Gerrard

Alright~

This seems finished and ready for a final examination. You need to change the title from WIP to ready to get a final word on its status.

This application seems well on its way to being a great application. I know that it is labelled a work in progress, but I can still suggest a few minor things. A few flaws would help balance out her happy go lucky attitude and general aura of luck and good fortune. She could also be well served with a bit of parental description. We know she loves her sister, what about her parents?

Gerrard of course meant no offense when he spoke of Harriet, but the architect had a way with words. The problem for him though was that his words were poorly chosen and their delivery even worse handed. Even in his current state, the younger hybrid could tell he wasn't exactly making any friends. "Real talk Falco, I'm uh... sorry... for what I said. I didn't mean it the way it came out," he explained meekly, the proud architect managing to force out an audible apology to his visibly irked friend. He looked at the spartan quarters and didn't protest. While he was used to a bit of Canter lot luxury, his pride didn't allow him to complain about freely offered living quarters. "Thanks for the hospitality Falco, I won't forget it," he politely added for his friend as he took his spot on his bed.

Her expression was completely static as the director introduced himself and attempted to verify her name. She paused for a fraction of a moment, almost as if her brain were computing the answers to numerous questions and statements that were presented to her. "Yes, my name is Asteria. I apologize for my ignorance Sir Buckman, I came to the wrong conclusion on the type of presentation we were applying for. Please forgive me for dishonoring your profession, it was not my intention," she politely remarked, the mare's voice strangely confident, even when apologizing for her personal failings. It seemed as if her determination was unwavering, even when a mistake was made by her. Regardless, she listened patiently to his direction, the perfectly composed mare thinking over his words. "You wish for me to act scared? Fear is irrational Sir Buckman, it clouds your judgement and makes you take actions that are not well thought out. The principle behind fear is the trigger of a fight or flight response that will subconsciously take over when one might be too scared to take action. If you are able to maintain your composure, you can take more appropriate actions in situations that may be stressful or dangerous. If you are asking me to improvise a response to fear, I would have to revert to a loose interpretation of the fight or flight response. Out of respect to the safety of all parties involved, I will demonstrate a flight response," Asteria explained in her usual voice, the mare seeming almost completely absurd as she spoke in what seemed to be the most convincing deadpan matter imaginable. A trained eye might have mistaken her sincerity her idle joking, but that was not her intent, the black mare clearly having trouble articulating the abstract concepts presented before her. "If fear elicits a fight or flight response, it would seem appropriate that the severity of the response would be proportional to the fear. Simply put, the faster the actor flees, the more scared they appear. I will demonstrate the most amount of fear I can physically demonstrate with my body," she explained, pausing for a moment to give them a chance to measure her fleeing speed. After a second of silence filled the air, the tall unicorn quickly contorted her strong legs and launched herself off the stage and out of sight in what seemed to be record time, the mare clearly a running expert or athlete of some sort. As quickly as she had demonstrated her quick retreat, the unicorn was quickly tossed back onto the stage by her griffon friend, the graceful 'actress' trotting back onto the stage while a light cackle was audible from her feathered friend. "How was that Sir Buckman? I do not believe that I can act more scared without the use of magic," she explained calmly to the trio. Her absurd demonstration seemed like a joke, the execution of it so literal and flawless that it almost couldn't be possible that she was serious. Regardless, she stood before him with the same expression on her face as when she first spoke.

Gerrard could vaguely sense the growing anger in the griffoness, but was gone before his eyes could be raked. He looked over at the irked sergeant, just in time for Falco to down talk the mare. Gerrard chuckled a bit at the statement, finding such a claim strange. "Ponies have taught me to love and tolerate everyone, even dudes who like other dudes," Gerrard joked playfully as he jabbed Falco with an elbow. "She always looks bored. Asteria thinks that expressing emotion is frivolous or something. Even then, she secretly cares about others and donates the majority of her work profits anonymously to disadvantaged children in Equestria of all species," Gerrard explained with a straight face. The usually jovial hybrid was being serious for once, not wanting Falco to think less of his best friend. "But yes, I was the only person around she trusted to photograph her. Can't ruin her cover or anything. And besides, when you look like that, pictures just take themselves," he mused aloud, clearly infatuated with the made as he got hot and bothered. "Falco, I think I need some water," he jokingly added, smiling for his friend.

