The Bond of Friendship: 20 years [INVITE ONLY]

[MarchingHammers]

20 years. It has been so long since the Discord incident in that little Stalliongrad cafe. A group of ponies got together and formed a friendship that would last through their lives....or so they thought. The ponies had spent many years together, but slowly but surely they spread apart, each going their own way, and either leading into their own success or failure. It was fate that sought to bring the group together once more, 20 years after that faithful day. This RP chronicles their reunion in the city of Stalliongrad, where one stallion, who is an aged husk of his former self is about to start his farewell tour... marking the end of his Musical career.

So this RP is a future RP, so in order to join, please give me a brief synopsis of what has happened in those 20 years after the group split up. You get to have up to TWO characters. Please PM me if you want to have two characters please. Thanks!

Cast List

MarchingHammers- Sydphony (Stallion)

Twimsy- Persnickety (Mare)

Bronynumber299- Neon Bright (Mare) and Rainy Splash (Stallion)

Lisosaurus- Birthday Cake (Mare)

Tacobob- Pocket Change (Stallion)

NeilWacaster- Newsworthy (Stallion)

PonyHooves- Paw Print (Mare)

DeepBass- Deep Bass (Stallion) and Treble (Mare)

[Twimsy]

Twenty years.

It had been twenty long, laborious years. Years filled with trials and tribulations, of friends and wine, of sharing curries and stories and sleeping on floors when the liquor had been too tasty and the smoke had been too nice. Somehow, through it all, she'd persevered until she was living what she'd dreamed of for so very long. The parts she'd played in theater had been striking, compelling and inspiring. She'd taken not only Stalliongrad, but other parts of Equestria by storm as she'd traveled with the acting troupe she'd long since dubbed her family. So many precious years, so many precious memories...

...but, as they say, home is certainly where the heart is. She'd left hers in the place where her acting had first taken wing. The last five years of that two-decade period had been spent, fixing up one of the older playhouses in Stalliongrad to use as a place to mold aspiring actors, organize plays and work in a more comfortable, intimate and familiar setting that she realized she'd lacked for so long. Even with as busy as it was, the mare - now far older than she was in her prime - couldn't see having it any other way.

"Ah--!! Soliloquy, please do take care to watch your--" THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD KRSH~!! "...step. Hmf." She carefully descended the stairs, snatching up a few costumes and laying them over her back as she went. "Are you alright, dear?"

"Y-Yeah...s-sorry, Miss Persnickety...! Forgot that they were leaving the props there." The clumsy colt with the fancy name lay in a tangled heap at the bottom of the stage's staircase.

"Well, please do try to remember. The dress rehearsal is tonight, and they can't put on "Manespray" with a slew of broken props." Her words were stern and a tad frazzled, but she tried her best to remain kind. A bit hard at such crucial times, but some actors worked well under pressure.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good. I need to see how they're doing with the banner, outside. Oh- and if Masquerade comes by, could you let her know that I need those dresses by next month?"

"Of course!"

"Thank you kindly, dear." With that, the mare headed outside. "Not a dull moment in this theater, that is most certain..."

[Bronynumber299]

Neon Bright was on a hill in Ponyville talking to her best friend Rainy Splash.It has been twenty whole years since they met all those other ponies.Neon Brights party shop has been extended and now the name The Neon Bright Party Shop is known through out Equestria.She was now very wealthy but hasn't changed one bit.She was still her annoying but tolerable self.Rainy wasn't so lucky.he has been in the rain sector of the weather team for over twenty years but has only one promotion.But his life outside of that made up for it.He came home to a beutiful loving wife and a lovley daughter.Plus he could spend his off days with his best friend Neon Bright.

"I wonder if Syd remembers me?I wonder if anypony remebers me.But exspessially Syd."Rainy just rolled his eyes knowing Neon had devolped feelings for that pony."Well you are pretty unforgettable.""Hey!Whats that mean?"Rainy just smiled at her and she just calmed down.They had been friends for so long that they could communicate just by looks."I wonder if we will ever meet up again.""I hope."

