'Welcome To Harmony'[FINISHED]

Sky looked around to see some ponies dancing,others enjoying the music that was being played. Sky enjoyed this music, seemed calm music to listen or dance away to. Something about it just gives it that special something, unique. In the table where she was at, with the two other Pegasi. Things might be going good for once, nothing bad could happen for once in this wretched wasteland. Sky watched as twisted sang, something she didn't expect to find here. She just watched on to see her finish her song, something Sky wished she could do.

Blazen sat at his table, looking at his teas from afar. Apparently nopony was touching his teas. He sighed, but his spirits got lifted by someone familiar starting to sing. He checked his pipbuck and recorded it carefully. It was always good to record these things. After a few second he finally noticed the person who was singing, it was that mare that annoyed him a little while ago. She looked amazing, and she had a beautiful voice. Blazen, the blue colored wonder, was momentarily stunned. His view of the mare was changed to a positive direction, and he got out of his chair. He was still surprised, and since a long time, he smiled. A single smile. For once, things were going in a positive direction in the wasteland.

Arc soon found that he was not able to break Gentle's concetration on her drawing. She really had to hate social gatherings, it probably would be better if he tried to not disturb her further. His mind then shifted on acquisition of additional tea, there was still plenty to taste.

As he moved around the table with various pots of tea, the unusal tall mare walked to the microphone, and probably was about to sing, as Arc predicted.

"Well, why not, maybe she is here to sing. If anything, it may be a welcomed change in pace of the evening.", Arc thought as he picked one pot at random and poured himself a cup of tea.

He sipped from his cup.

"Interesting taste, bit too minty and sweet for my tastes, but still very palpable.", he said to the brown buck that was sitting nearby. Arc was pretty sure he has met him somewhere, but wasn't precisely sure where.

During his occupation with the taste of tea, the mare started singing a song about love, and how it is in bloom.

"That's... interesting choice for a classical band."

When the song started Winter had been standing next to Cross once more. Her face was red and words couldn't quite describe how embarrassed she was purely because of what the mare and the song was suggesting. She didn't want Cross to feel pressured or to be scared away at the prospect of marriage, so to hear this was definitely not on her want list. She didn't even look to Cross, she was too embarrassed and busy watching, hoping the song would end in the next few seconds. 'Oh Celestia please let the microphone brake... or something!' she thought as she contemplated leaving to the side of the boat for some air.

Rodeo sat up in his seat as music began to play. Music!... From stringed instruments! It had always been a hidden passion of his- or, at least as well hidden as leather armor could cover his cutie mark. Now with the jacket and tie, his flanks were bare, and the image of a classical acoustic guitar was visible for the world to see. Rodeo smiled more. He was too relaxed to care, he could now add something to the party!

"Ah'll be right back," he told Kes and the mare at his table as he stood. Then he trotted back towards the quarters.

A minute or so later, Rodeo returned with two things. A new bottle of whiskey. Better stuff. And an acoustic guitar strapped to his back. It was in fine condition. Even over the years of traveling with Rodeo. All the dents, the dust, the grime and the rain and other elements- even a few bullet holes- Rodeo had kept it in pristine condition, and every string was present. It was a hobby of his.

He sat back down, and set the bottle down on the table before setting up the guitar and checking its tune. A off-strum, a few adjustments later, and he was playing a soft tune. The sound coming from the guitar was melodic, raising and dropping over and over again. It was a sad song, and you could probably tell slightly by Rodeo's expression... If his expression ever changed. Still, his eyes were closed, and his hoof tapped slowly against the deck of the ship. He was into it. He loved playing his guitar. He never got to play it for other ponies.

Dash was at first expecting nothing but a complete belly-flop of a performance from the crazy unicorn mare as she stepped up to sing. He even went so far as lower his head slightly so he could bolt his fore hooves up to cover his ears when it became unbearable, but as she actually started, Dash found himself with a feeling he thought he would never, ever, ever feel concerning Twisted... He was impressed. Finally something at this dismal tea party had brought him out of the depressed stupor he had been in for the past few hours and he actually felt himself smiling. He hoped that the other ponies who were brave enough to come forward and sing had as good of songs to sing and were as good at them as she had. He half-wondered if his enjoyment of the song had been an illusion from the mare's magic, but he quickly remembered that there was likely no magic like that... Dash politely clapped his fore hooves together in soft applause as the mare finished the song.