A controlled chuckle filled the air backstage at the audition. A large black griffon was speaking to an equally dark unicorn mare. Her expression was one of absolute stoicism, her crimson eyes peering back at the griffon as he made a spectacle out of the pair with his loud and boisterous behavior. "Asteria, you will make the best kind of actress. Nobody can keep a straight face in any situation like you can. In fact, I might even declare that you speak in the most dead on deadpan voice ever," Gerrard commented with a hearty laugh as he jabbed the made in the side with his elbow. Not even a flinch was visible from the mare as Gerrard threw an elbow and a joke at her. She was like a living statue, her expression remaining as static as a statue. After a few awkward moments of silence, she panned her head over to the dark joker and opened her maw to speak. "Sir Grayfeather, acting as another is deceitful. I do not believe that I can do so without breaking the trust of the audience," the black made explained in a calm and confident voice, the only tone she knew, her actual familiarity with acting apparently non existent. Gerrard and a few actors burst into laughter as she seemed genuinely serious. "I can't believe you can say that with a straight face, what a master," one pegasus complimented with a smile. The grin on the griffon's black beak widened as she spoke, knowing something they didn't. He knew she was being serious and replied by pushing her on stage. "Acting is storytelling, I am not lying. If you don't believe me, then are calling me a liar," he shouted to her as he launched her onto stage. The unicorn managed to keep proper posture as she trotted onto stage, her speed gradually slowing to a stop as she gracefully walked onto stage. A close look at the mare revealed her tall dark body that was draped in the most magnificent white dress a mind could imagine, the clothing a perfect mixture of contrast and accent for her body. She peered out to the directors with the most firm of crimson eyes. Hello Gentlemen, I am here to try out for a role in your play. I humbly ask for your permission to start my presentation," Asteria spoke confidently in the most humble of manners, her voice initially coming off in a vaguely alluring manner that seemed to reach out for their hearts.

The stoic expression of indifference stared back at him as he peered across to Harriet. He was conflicted as to what to say as Falco started marching out of the room. The dark hybrid paused as he thought over Falco's cruel, vaguely accurate words. "I am quite familiar with the stoic expression of indifference. My best friend is perpetually stuck in such a state, and while it may be disheartening, I know that like her, you secretly must care. The truth is that I am a Canterlot Trained Irrigation Architect. I was dispatched to your humble city in a successful attempt to fix your water. And while your brother pulls us apart, I know that we secretly care for each other!" Gerrard declared in a dramatic manner, going down on one knee as he poured his heart out for her. "Perhaps it wasn't met to be though, forgive me ma'am, I must leave," he added politely, returning to his feet as he wrapped a large black wing around his form. "Farewell mistress," he whispered before darting off after Falco, the dark hybrid quickly getting back to the side of his friend. The younger hybrid smirked a bit as Falco mentioned merchandise, deciding to throw a curve ball towards his friend. "Ya, I'll be right up there!" he declared confidently, the woozy griffon hopping up and flapping his heavy wings. With a few dangerous flaps, he landed beside the sergeant, seemingly proud of himself. "Yes, your 'merchandise is a solid six, almost a seven! Well above average. Of course, it is a bit beneath Asteria. She is a solid ten, quite the mare I must admit," Gerrard explained with a devilish smirk as he reached into his bag and pulled out a photograph of his close unicorn friend in a stunning white dress. "When I'm around her, I need lots of water to cool off," he added with a smile, lightly jabbing Falco with his elbow.

Gerrard was a highly schooled and individual, scholarly even when need be. Regardless, the Canter lot trained architect decided to just go with the flow, giving up for on arguing with such a self righteous individual. She seemed to love looking down on others and Gerrard figured it wasn't his place to ruin her fun. The black hybrid listened intently to her, deciding to do his best to refrain from triggering one of her rants about magic. "I like the cold, my body being well suited for it. There is of course a limit to it. I wouldn't mind a scarf for a blizzard. As for heat, my black fur and feathers tend to turn me into a heat magnet," he explained with a chuckle as he plucked one of his long and majestic black wing feathers and presented it to the unicorn. He paused for a moment to think over her question. "If you're asking what city I like the most though, I would say Manehattan. Lots of work and people there to do it. Hard work builds character, don't you agree," he explained simply, the black hybrid expecting her to agree.