[Lisosaurus]

Birthday Cake had spent the past 20 years in her shop, making cakes for anypony who may need one for a low amount of bits. It was her specialty. Her mother, Wedding Cake, had passed away just a week before, and she was still very upset about it. She has had the shop closed since her mother passed away. Her father, Cheesecake, was also getting senile, and she feared that he might pass away soon, too.

She was married to a very sweet gentlecolt who was actually able to tolerate her love for baking and her bubbly personality. She had fallen in love with him after they had met in a bookstore in Canterlot. Together, they had a pegasus filly and a unicorn colt.

Birthday Cake looked at her husband. "I think it's time for us to move my shop, sweetie. I've been here for almost 15 years now. The business is getting slow." She thought a little bit and then said, "Can we move to Stalliongrad?"

"Well.. um... are you sure? I'm fine with that if you're positive. When do you want to move?"

"I'd like to move as soon as possible. Let's move tomorrow."

And so, the rest of the day was spent packing to relocate their store to Stalliongrad.

[MarchingHammers]

Twenty Bucking Years...

Syd found himself on the Ponyville express, the train that used to run between Appleloosa and Ponyville that had recently expanded to Stalliongrad and and Manehattan. He had been sitting there, looking at a picture of him in his youth with his friends. It was taken in a park in Stalliongrad, where they were having a picnic with numerous different ponies, all of different backgrounds and stories. Things had changed for Syd over the years. The friends he once knew and loved, gone from his life. A tumultous decade of touring after he had met his special somepony, Dawning Aura, had finally taken it's toll. She had finally broken up with him, distraught over his actions on tour, such as being unable to visit her and a lack of communication. It had finally come to a breaking point where he began to drink, and it was his coping mechanism. 10 years he had spent with her, down the drain. He became an angry individual, and on tour he happened to spit on a fan when he was trying to get on stage. His music suffered from his drinking habits and he took a break for a few years, silently working on albums that went largely unnoticed He began to lose contact with old friends and isolated himself behind his own mental "wall".

When news of the death of Syd's mother got to him, he broke down and realized that he had probably inadvertantly killed her with his bad habits and lack of communication. Syd worked hard to get out of his alcoholism, and eventually emerged as a new stallion. He made his way back up the charts with his first double album, dubbed " Sydphony: Perfect Isolation" It went onto be a huge hit 3 years ago.

Syd was reaching an age where he was no longer the youthful Stallion he used to be. His mane had remained the same dark brown, although it had a few grey hairs in it, showing a bit of ageing. His tail shared the same symptoms. He had a bit of scruff on his face, sparse grey and black whiskers went up his face, although he had cut them down in recent years. He still wore his signature trenchcoat and had a sizable apartment overlooking Central Park in Manehattan, where he proceeded with a largely private life. Syd felt his swan song coming along over time. He felt like he owed it to his fans, and thus began planning a tour for the ages a year ago. Now, he was heading to Stalliongrad in order to look for a venue, although he felt like he had an obligation to stop in Ponyville and see Neon Bright. She was the first friend he had made when he moved to Manehattan when he was just a colt. He had not seen her since the incident, but he wanted to see her, and treat her to a short trip to Stalliongrad.

Exiting the train, He began to walk towards the town, passing over a few hills on the way, eventually seeing two pegasi sitting together on a cloud. One flew away and he walked under the cloud and said in an aged and more gentle cockney accent "Excuse me , you wouldn't happen to know a Neon Bright would you, I was wondering if she lived in Ponyville anymore."

[Bronynumber299]

Neon Bright got up."Come on Rainy let's go get a bite to eat."Rainy Splash got up to and checked his watch he yelped."I really would want to.But I really have to go back to Dash and Splash!"Neon Bright nodded and kept on walking she had her eyes on a very expensive restruant.Now being richer she could manage to indulge herself a few times.

Rainy Splash flew up on the clouds.Finally he found Cloudsdale.He got home and walked in."Honey I'm hooooome!"When he heard no response he got worried.He flew into the living room and saw his daughter Rainbow Splash playing on the ground with some dolls."Eeep!Rainbow!What are you doing here alone?"When his daughter heard him she trotted over and jumped into a hug."Daddy!Mommy went to work because she thought you where coming home."Rainy Splash just rolled his eyes his wife Rainbow Dash always ran off to her Wonderbolt duties."Come on let's go hang out on a cloud."So he and Rainbow Splash went to find a cloud.Rainy saw a pony talking to him asking him about Neon."SYD!Is that you?Wow!It has been too long anyway yea she's in that expensive resturant.She got pretty wealthy."

