NeilWacaster

"They're always fun. The cast is so happy to have finally performed the work they've been practicing for weeks or months, and if the show was good, then the audience members are happy as well. But I'm sure you know that."

He looked down at his bowl of soup. It looked like it was growing cold, so he resumed eating.

Impetuously, he felt like giving her a hug, but quickly thought better of it. Don't take things to hastily. She's very shy.

Instead, he just grinned broadly, and gave a little squee of delight. "I'm so glad. It's going to be a great show. And, since it's opening night, there's an after party too, if you want to go. I have to be there, as it's my only chance to get interviews with some of the actors. Maybe you might enjoy getting the chance to talk with them?"

"Of course I want to go with you," Newsworthy said, his eyes big and pleading. "It would be my treat. Will you? Please?"

((I couldn't figure out how to describe his expression accurately. A reference picture I think will help.))

Link

"Well, I still haven't been able to get back in contact with the director, but I'm hoping once she hears the reason I missed the appointment was that we were trying to get rid of Discord, that she'll understand. I sent her two scrolls already today, but she still hasn't responded. Anyway, I'm not getting my hopes up, because the play opens tomorrow night. I'm sure she's busy. But, if you are at all interested in seeing 'Death of a Salespony,' I think there are some tickets left. I could ... we could ..."

"Les Mareserables? I've read the book, but haven't gotten to see the play yet. The reviews I've read have been glowing, it would be a great spectacle to see."

With how much she loves the theater, it must be difficult for her to not be able to go see plays. I'm guessing the tickets cost too much. Wow. That would be like me not being able to afford to go to the library. Hmmm ... that gives me an idea ...

"I believe that I told you I'm here to write a piece about the play over at the School of the Arts, didn't I?"

I'm reading the dusty's pub thread. Oh my goodness, these conversations are HILARIOUS.

Newsworthy smiled. "I like hearing you ramble. It helps me understand you better. Talking about things I'm going through always helps me, so I try to be there for my friends if they need somepony to talk to."

He tapped his chin, thinking about what she had said. "My experience is mostly from the audience's perspective. I go to many of the popular plays around Equestria and write reviews for my paper, so I've seen good, bad, and just plain laughable acting. It's easy for me to tell when the actors actually care about their part. The sign of a good cast, to me, is when I completely forget that I'm watching a show. If they're doing their job right, I feel so strongly for the characters that I almost become them."

I don't remember Pocket Change calling Persnickety adorkable ... is that from another rp? Sounds like something I might like to read ...

"That is an interesting motivation," Newsworthy said, trying to understand. "With most actors I've met, all they care about is fame and attention. You seemed different, but I couldn't figure out why."

"How interesting," Newsworthy said, nodding. "Our paths are different, but we are not all that unlike. We have both experienced our more than our share of rejection, struggle to make friends, and have had our parents disagree with where we took our lives. However, despite these things, we have made our way in the world as wordsmiths and are overcoming our difficulties."

He looked down at his mug of cider thoughtfully. "It's nice to meet somepony who really understands where you're coming from."

"It really sounds odd, but I'm actually an extroverted pony. I love being around others, but my upbringing makes it difficult for me to do so, at least at first. However, when I put on my reporter's cap, I feel powerful. I have a reason to show ponies who I really am."

He saw her somber expression and averted gaze. Darn it all. Just look at her. You went and ran off your mouth so much about yourself that you made her lose interest in the conversation. And now she feels sorry for you.

He realized that he needed to change the situation, and fast. He quickly reasoned that he should return the favor that she had so kindly paid him. "So, Persnickety, I'd love to hear your story. Where are you from, and how did you get here?"

Smiling warmly, he looked at her inquisitively, showing that he was genuinely interested in what she had to say.

His eyes darkened. He remembered, though, that honesty and forthrightness were usually best, especially when trying to gain somepony's trust. Even if the truth was painful.

On the other hoof, he felt flattered that she wanted to know about where he was raised. In his experience, most ponies just didn't care.

"That's a bit of a long story," he said, smiling at her a little sadly. "I'm not from any one place, in particular. I was born in Solstice Heights, a beautiful little mountain range just a little northeast of Canterlot. Well, when I was just a young foal, my parents decided that they wanted a traveler's lifestyle. My father was a carriage mechanic, you see, and we had to go where the work was. There were some positives ... I suppose. We got to see all the sights of Equestria. The Great Falls of Hoofington, the Neverending Bridge, Mt. Thunderhooves, The Majestic Canyon, and so on."

He paused, trying to find the right words. "Because we were always on the move, I never knew any foals my own age. We didn't have any friends, and only saw our extended family a few weeks out of the year. I just spent all my time with my mom, dad, and sister. This seemed 'normal' to me, because I didn't know any different. Looking back on it now ... I think it really hampered my social skills."

It had started out as just a simple question. But, he seemed to have a sympathetic listener. Hoping Persnickety was still interested, he continued. "The old fashioned carriage repair business started to dry up, and my family decided to take a new direction. Since my sister and I were getting older, my parents wanted to settle down, and try something new. Brashly, they bought a large and highly unprofitable bed-and-breakfast in one of the communities deep in Solstice Heights. It was completely stifling to me. Even though we were now stationary, I found the other colts and fillies in the tiny mountain town to be boring, and none of them shared my interests. They cared about sports, clothes, popularity, and everything else I despise. I spent most of the time reading or writing, or ..." He bit his lip, sheepishly. "Performing plays by myself."