Gerrard chuckled a bit as Falco abruptly stopped the discussion on interspecies relations. A lot of people frowned on them and he understood that, the griffon knowing that some were stuck in their ways. Gerrard just figured that Falco didn't like relationships of any kind. The black hybrid smirked as he took one passing glance at the large building before him. The building was in a similar sort of vaguely western style, and elaborate sign resting above the entrance to the building. "Neat place," Gerrard complimented with a genuine tone, clearly eager to see what secrets were hidden inside it's walls. As he followed after the sergeant, Gerrard looked over all the trinkets, his keen eyes trying their best to make heads or tails of what was important. His narrow spectrum of training didn't seem to serve him very well with antiques, most of the items clearly out of his field of expertise. As Gerrard followed Falco through his home, the architect couldn't help but glance across to the clearly confused griffoness. "Don't worry, the oil will wash right off my talons. I'm Sergeant Falco's old CO, honored to meet you Lady...," he politely remarked, telling an obvious fib for a laugh, the black hybrid far too young to have been any major rank in the military. Regardless, he did a polite bow before Hariet, offering a dark talon for a friendly shake. "What do I think of the place? Lovely place, I can see what draws all the customers in," he remarked coyly, the Canterlot trained griffon looking at Falco's younger sibling as he playfully poked his tongue out at her.

Gerrard was glad to see that it had worked, his tough black talon slapping Pathfinder back to her senses. He didn't often hit other people with them though, his hand throbbing lightly as he shook the pain off. The black hybrid hoped she didn't hold it against him, he knew the slap probably didn't hurt as much as his own bite though, the griffon a bit relieved about that. "Sorry about cutting you. It worked at least though," he added with a smile, feeling as if he finally managed to do something helpful for his adventurer friend. He glanced around the darkness, finding it incredibly hard to see anything of note. He limped about in the dark, his foreleg throbbing badly as he tried to make any details out. "Sapient hole? Danny? I'm afraid I don't have any clue about what you are talking about. I know irrigation, not He could hear his friend pawing at the ground in a focused manner, searching with her hooves for something that she could use to figure out where they were. Gerrard was at a loss himself, the architect starting to feel that he wasn't cut out for adventuring as he followed her around. After a few awkward moments of searching, the hybrid heard pathfinder find something. He could only imagine what it was though, the hybrid trying his best to figure out what was going on with this pit. He was new to the whole adventure thing and it probably showed, the griffon hoping to follow her direction. When she mentioned water though, the griffon paused, raising his brow. "Water? Pipe? You should be careful. We are in a pit in the ground. If you break something, the water could flow into here and drown us," he explained in a worried tone, the griffon unable to finish his thoughts blasted the griffon in the face, knocking him over. While griffons were a bit bulkier and stronger than pegasi, there was no doubting that they lacked a bit of the agility of their hooved counterparts. Gerrard hacked and wheezed and tried to dry himself off, the hybrid standing in a slowly growing puddle of water as the liquid slowly started filling their hole. "Oh gosh, let's get out of here," the griffon commented in a clearly disturbed voice, the braggart clearly not as confident as he was before. He quickly shuffled through his bag and pulled out his trusty blow torch, Gerrard igniting the tool as he created a shimmering blue flame. "You have something to make a torch with?" he added quickly, wanting to figure some way out before they met a watery demise. He flicked the fiery tool around with his deft wrists as he waited for her to find something to make into a torch.

A rattler once bit him. Five days later, it died. Nice crossover application, too absurd for Woe but funny regardless