((Okay so Rainy and Rainbow Splash are the pegasai on the cloud.I assume.Oh and Rainbow Splash's text clour will now be This.))

[tacobob]

The split up of their merry little group really struck Pocket the hardest, and he entered a rather dark state of depression, which combined with his constant self-loathing of breaking up with his 'true love' many years ago and his increasingly dangerous devotion to the bottle made him a wreck of a unicorn. As the years went by, he decided he had enough of his rather directionless life, so he made his way to the Everfree forest where he would wander off and die with some dignity. Several years later, he emerged from the dark forest, a changed pony. He learned a lifetime's worth of knowledge from those who dwelt in the dangerous woods, both pony and beast. He left the wild strong in both body and spirit, and from there he decided he would use this hard-gained knowledge to teach others. He moved to Ponyville, where he spent the last decade of his life teaching in the expanded school. He became a respected member of society and was well loved by his students. He even gained enough courage to finally visit his former love and became an instant hit with her kids. They always enjoyed it when 'Uncle Pocket' visited and spun his rather wild tales of his early adventures.

Pocket eventually married, but never had any children, which did not bother him that much, since he considered his students to be just a part of his ever expanding family. At the start of this little RP', Pocket is taking a break from teaching, and his wife is out of town, where she is helping an elderly family member.

OOC: I did get a message invite BTW. And I'll just play Pocket. Age is usually frowned on in the regular RP zones since the powers that be never set rules on how these characters age, so how 'old' would the characters be? Middle aged? Older? Thanks.

[MarchingHammers]

((I would assume that the characters are nearing or in their middle age, If Syd was a human, he would be around 35-40 years old. Well, as long as age is not frowned upon here, we can make up our own realities can't we?))

[PonyHooves]

What had happened inthose twenty years that Paw Print had left to continue in her line of work, dog training? Well, it seemed like a long story. But Paw Print remembered every last detail that was important in her life.

Paw Print had gone back to her home in Appleloosa. Some of the locals had bought dogs to help them with their harvesting season. They had required help to train their dogs. Paw Print trained their dogs and they payed her. It was enough money to live off, even with having her own dog. She could afford to feed him and take him to a vet if he needed medical attention. For a few months everything seemed perfectly fine. But then it suddenly changed one early summer morning.

Paw Print had just woken up. She went into the kitchen and put food in Tricks' bowl. He didn't get out of bed for food. It looked as though the elderly dog was still sleeping. But when she nudged the mutt to try and wake him, she discovered that he had peacefully passed away in his sleep. The mutt had died of old age. Nineteen was very old for a dog and she knew his time was going to end soon. But that didn't make it easy for the mare to cope with her loss.

For two months she visited his grave and weeped while placing white roses down where she had burried him. That dog was a huge part of her life. She met him on the day she had recieved her cutie mark. They had grown up together. He even helped her with dog training. He was always there. Suddenly, he wasn't there anymore. His bed was emptyand his favourite ball was untouched in the place he had left it. It was quiet without him.

A year later, Paw Print travelled to the place where she was born, Ponyville. She visited her mother's grave and talked to it as if she was there in front of her. After a long talk and fresh flowers being layed down, the mare felt better about her loss. Though she knew she'd always remember her companion. She then returned to Appleloosa.

The mare talked with her father. He helped her with her job for a few months. After that, she managed to cope on her own. And so she worked until the day she decided to return to Stalliongrad, where she had made some special friends those twenty years ago.

[Lisosaurus]

Birthday Cake packed all of her things. "I wonder if they're still there..." she thought to herself. The friends she had made so long ago, were they still there? She laid down in her bed. She tried and tried to fall asleep, but as much as she tried, she found that she could not. She listened to the pit-pat of the rain outside until she peacefully fell asleep.

[NeilWacaster]

As Newsworthy walked to the theater to help Persnickety with the dress rehearsal of her latest production, his mind began to wander. He had traversed the sidewalks between the house and the theater so often that his mind was fully free to think.