Atriark trotted down the hall, confident he was heading down the right way. He could hear music and singing off in the distance but couldn't make out any of the words just yet. As he trotted onward the words became more clear. Further down the hall he went, chuckling to himself as the lyrics became decenable. Soon he came to the door to the room where he believed Winter's tea party was being held. He messed with his mane again, rubbed his left shoulder, took a deep breath, and rapped a hoof on the door frame.

“Speak for yourself; I’m the one in a dress!” Bakewell joked as she carefully tried to follow Scrap’s movements. She felt as though she was managing a decent effort, even if her movements were much more stiff and awkward then they were smooth and elegant. Bakewell was just glad that things had finally moved out of the awkward emotional spectrum; it felt nice to be able to make an actual joke. The shoe thing didn’t count.

“If we ever do this again I’m wearing a suit. Maybe I’ll go find that duck tie, what do you think?"

When the song had ended and the dancing had stopped Bakewell was left feeling happy. She reflected back onto the activity as she passively listened to the tall unfamiliar unicorn sing, realizing that once she had actually gotten into it the dance had been pretty fun. She still wasn’t remotely sure that the feelings she had were love, but at least they were friendship. She could do this. Maybe it would be fun. It didn’t have to end in disaster, did it?


Oh, and the unicorn's singing wasn't at all bad, Bakewell made sure to clop her hooves together in applause once the song had ended.

"Did I... not look well that night?" Gently asked, confused. "I-I'm sorry. I'm quite well, thank you. To be honest, I was feeling a little lonely, but..."

Her sentence trailed off. She realized that she basically just forced him to stay with her. A spark of guilt erupted in her mind.

"Uh, but, if you want to go meet with somepony else, please do. I don't want to take your time from you."

Oh, great fix, Gentle Breeze, she told herself. Now he probably feels unwelcome.

The song wasn't bad. Starry even led Shutter to dance with her. Starry had begun to feel uncomfortable in her dress. Not just because it made dancing difficult, but because it had started to remind her of her mother, who she had gotten the dress from. It made her feel like a different person... a worse person.

Starry would have to grit her teeth and deal with it, though. She was no longer enjoying acting so formal, but she would continue for the sake of not making a scene. When Twisted's song ended, Starry applauded by pounding her forehooves against the floor in rhythm, before trotting toward the stage.

Lightning watched the couples moving to dance and an unfamiliar unicorn mare take the mic and starting to sing. Interesting. The song wasn't bad. A song about marriage and love, apparently. He would just shrug his shoulders and let out a small, "Meh." When the song ended, he would give applaud with the others, nodding his head gently in approval.

Cross's eyes grew wide as it turns out the crazy mare decided to sing a song of all things....about marriage. Not to mention she even brought up Winter's name, while Cross was unfazed either way, just a bit surprised, when he looked over to Winter....blushing? Cross was now a bit curious, and he began to wonder what was wrong with Winter, for some reason she wouldn't look at him and she looked like she was eager to stomp out.

It must've been something having to do with the song...was it about marriage...did it really bother Winter that much? Cross didn't care regardless, things do or do not happen but he never planed to leave Winter and hoped things last... but it seemed to him a long future with him would be unbearable...Cross blinked, remembering he had to speak to fill the empty silence.

"Winter...I...I'm sorry" Cross felt horrible, she didn't want to think of the future. So why was she even bothering being with him? ...was this just a something to do since she was bored. Cross struggled to get his words out as it felt like his heart to begin to break, and a tear began to take up the corner of his eye, only grievingly managing to utter:

"Are you really that afraid of me Winter?.......I- I guess I understand..." Cross held his eyes shut and turned, slowly trotting towards the exit so he could get some air and just get out of there. He listened though, hoping she stopped him, but he so many times in his life he wished ponies would have stopped him. He prayed he could at least be given at least this one...

Kes continued as always, to sit silently and sip his tea. The big gryphon idly pondering what to do with his evening once the party reached its conclusion.