Asteria patiently stood at the side of her friend, the disguised, mare clearly aware of the flaws in her costume, granted none were physical in appearance. Her body was in fact normal beneath the illusion, a simple physical interaction with her body would disregard her perceived appearance if it contradicted her actual body. Regardless, the mare was doing her best to fit in, perhaps too well as her costume made her look like a textbook copy of the infamous creatures. "Thank you for the compliment Nexar, I practice my magic frequently. I always welcome opinions that are from differing perspectives," she explained patiently in her usual well meaning attitude. Her attempt was not to provide cover for the changeling, the unicorn actually changing into the creatures that ponies were most likely to universally fear. Their kind nearly took over Equestria and if nightmare night was about scaring up treats, Asteria figured this would be the most efficient manner. While Asteria was great at creating visual illusions, the mare clearly didn't have the disposition to outright lie and trick others, her voice and posture in particular giving her away to the most trained of observers. If she didn't talk though, a normal pony would easily be able to mistake her for one. Her soulless blue eyes scanned over Nexar as he seemed torn over some thought that he couldn't get past. Asteria wasn't the type to idly speculate though and she decided against asking what was wrong. They slowly marched over to the center of towns, many frightening costumes of all manner of creature filling the streets, the slight imperfections in them being the only solace one would be able to find when confronted by them. She listened to the changeling explain in a cheerful manner that he hadn't done such an event before, the odd mare deciding that it was upon her to make the decisions for their night as they wandered over towards a candy apple stand. The pair soon came upon a small group of ponies, two dressed up as vampires, and one dressed as masked figure. The Canterlot schooled mare quickly recognized the mask, her lifeless eyes examining them as she listened to the black alicorn compliment the masked pony. Asteria took a step towards the masked stallion, her sharp fangs and soulless eyes ready to meet his expression as she spoke to him. "Hello Sir, I appreciate your costume.The mask is over ninety percent accurate. May I ask you for tips in improvising disguises," she commented in her usual voice, Asteria not the type to change her voice as she stood uncomfortably close to the pegasus. The unicorn who was disguised as a changeling either was unfamiliar with personal space or simply chose to ignore it as her frightening visage decided to disagree with her calm controlled voice.

Gerrard had a wide grin on his face, the younger hybrid chuckling when Falco came to the realization that he had been the butt of a joke. He patted his friend on the back with a claw, the griffon back to his senses as he could battle wits with his friend at a reasonable level. When the sergeant suggested that Gerrard wasn't good enough for him regardless, the architect chuckled lightly, deciding to disagree with his older counterpart. Gerrard batted his eyes in a playful manner and extended a black talon as if he were examining his nails. "I'm far too fabulous for a scruffy old man like you," he replied in a clearly faked feminine voice, Gerrard doing his best to avoid breaking into a hearty laugh. The younger griffon was of course joking, but felt the need to clarify further for his friend. "I wasn't asking you on a date, I'm sure you could find someone right for you if you felt the need," he added with a smile, Gerrard listening closely as his friend mentioned the peculiar tastes of the black griffon. "Do I date my own kind? What a question," Gerrard replied vaguely with a chuckle, the architect deciding to explain himself as best he can. "Well, think of it like this, if I only dated griffonesses, I might get one or two dates a year. They also have very sharp claws that my eyes are allergic to. I mean I guess I could date one if I found a patient one in Equestria. I can't really venture on to Aquellia to go dating. Anyway, ponies are great to date and hang out with. They are even compatible if you want children," he added, the younger griffon wondering what Falco thought of the notion, seeing as he didn't really like dating at all to begin with. "Just do you know pal, when I get back to Canterlot, I'm gonna take a nice bath and drink all the delicious water I can force down my throat. It will be marvelous!" he announced, Gerrard stumbling towards the pawn shop of his friend. He did want to get his sizzling body out of the sun and into a cooler location, the younger hybrid feeling anxious about the heat.

This application looks amazing. It is a high quality and original sounding application. While I am not specifically an RP helper that can approve anything, I can say from my experience with applications that this is well on it's way to being a fully functional and truly original character. I like that she is a strong unicorn, but has clearly defined powers that help balance out her similarity to an earth pony. While she can use magic, it is limited to a strict section of such, and is actually used as a way to help build her character. A unicorn who openly avoids using magic is a great twist on the existing lore of the show and can make for interesting dynamics if used well. The only thing I would really add to the application would be a more thorough explanation of her fear of dragons. Does she fear being eaten, has one hurt her, or is she paranoid of one making glass better than her with their breath? Giving a bit of rationale to her fear would make the character more relatable to the audience. You can also explain why she is arrogant. She seemed humble as a child and really eager to learn from others. Is there a reason why she has deviated a bit from her child hood. Perhaps she let an award go to her head, or she has developed something that makes her renown for one reason or another. While it is obvious that she is a kindhearted, if not hard working individual, maybe she just feels that others are a bit lazy with their gifts. The dynamic of talent versus hard work is always something fun to play with. Her appearance is very normal and I don't see anything particularly wrong with it. Her environment is unique and a welcomed change from city life most characters have. I like her job, something I can't personally remember seeing on this forum. All in all, this is a great application. There are a few instances of missing commas in the writing, but I am not one to talk. I tend to over use them myself, but it doesn't detract from the application in any meaningful manner. You accidentally added an extra L on jewler though, I noticed that at least =3. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reply or send me a message. Sundancer is a pony I hope to RP with in the future!