For some reason, his thoughts turned to that little café where his life had finally taken a turn for the better. For, you see, that was where he had finally found love after so many years of heartbreak. Where a new chapter in his life had begun, and one which they were still writing. Where he had found the reason for him to live, for him to try, for him to find lasting success.

It had taken many weeks for his wing to heal sufficiently for him to be able to go back to Ponyville. Although, by the time the first month was over, he had decided that he never wanted to leave. He continued to publish his gazette in Ponyville, hiring a few local students to take care of the day to day operations of the paper. Applying all he had learned about starting a newspaper, he founded several more gazettes in the great cities of Equestria as he traveled with his wife's acting troupe, and was now running a journalism empire from his penthouse office in the tallest building of Stalliongrad.

This was all he had ever wanted. A flourishing newspaper business, reaching many hundreds of thousands of ponies each day. A loving family. All the money he could ever spend. A place in high society.

But something was missing.

During the past year, he had realized how little time he had left. Even though he was still in middle age, he felt the weight of his coming end pressing down upon him like a ton of bricks. But even more disheartening to him was the strain that his job placed on his family life. During busy weeks, he often worked more than 70 hours, leaving the house before the sun rose, and coming back long after it set. He knew that Persnickety was very understanding of the amount of time that he had to spend in the office, but he felt that if he peeled away the tragicomic mask that she was yearning for more time with him.

Their oldest, a pair of twins, were fillies no longer, but nearly ready for post-secondary education, and he felt like he had missed so much of their short lives. Their youngest two, a filly and a colt, three years apart, were still in primary school, and he wanted to be sure that he was able to be more involved in their development. Also, he hadn't published one of his guides to science in over a decade, and he desperately wanted to make the time to be able to return to his passion.

He had tried to cut back on his amount of work several times before, but each time was met with falling profits and enraged stockholders. He was determined that this time it would be different. For the past three years, he had been training a brilliant executive. The stallion, Headline, had risen quickly through the ranks of Newsworthy Publishing Corporation and now held the position of Vice President of Operations. At the stockholder's meeting tomorrow, the board of directors was going to vote to decide whether to appoint Headline as the new CEO and Chairman of the Board.

He was trying to decide whether he should mention this to Persnickety tonight. On the one hoof, he knew that she would be overjoyed if he was stepping down from his position. However, if the vote didn't go as planned, she would be heartbroken that he would be continuing to work long hours until the board finally got their act together.

As he approached the theater, his mind snapped back to reality. There was much to consider, but at the moment, he needed to focus on the tasks he would have at hoof. It was very fortunate that he had been able to clear his schedule for the afternoon and evening to help his wife with the rehearsal. He hoped that it would be a pleasant surprise for her. She was the expert as far as the theater was concerned, so he wasn't sure if he would be able to do anything of use. If nothing else, he would at least be there for moral support during her stressful day of last-minute preparations.

Outside the establishment, a long line of ponies stretched around the block. All were waiting to get tickets to the upcoming show. He smiled, glad that "Manespray" was already shaping up to be a huge hit. He also noticed two pegasi hanging a huge banner with the name of the show in an ornate typeface. It looked like they were having a little bit of trouble getting it straight, and were bickering with each other about who was to blame.

As Newsworthy approached the entrance, he nodded to the attendant, who swung open the large glass door of the theater. He entered the huge atrium, and trotted through and into the auditorium. His heart nearly stopped when he heard a series of thuds and a crash from stage left. He began to gallop toward the accident, praying to the sun goddess that his wife wasn't injured.

However, as he approached, he heard her talking with Soliloquy, and realized that it was the young actor who had fallen. That klutzy colt, he really needs to learn how to avoid tripping over his own hooves.

As Persnickety finished talking with the colt, Newsworthy peeked around the stage curtain. He saw a familiar brown flank and cerulean tail disappearing through the door leaving the stage. He cantered after her, trying to catch up as she exited the side door to the theater.

"Honey, wait up! Your gallop is still too fast for these old bones," he called after her, panting.