"Get out of this suit for one" He thought to himself. The gryphon would admit that the finely tailored piece of clothing fit him well and looked damned good. But it just wasn't him.

Kes felt more at home in armor and holsters than he did silken suits and shades.

The gryphon continued to plan out his evening with another sip from his cup then. Get out of the suit, back into armor...hmmm....maybe go for a walk topside. Do a bit of a workout, few pullups and such. That would be good for him. He'd been cooped up in the boats interior for far to long.

For now though, he would sit quietly and enjoy his tea.

Zestari reared up, trying to match the actions of Happy, when he pulled her towards him, hoof resting against her back; she smiled happily, and received his kiss breathlessly. Follow his lead, she repeated to herself as she looked down at his hooves and he began to move.

The music was slow and rich and with Happy leading her, the pair began swaying slowly in time to the strings. She managed to avoid any dancing catastrophe's and found the whole experience rather romantic and pleasant, even more so, with Happy leading her through the motions. Every time they shifted, and she felt his body guide her into position, her heart fluttered, and each time she caught his eyes looking at her with such passion and intensity, it was almost enough to cause her to blush again. She was sure that at some point the music had changed, but she was so enamoured with her stallion and the dancing to not actually care.

With another ecstatic kiss she finally let the dance come to an end. "That was wonderful, Happy."

Winter flicked her head up to look at Cross as he apologized. The song had ended now and ponies had began clopping their hooves in appreciation to Twisted Visions song. Her mouth hung open to say something as he spoke and she looked confused as he looked deeply saddened by something she had done. Was it how she reacted.. or maybe it was something else.. did he want to get married in the future?. When he asked her if she was afraid of him she shook her head and looked taken back by the statement. He turned to leave and she was honestly shocked, stunned and unsure of how to react or what to do. She was confused, upset and hurt that he thought she could possibly be afraid of him. He got a few hooves away from her before she rushed her words, desperate to say something to stop him leaving her.

"D-Don't" she said aloud. "Please.. don't leave me" she said almost whispering the last word, her ears pointed down as she forced back the tears threatening to appear in her eyes. She would wait for him to turn before taking a few steps forward, "How could I ever be afraid of you... I-I love you" she said, her tone wavering a little. "So much so that I spent a stupid amount of caps on this dress just to look good for you" she said as she looked to the floor, scratching at it with one of her fore hooves before looking back to him, the tears brimming her eyes at this point. "Remember the time back in Thunderlanes Shack" she said taking a pause, "I said if you were ever in doubt, to think back to that moment... if there was ever a time not to doubt something... don't doubt this" she said, a fresh tear spilling over her cheek. "I don't want to be alone... don't leave me behind" she said as the tear reached the end of her face, falling onto the floor in front of her.

Athanix had made his way to the outdoor deck after spending what seemed like an eternity wandering around in the boat that he should of never gotten lost within. Seeing though that mostly everypony and everyone was already engaged in other activities, he did not want to interrupt somewhere he was not needed.

Straightening the tie on his suit he walked past the groups and pairs of ponies until something caught his eye. A lone Pegasus looking quite uncomfortable in a tux. He had the same dull look on his face that he had every time they met. Now walking over to that specific pony he pulled up a chair and pulled an empty champegne glass balanced on his hoof and offered it to the Pegasus.

''Why hello there Amity. Haven't been living up to your name eh? Care for a drink?''

When Twisted Vision stopped singing, her looks seemed to have changed. She seemed sadder than before as she put the mic back on it's stand. She was happy that she got the chance to sing, but she was once again reminded that she had no real friends. "Thank you everyone, I hope you liked it" She said turning and walking off the stage.

She slowly walked over to an empty table and sat down, her hair draping over her face. She sat there silently, contemplating what it would be like to have a partner, or even maybe friends. Oh Twisted, You have me and thats all you need! The voice said in her head "No... I want more than just a voice my friend... I just want more than a voice." She said, putting her head in her arm.

Kira where about to answer this Twisted Vision unicorn, what was it with that name that she recognized, but when the pony got called away to sing on the stage she simply sat down hard on the deck of the boat.