The younger griffon couldn't help but raise his brow as Falco continuously shot down every mention of friendship with the opposing gender. Gerrard raised his brow a bit as he came to a sudden realization. He wasn't sure if it was true, but that never stopped him from guessing it in a playful manner. "Do you have something against ladies? I'm not here to judge you Falco, different people have different interests," Gerrard playfully asserted, jabbing him in the side with his elbow. The griffon was basically back to his senses, the fierce sun cooking some sense back into his body. "When we get back to your place, you owe me a few glasses of water. I'm thirsty enough to drink a lake," he warned in a friendly manner as leaned on Falco for support

Asteria was here on business matters, granted everything was business for her. Her keen eyes looked over the the colourful room, her stoic exp<b></b>ression unflinching as she ingested the heartwarming scenery. A cursory examination of her face might reveal that she was entirely apathetic to the situation, a conclusion that actually couldn't be farther from the truth. After a brief interlude from the mare, she opened her maw to explain her seemingly unannounced appearance at the shop. "I am here with pressing business from Manehattan. I was tasked with creating an environment that would be most comfortable for the children. I decided that repairing the damaged toys that they were most familiar with. May I request the expertise of this shop with the repair of these orphan toys? I am willing to pay the going market rate for the services," she explained suddenly, the mare seemingly interested in helping orphans of all things. There still was something strange about her, the odd made never mentioning ponies as she explained her goals to the worker. It was strange but still on the cusp of normal speaking. Asteria was always a bit odd, but she meant well enough. She refrained from judging the pegasus, but the unicorn kept open the possibility that someone else might have been running the store. "May I ask for for your name Lady Pegasus? I am Asteria Stillheart, honored to meet you," the black mare explained with a formal tone as she performed a subservient bow before Swifty. The strange mare seemed all over the place with her words and mannerisms and it was unclear if it was her intention to come off in such a way.

Gerrard followed alongside his friend, his head starting to clear up a bit as they neared their destination. His head started to throb lightly, his friendly stupor giving way to a normal headache as he came back to his senses."Man, don't ever let me do that again," he grumbled lightly, rubbing his head with a talon as he tried to clear his sore head. "Yeah, the badlands are a lot hotter than this valley," Gerrard added, referencing the griffon territory, some light evidence that he had returned to his senses. "I haven't been to the griffon lands in quite a while. And yeah, these feathers are better for hiding at night," the black griffon added, spreading his large wing span for everyone to see as he started vaguely gloating again. "Hey, it's not like I'm gonna marry her. She is my pal, just like you. Asteria doesn't even get me drunk either. She was probably the first pony in Equestria who wanted to be friends with me, she even offered me work to help pay off my student debt. And to make things better too, she never asks for anything for free. A true friend I suppose," he explained, the younger griffon reluctantly letting Falco pat his back with a firm talon. "Remind me to come back here at night next time though, it is pretty hot here," he grumbled playfully as the city came clear into view for the pair.