[MarchingHammers]

Syd had not seen who the Stallion was, but he eventually realized it was Rainy when he exclaimed how long it had been since they ran into each other. "Oh my how long it has been Rainy. How has your life been?" Syd looked down and saw a Pegasus filly poking it's head out from behind Rainy's rear hooves Syd gave Rainy a look of approval, and said "You have a wonderful and healthy looking daughter there. Who is her mum?" Syd said to Rainy, not before getting down to her level. He then magicked out of his saddlebags a poster, which had a picture of him and his band, which consisted of foalhood friends. "So what is your name sweetie?" Syd said producing a quill and silver ink to write it down on the poster.

"I must be going, as I have to see Neon before I head out of here towards Stalliongrad." Syd said to Rainy, and he waved goodbye to his foal as he walked into the fancy restaurant, quickly looking around for Neon, who he could not see yet.

[Bronynumber299]

((Rainy will get to talk to syd later right?))

Neon Bright had eaten so she was at the bar drinking away her sorrows.Although she was rich and had many friends she still had that special somepony misssing.She sighed sipping on an appletini.Neon looked the door and gasped.Syd was there looking around.She rubbed her eyes with her hooves.He was really was there!Then Neon practiclly jumped out of her chair and was trotting to Syd and saying"SYD!It's been painfully long."

[PonyHooves]

As she arrived in Stalliongrad, Paw Print looked around. It hadn't changed a bit. It still looked like it did when she first visited. It made her smile slightly to think that things didn't change. Then it got her thinking. 'I wonder if I'll see my friends... With everything looking the same I am sure that it will be the same... At least I think so...' The mare started to trot in the direction of the cafe, hoping to see the others. She saw it up ahaead and smiled. It was still there in all of its glory. Her smile grew wider and her heart skipped a beat. She thought they could be in there. That thought made her feel happy. Paw Print reached the doorand took in a deep breath. It was time to go back to where her friendship had started and she knew it.

[MarchingHammers]

((Of course! He wouldn't want to miss a trip with Syd and Neon to Stalliongrad would he?))

Syd looked left and right throughout the bar, looking for the teal mare with lime green hair. He then heard a voice call out for him that sounded very familiar. He turned to find himself nose to nose with a mare who was overjoyed to see him.... she was Neon Bright. Finally he had found her. Syd wrapped her in and embrace and pecked her on the cheek before speaking up. "Yes Neon, it has been a long time. I'm sorry that I sort of disappeared for so many years. I will catch you up in due time. Syd whispered to one of the employees asking him to open the private lounge, where they could talk more privately. It costed a hefty sum of bits, but his money was forfeit for all he cared, as he was wealthy. Syd led her into the lounge and sat down in one of the many couches, motioning for her to take a seat. "So how has life been Neon, I assume successful as you are hanging out in this swanky place. So Neon, I have a propostion for you. You are first to hear this, but I am going to end my career as a musician soon, and hopefully settle down with somepony, and finally have that family I failed to have so many moons ago. I propose that you travel with me on my Career ending tour. I had hoped that the tour would bring our group of friends back together." Syd pulled out a photo that he was looking on the train, and he sighed, with a look of hard thought on his face.

[Lisosaurus]

Birthday Cake woke up and yawned. "Well, today is the day to move..." she said. She went around the house, checking for any things that were still unpacked. She went into the attic and saw an old photo album sitting in plain sight.

[Bronynumber299]

((Rainy Splash would go anywhere with his best friends.But you don't mind if Rainbow Splash (his daughter)tags along right?))

Neon Bright was happy just to talk to Syd but getting all thier ol' buddies back together.She thought she might faint.She smiled Neon had her front leg propped up on the back of the couch holding up her head."That would be awesome!Well let's start with you me and Rainy.But wait I think his daughter might have to come."Neon procceded to get up and wave him up.

[MarchingHammers]

"I had assumed that she would be coming. I did make sure that accomodations were made for a number of our friends at the hotels on my tour. I have to say, Rainy's daughter gets a lot of her looks from her dad." Syd sighed, scratching at his greying scruff on his face. "I had always wanted to have a foal, I at least planned to with Dawning Aura, but my occupation screwed that up. Now I hope that I find somepony that accepts me for my wrongs, and that I live the rest of my life with that pony. Hopefully have a foal, and try to be good parents."

Syd put away the photo and motioned for Neon to come sit next to him on the couch, partially because he saw her blush and wanted to ask her about it.