"As I grew older, I was able to help more and more with the business. It was hard work, and work that I did not tend to enjoy. For the most part, I ran the cash register as an unpaid slave. Exciting, I know. It just cemented in my mind how much I wanted to get out of there. But I was also afraid of the unknown. I had had so few experiences apart from my parents that I honestly didn't know how to be independent. I allowed them to control my decisions, even when I knew it wasn't right for me. It's something I very much regret."

"A side effect of being secluded was that I was home schooled. I rapidly advanced through the grades, and was accepted into the Canterlot School of the Liberal Arts fully two years early. This gave me the escape that I needed. At the time though, it was completely overwhelming. Imagine, if you will. You've spent your entire life with three ponies, and suddenly you are on your own at a new place, with new ponies, and new academic challenges. You're way younger than anyone else, making you stand out like a tiny blue dwarf. Yeah. I basically just stayed in my room buried in school books, too insecure to do much more than go to class and write novels. I'm sorry to say that it took me three years before I started to make many friends."

"That was when I met ... her. But I already told you about that." He broke eye contact, staring down at his hoof, tracing a little circle on the waxed wood of the bar top. "I'm still thinking about what you said. About how to put that experience behind me. It's hard. It's really hard. But it already seems like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders."

He took a deep, ragged breath. "I'm sorry," he said, turning to her. "I've rambled for far too long. I ... do that sometimes."

The message is a little clearer on that one

As always, I love the spontaneous feel of your artwork. Looking at it more closely, there's a few details that I especially like.

You emphasized the emotions of the characters with the posture (Persnickety leaning in, and Newsworthy leaning away, ears on News pointed up and on Persnick pointed down). Very nice.

Good job on the 3/4 view of a male pony. As I'm sure you heard me say in the stream today, that is a difficult angle to get right.

Thank you so much for the drawing. I really like it!

The top gif I can understand, but the girl in the rain? It just looks so sad ... maybe I'm not well versed in reaction gifs. I don't know ...

Wait ... what is ... what? Persnickety? What is the .gif of someone face down in the rain???

OK, so the picture I posted is of Persnickety and Newsworthy holding hooves.

And then Twimsy posts a picture of my character getting a kiss? Needless to say, Newsworthy has quite a bit to say about this.

"Um, Neil? How did you get that picture!?"

"Well, someone sent it to me on a forum. *snicker* "

"That was private! You have no right ..."

"Well, it sounds to me like it happened in the middle of a cafe in Stalliongrad. Not exactly 'private,' if you ask me."

*Angry mumbling*

"Well? So how did it go?"

*Blushing* "It was fine."

"Well well."

"The soup is simply delightful." He took one of the pierogies and bit into it. The sweet carrot flavor exploded in his mouth. "Mmmm ..."

"Quite tasty. Reminds me of my mother's home cooking." He smiled, a little wistfully. "She was a wonderful chef."

"Oh. Yes, please."

Newsworthy couldn't stop smiling. It felt so good to care for somepony else again. And knowing that the feeling was mutual ... well.

"You're right, as always, Persnickety," he said, earnestly. "Every cloud does have a silver lining. Even pink ones filled with chocolate rain." His eyes twinkled.

He took a whiff of the savory soup and steaming dumplings, and realized just how hungry he was. With a little sigh of contentment, he began to eat the shchi.

Very fond of? Very fond of. Very ... fond ... oh my sweet Celestia ...

It had been so long since Newsworthy had felt pure, genuine happiness, that he wasn't quite sure what to make of it. For a few long moments, he just looked into those fathomless orange eyes framed by black glasses. Words wouldn't come.

((I'm so glad that you like the drawing. It elicited a squee? Even better than I hoped ))

"Well, in spite of missing my rescheduled appointment with the director of the play, painfully injuring my wing, and the city nearly being destroyed by Discord, I'd say that it's been pretty great. And I think you know the reason why." He gave her hoof a little squeeze.

OOC: The drawing that I made yesterday fits surprisingly well into the RP here. It's still a work in progress, but I hope you enjoy it.

The ghostly filly ran to the nearby spring, the handle of a wooden bucket in her mouth. She quickly filled it with the pure, cold water, and trotted back to the house. Timidly, she walked inside and set the bucket down before her mother, giving her a nuzzle.

"It's still pretty painful, but as long as I keep the sling on and don't jostle it, it's bearable. I visited the doctor earlier today, and he said I just need to take it easy for a couple of weeks and let it heal. Good thing I work with a quill rather than a hammer."

Taking her movement as a hint, he timidly laid his hoof on top of hers.

"I've never been much good with other languages. I actually minored in Azteca at university, but I can barely say 'taco' or 'burrito' correctly. Oh well."

Newsworthy thought about holding his date's hoof, but chickened out at the last second, and just laid his forehoof next to hers on the bar.

Interesting askblog character, I look forward to seeing more!

"Well, if you have trouble with it, then alas," he sighed dramatically, placing a hoof on his forehead in mock despair, "there's no hope for me." He grinned.

"So, what exactly is a pierogie? I don't think I've ever had one."