"Yeah, I'm wondering why you aren't sunburned out in this oven of a place? I've got built in protection!" he claimed in a clearly misinformed manner, the griffon's mind clearly not working correctly at all. Griffons were covered in a thick pelt and layer of feathers that hid their bodies from the sun, the closest thing to visible 'skin' on their bodies being their talons. Even those were well protected by what were best described as 'scales', the drunk Canterlot griffon clearly wrong, assuming that Falco had any understanding of Griffon anatomy of all. Gerrard didn't linger on any thought for too long, his mind wandering too much to focus on anything as the pair trudged through the desert town towards their destination. "This is the best pawn shop on this side of the border? Wait, what side are we on again. The pony side, or the uhh, non-pony side?" he remarked in a strange manner, the griffon obviously disoriented, but pausing for a moment as he seemed to speak in a vaguely pony-centric manner. Regardless, the black griffon was doing a decent job of following alongside his friend, his four feet keeping him upright as he listened to Falco claim that he had the best shop around. The architect knew a lot about gloating from personal experience, and wondered if it was also an attempt to compensate, something Gerrard 'rarely' did on occasion. "Ahh, relationships. I must admit, I have seen quite a few lovely mares in my days. I'm friends with quite the looker, I must admit! She is easy on the eyes and a nice person, she just doesn't seem to particularly love anything," he remarked, the griffon actually telling the truth, granted it probably seemed that he was trying to cover for the fact that the mare probably didn't like his personality. "Maybe I'll ask her out one day, it might be nice putting up with someone. Having someone to share my awesomeness with, it is only fair that they get to bask in my glory with me," the griffon explaining in his usual manner as he started gloating more, Gerrard slowly starting to return to normal. Gerrard didn't mention the crossbow as Falco spoke, the griffon trying his best to forget the incident.

Gerrard hadn't been in nearly as many holes in his life as pathfinder, the griffon not nearly as much a fan of adventure as her, despite what his claims might have been. In fact, the only holes Gerrard were familiar with involved sewers and the like. The dark hybrid always avoided talking about those though for obvious reasons, trying to forget about the less glamorous portions of his life. He valued his life greatly and tried his best to avoid dangerous situations like the one he was in, the architect being thrown into a situation he wasn't familiar with. After a short fall into the pitch black darkness, Gerrard glanced around, unable to see without a light source. He couldn't sense anything in the dark abyss, his limbs still operating, but seemingly unable to move him in any meaningful manner. He thought for a moment, realizing there was in fact no friction in the darkness. It meant that any movements of his would likely do nothing, the griffon deciding to test if he simply needed a light source to examine his surroundings and body. After feeling around his body, the griffon managed to find his trusty blowtorch, Gerrard glad that he could at least still feel things as he kept a firm grip on the blowtorch. With a click, the torch vibrated in his hand ever so faintly, the griffon unable to see or even hear the torch. He could tell by the faintest of movements in his talon that the torch must have been active, although for one reason or another, his senses aside from touch didn't work. Gerrard let out a screech, unable to hear any of his noise as he confirmed this for one last time. The griffon thought in silence for a moment about it, his keen mind wandering as he thought over how this could be possible. Magic was the only thing that could explain it in his mind, but what sort of spell could do this? As it had many times, his thoughts drifted towards the most skilled unicorn he knew, a mare who specialized in illusion magic. He had seen her change her form many times, yet her actual body always remained constant, the mare using magic to manipulate properties of light and the such to trick senses. This must have been some sort of trick, designed to distract Gerrard and his friend. The griffon wracked his head for a moment, trying to come up with a way to break the stasis he felt they were in. "Illusions can be dispelled when they are directly interacted with, or the senses of the subject are over loaded to the point that the magic can't hold sway over the target," his mind remembered the somber words of the melancholy mare he spent a lot of time chatting with. He only had one working sense, and the griffon decided on a rash course of action to break free of the darkness. Gerrard turned off his torch and opened his maw, the griffon deciding to bite down on his foreleg, the griffon wincing in pain as he took a bite of his leg. Gerrard felt his eyes well up as his leg ached terribly, the griffon's mind only able to focus on the throbbing in his leg. And just as his mind drifted that way, Gerrard's vision slowly returned, the hybrid finding himself sitting in a dark pit, the griffon next to Pathfinder. He looked at Pathfinder, the pegasus seeming to be in a stupor similar to his own, the griffon deciding to let out a sigh as he figured what he needed to do. "Sorry Pathfinder!" he explained to the mare, guessing that she couldn't hear him as he swung his talon back, the architect deciding to knock some sense back into her as his talon flew towards her face.

