper Jack here. Your name, miss?" He added quickly.

[Ashton]

Dash blinked "Thaumaturgy? With the purple robes and the crystals and the machine that turns objects into jars of magic liquid?"

 

Scootaloo looked at her idol and cocked her head "what...??"

 

Dash shook her head "kid, when you're waiting for twi and you decide to just read random books out of boredom, you find some *really* weird stuff sometimes"

 

scootaloo just looked at dash oddly another moment then slowly nodded

 

"aaaaanyway" began rainbow "Normally I'd have said 'yeah! immediately, but I got a starving filly here to feed. Hey, you clearly know your way around, whats a good restaurant 'round here worthy of a Wonderbolt and her #1 filly" Yep, there went that ego swelling again, though Dash did put her wing lovingly around scootaloo as she spoke, so clearly there was more there than her usual bravado.

 

((Bonus points and huge props if anyone knows what Dash is talking about up there  ))

 

-----

 

((sorry, steel, but I told you I'd have to do this  XD))

 

An attendant turned at hearing the commotion, about to wave over a security guard when she saw Jack, but as twilight showed up, she relaxed a little, though then her eyes snapped open wide as she quickly made her way over to twilight "Miss! Miss! I'm sorry but There's no pets allowed inside, I'm going to have to ask you to leave your iguana at home, nothing personal, but the management is concerned about them spreading salmonella and also their unfortunate habit of leaving tiny pellets all over the place"

 

(( XD XD XD Yes! She did just call spike an iguana and accuse him of being dirty and not-housebroken! XD))