[Bronynumber299]

Neon Bright really tried to hide her blush.But because of her bright blue coat it was kinda hard to miss.She sat down gingerly beside Syd."So what else is there to talk about.Swee-!"She covered her mouth with her hooves.She almost said sweetie!Neon Bright now blushed even brighter.She sighed.It was time to tell him the truth."I have kinda had a crush on you since we met."Her head slumped down and she closed her eyes from shame.

Rainy Splash picked up Rainbow and put her on his back."Come on honey.Where going to go talk to Neon and that guy I called Syd."Rainbow Splash just nodded and hugged her daddys neck.Rainy was worried though he hoped nothing had happened.

[MarchingHammers]

Syd was about to ask Neon about her blush when she spoke up herself. "So what else is there to talk about.Swee-!" Syd caught what she was about to say, and his face changed to one of a mild smirk. She began to sit down and she admitted something that he had suspected of, but never acted on as he thought it was a crush on the Stage persona of Syd, not who he was offstage. When she covered her face with her hooves and the tears began to flow, his smirk changed to a frown as he examined her break down in front of her. He noticed that the tears were sincere, so he reached for a cloth he had in his pocket, embroidered with his cutie mark. He moved closer to Neon and moved her forelegs away from her face and wiped her tears away from her face with the cloth.

Syd couldn't stand to see her cry, so he wrapped her in an embrace, and waited for her to elicit a response.

[Bronynumber299]

Neon Bright sobbed sadly.She then broke the embrace and ran away right into Rainy who caught her by the shoulders.

"Whoah!Neon are you okay?What happened what did you say to Syd."She pushed him away and ran to her home.Rainy Splash ran into the resturant and found Syd.He felt compelled to punch him because he might of hurt Neon."What happened?!Huh did you hurt her?You better of not!"With every sentence he got closer to Syd threating him.Rainy loved Neon like a sister he counted her as a sister almost.

[Bronynumber299]

Neon Bright sobbed sadly.She then broke the embrace and ran away right into Rainy who caught her by the shoulders.

"Whoah!Neon are you okay?What happened what did you say to Syd."She pushed him away and ran to her home.Rainy Splash ran into the resturant and found Syd.He felt compelled to punch him because he might of hurt Neon."What happened?!Huh did you hurt her?You better of not!"With every sentence he got closer to Syd threating him.Rainy loved Neon like a sister he counted her as a sister almost.

[PonyHooves]

Paw Print stepped inside the cafe. She looked around as she walked up to the bar. The mare was quite hungry as she had travelled quite the distance to get here. The last time she had entered this cafe, she was with her dog. This time, the mare walked alone. It felt strange. She felt a sense that something was missing. Paw Print hadn't had that feeling since, Tricks passed away. She wanted to cry again, but held back her tears. He was at rest now and Tricks never liked to see his owner looking sad. Paw Print had remembered that. Yet she couldn't help frowning. She was determined to meet up with her old friends, but it felt as though one would always be missing.

[MarchingHammers]

Neon's tears kept flowing, with Syd trying to comfort her, he held his embrace and was about to say something to her, but she suddenly broke her embrace an ran off, tears streaming behind her. Syd quickly gathered himself and his belongings and began to leave the restaurant , planning to find Neon, although he had little knowledge of where she currently lived. As he was walking out he bumped into Rainy, who had a furious look on his face. "What happened?! Huh did you hurt her? You better of not!" was blurted out of the mouth of the fuming pegasus, as Syd saw his daughter cowering behind him, hoping that he would not do anything that would scar her daughter.

"Listen Rainy, lets not fight, I'll explain to you what happened. Firstly, I was comforting Neon when she broke the news that she had a crush on me, and I was going to tell her that I had a thing for her as well, although I never acted on my crush because I felt like she didn't deserve a relationship from me. I travel too much and it would not be fair. She ran out as you saw, and now it is time to go make reparations. You would not happen to know where she lives do you? We have to get there before she does something that she will regret..."

[Bronynumber299]

When the news struck Rainy he had a very shocked look on his face."Fine!Come on lets go.Rainbow Splash you behave okay?My friend is very sad right now okay just stay behind me."

((Hav eto go will do rest later.))