Gerrard raises his brow as he listened to Telki explain a bit about herself. Her vague way of answering questions without really saying anything reminded him of one of his dear friends. She always seemed aloof, the mare a master of masking her thoughts. Regardless, his curiosity was getting the best of him. He knew from experience that many ponies had names relating to their talents and Telki was probably not an exception. How they were named for their talent prior to it being discovered though, was something that he had thought of on occasion, that phenomena seemingly impossible to understand. "Ahh, Telki, the life of a secret adventurer. It sounds fun, what sort of adventures if we may ask? Perhaps your magic involves specific use of telekinesis, like you name suggests?" he suggested as if he had discerned some masterfully crafted puzzle. The griffon glanced over to Colton when he finished his words for Telki, the hybrid nodding for the pegasus. "Yeah, bits are nice to have around, the Canterlot University has a never ending supply of work for me to do. If I hire some people, I can finish it faster and do more work, a bit of a win win for everyone involved I suppose, right?" Gerrard explained with a smirk, a bit proud of himself. Pride was one thing that Gerrard always had a great deal of, the dark hybrid always loving to gloat and talk about life.

Gerrard blinked a bit as Falco opened the door, the immense heat of the outside slapping him right in the face. The griffon took a moment to react, his stupor preventing him from acting normally as he slowly returned to a normal posture. "Are we on the sun?" he asked in a semi-serious manner, the dark hybrid stepping out into the light of the day. The architect glanced around lazily as he got outside, not sure of where he was supposed to go. After a short search, he couldn't spot a place labelled Falco's home, and he simply decided to follow after his friend. "Alright, lead the way. Your secret base eludes me. Quite the feat I must admit," the black hybrid giving up almost immediately on his own search. "I'll rest at your shop, but I would rather not buy anything until I feel better," he added in the most controlled voice he could muster. And with that, the short perilous journey across town was started, Gerrard lucky enough to have four legs to keep him upright. He stumbled a bit, but was otherwise fine to continue. "So, tell me about your store, is it a nice place? Are you married? Is he or she nice?" the griffon starting to ask questions in an attempt to get his bearings better.

Asteria was doing a late night delivery for Nightmare Night, the unicorn delivering a set of costumes for a few of the last minute requests in Ponyville. The other couriers were busy celebrating the holiday with their friends and families, the black mare one of the lone exceptions as she made her way towards town. She would eventually be whisked away by her changeling friend on her way out of the town, the unicorn being asked for assistance in the development of a costume and proper protocols in the retrieval and distribution of candy. She watched closely as the changeling decided on making his own costume, changing into a vile looking alicorn with a frightening visage. The dark mare showed no fear as he changed, granted she never showed much of a reaction to anything. "You seem ready to spook up some candy to pay tribute to nightmare moon. The lore of this event states that failure to offer food to the mare will result in her devouring you so. It seems highly unlikely that such a thing could happen, but that is the custom of the event. It would be respectful for me to change into a costume as well, will this suffice Sir Nexar?" she commented in a controlled manner as her horn glowed red before masking her in magic. In just a matter of seconds, Asteria appeared to change into a regular looking changeling, her body full of holes, her visage vaguely sinister as she peered over to Nexar. "Is this an acceptable costume?" she asked in her usual tone, the unicorn seeming unable or unwilling to change how she spoke. "The custom is to carry bags around town and ask for candy. I would suggest going to the portion of town with the highest population density. That would be the south side of town. Do you have any disagreements or requests for the event?" she asked patiently, the 'changeling' taking charge of the situation as they exited his home. Asteria had only celebrated the event a few times in her life, but she always received compliments or screams for her costumes. It was the one night she could test her magic in public without being outed by prying eyes.

"I feel great. The world is moving in shlow moshun. You know what that means, right? It means I'm going so fast that you all seem slow!" he claimed in the most incorrect of manners, the griffon quickly quaffing a large mug of water. He quickly downed it as well before turning around to glance at the exit of the establishment. "But how can they thank me if I'm not here?" Gerrard replied in his usual slurred voice as he contemplated the need for him to leave. After a few moments of awkward silence, Gerrard hopped off his stool suddenly. The dark hybrid landed on his feet, but stumbled a bit as he tried to keep his coordination. "I will spare you the indignity of me embarrassing you. I mean, it was my idea to come here for drinks, remember?" he claimed sarcastically in a slur as he stumbled in the general direction of the exit. He couldn't maintain a straight walk and had to catch his balance on a table before glancing back to Falco. "I'm sorry to be a trouble to you," he apologized, the intent of his words a bit hard to understand as his unfocused eyes searched for his older counterpart.