This song about all love and such did not help her much either, all this couple made her feel more out of place and alone. This dress did not help her feel like she fit in either she would so much like to not wear it, she felt more comfortable in some armour or even her stable barding but she would not want to be rude to the hostess.

She finally got up to her feet when the song finished and walked over to one of the empty tables, this was not what she expected when she got invited to a tea party but it was true that she did not know really what a tea party was.

Blazen walked over to the table Twisted was sitting in, him sitting opposite to her. To be honest, she looked like him, alone, and having no friends. This was normal for him, and he bet it was normal for her too. "...Hello again." He said, sounding normal enough.


"So...uh...that was some nice music there." He said, his eyes drifting from place to place, a little nervous. Why would he be talking to her anyways? She was the one that pissed him off back at Stableton and half-forced him to choke her to death.

Then again, she looks like she is in the same situation as he is in, no friends. So....might as well.

When Kes clammed up Sawdust did as well. She couldn't think up any good lines of conversation, most of the ones she'd briefly read about didn't really apply to the Gryphon. How about this weather? Lousy as always. Favorite Sports team(s)? Sawdust was fairly sure there weren't any sports teams left. That didn't leave much, worse yet the band had gone onto some sappy upbeat tune about marriage and crap. Saw wasn't immune to such feelings but she was at the moment, highly resistant and in such a state she mostly ignored the song.

But anyway! Kestrel seemed to like his gift, if in his own far too emotionless way, not a word of thanks just a nod. That sort of reaction might work with gryphon mares but not Sawdust. She added a black mark to Kestrel's record and focused on the more conversational pony, the one that had cracked wise on her arrival. Only now to interact she'd need to interrupt him, which on second thought, though it'd probably irritate the colt an irritated colt was better than listening to sad music.

Come to think of it, she didn't much like music in general; it all felt weird and deeply sad, even the bright happy songs seemed to be faint echos of something far grander. "Where'd you find that at?" She pointed at the guitar.

"That wasn't a bad performance. Maybe not the best of choice for this occasion, but she has talent, i'll give her that."

"Anyway, i...", said Arc as he noticed that Blazen has already left the seat he was occupying few moments ago.

"What the hell is wrong with me this evening? Bad breath?"

Arc exhaled.

"Smells like mint tea...", Arc looked at his cup,"... suprisingly."

Arc sighed.

"Screw this, i have literal cornucopia of tea around me to last till this voyage ends, so lets try... oh, this one looks like rainbows. Wonder how that tastes."

Arc poured himself a cup and then sipped. His eyes shot wide.

"Sweet mother of Celestia. It tastes like rainbows and candy. And happiness. And myriad of other things i can't precisely pinpoint."

Dae picked himself up and brushed all the splinters of door off of him.

"Well, I have no holes in me as of yet so nope."

Dae looked at Mr. Rum with his blood shot eyes, then clinched his massive paws.

"Lucky, you need some help?"

None of the party goers noticed Atriark knock, he sighed and walked in. All the occupants were dressed fancy, except for him. He was aware how underdressed he was as he made his way to a table. He didn't know most and hadn't talked to the ones he did know in a month at most. All seemed preoccupied with talking or other such activities. He saw Zestari finishing up a dance with an earthen pony, so he decided to not intrude. Instead, he sat down and watched the various groups.

Dash looked over and saw that the tailless brown buck from that one night in Stableton was talking to that crazy mare. He wondered for a moment what was going on... He remembered the earth pony being almost the angriest of the group aside from maybe himself and definitely the dragon. It was something that sparked his curiosity once again and he got up and made his way over to them, stopping a small distance away so as to not look like he was fully intent on joining them or anything. He wanted to know the full story behind what had happened that night because it had been far too weird for him to just pass off as done and gone in his mind. However, the song had made clear a different side to the craziness the mare had displayed. He wasn't quite sure, but he was curious, and not in a negative way either.

"No, I think I've made my point here." Lucky started walking out the door and onto the deck. "Let's go, I hear there's some sort of party going on somewhere on the ship."

He made as if to go the same way Cross did, but waited back for the large diamond dog.

"You coming or what, mate? I'm sure we've got some stories to tell."