Lyra and Bon Bon Visit Wales
Admiral Biscuit
An instant later, they reappeared at the edge of a steeply sloping dune. Lyra faltered but kept her balance; Bon Bon wasn't so lucky. She instinctively took a step forward, catching the end of the blanket underfoot. She fell gracelessly to the sand, and struggled against the cocooning blanket, much to Lyra's amusement.
"Well, it looks like the spell worked," Lyra announced cheerfully. She carefully set the picnic basket and wine down and reached out a hand to help Bon Bon, who was hampered in her attempt to rise by the blanket.
“I would have been happier not landing face-down in sand,” Bon Bon informed her, before looking over at the swath of marram grass and boardwalk bracketing their landing point. “On the other hoof, I suppose there were worse places to land.”
"Hand," Lyra reminded her. "On the other hand."
Bon Bon rolled her eyes. She pushed herself into a kneeling position, further entangling herself in the blanket. Finally, she cursed under her breath and yanked it off, successfully managing to stand. She reached down and picked up her new nemesis, muttering a few choice words about the fate of blankets that get underhoof.
The sun was behind them, and although the air was still somewhat chilly; the sunlight on her back kept it from being unpleasant. She tossed the blanket over her left shoulder and looked around. The area where they had arrived was largely deserted; they were midway down a path between the dunes. To the west lay the beach and ocean.
Bon Bon looked down at the sandy expanse. She’d once gone to Baltimare and spent a day on the ocean; this looked pretty much the same. Except, of course, there weren’t any ponies, only people.
The sun was well above the horizon, and although the beach was sparsely populated, there were still a few dozen souls down near the water. Nobody was in the water just yet, nor were there—as far as she could observe—any whales.
“How come it’s so much later here?” Bon Bon asked. When they’d left, it hadn’t been any more than an hour past sunrise; here the sun was near its apex.
“Their world and ours aren’t on the same timeline,” Lyra explained. “It might not even be Sunday here.”
“Whatever day it is, some of your ‘people’ are down there. Are you going to meet them?”
Lyra lowered her head.. “Maybe in a little bit. Right now, let’s stay up here and observe for a while. See what their customs are."
“I would have thought you'd be eager to get a look at these people," Bon Bon teased, poking her in the ribs. “Or are you getting cold hooves?”
"Cold hands," Lyra corrected absently. She reached down and picked up the picnic basket. "We've got all day to observe them; I don't want to rush into a situation without observing carefully first, and maybe—" She slapped a hand to her forehead. “Oh, that’s what I forgot!” She rummaged around in the picnic basket. “Damn. I should have brought our camera.”
"You could have packed that while I was sleeping in," Bon Bon chided. "Maybe you should start making lists like Twilight does." She bent down and picked up the wine bottle. “Do you want to stay here, or move closer?”
Lyra considered this carefully. From their spot on the dune, they had a commanding view of the beach, but they were pretty far away from the water—and therefore, the people—and it would be difficult to observe them closely from this distance. Finally she shrugged. “How about we go halfway? We’ll be able to see them better and watch them interact, but still be far enough away that they probably won’t come up to us. Unless they’re very friendly, which would be okay.”
“Sounds good to me. I see a nice sunny spot just over there.” Bon Bon was already warming to the idea of stretching out on the blanket and letting the sun bake her, then splashing around in the waves later to cool back down.
She took a few steps before her foot came down on something sharp. With a yelp, she yanked it back, and glared down at the offending rock. “How do humans handle having such soft feet anyway?”
“I think they normally wear some kind of shoes,” Lyra informed her. “Twilight said when she was in the mirror world she had boots that she wore most of the time.”
Bon Bon looked up and down the beach. There were a few windbreaks set up beside sunbathers, but no shops or stalls selling anything, and a quick glance back at her bare body reminded her that she wasn't wearing her saddlebags, so even if there had been a stand selling shoes, she'd have no way to purchase them.
“Well, I don’t see where we’re going to get some here,” Bon Bon muttered. "You probably should have asked Twilight for more details about the human world before using the spell. Maybe you could have found a way to get shoes that would fit." She sat down on the sand and grabbed her foot, twisting it around so she could check the bottom side for damage. Fortunately, there was none.
She stood and wiped loose sand off her bottom. “I guess that’s one good thing about not having a tail or coat—the sand brushes off easier.”
As the duo continued their trek down the beach, they both made sure to pay attention where they were placing their feet, which slowed their progress considerably. They finally arrived at a good spot, and Bon Bon spread the blanket over the sand before stretching out across it, searching for a comfortable position. Lyra set down the basket and glanced down the beach, eager to observe how the other humans were behaving.
Normally, when resting on a blanket, Bon Bon would have either rolled onto her side or lay on her belly with her legs under her, but neither of those positions were comfortable in her new form. She finally found a tolerable position on her belly, with her legs stretched out behind her and her arms folded under her chin. Lyra watched her struggles with a small smirk on her face.
"My neck's too short," she grumbled. "I can't see what's in front of me. Plus, my boobs are pushing into my ribs. You should be glad you don’t have that problem.”
"You could scoop out pits in the sand,” Lyra suggested. “That might help.”
“I’d lie on my back, but then I couldn’t see what the people are doing.” Bon Bon yawned. “Well, the sun feels nice. Maybe I'll just take a nap.”
“And miss out on the people-watching?” Lyra bopped her in the shoulder. “Whatever. I’m just happy we’re here.” She stretched out on the blanket beside Bon Bon, mimicking her marefriend's posture, and looked up and down the beach. Some of the sunbathers had brought chairs, while others were on their backs or stomachs. Bon Bon was right—it was uncomfortable on the neck. Finally, she spotted a man next to a net on poles who had a more upright position. Lyra sat up and regarded him carefully, before stretching her legs out in front of her, putting her arms behind her back, and leaning onto her palms. “Huh. This actually feels pretty comfortable. I think I could sit like this for a pretty long time. She looked over at Bon Bon, who now had her head down, and smiled. A nap in the sun would be nice, and if she’d been on a beach back in Equestria, that’s exactly what she’d do. But here—here was a chance to observe a whole new species, one she’d been studying since before anypony knew they were real.
She’d always been convinced that the legends were based on something, and while some ponies had believed that they were just misinformed observations of minotaurs or juvenile dragons, Lyra was sure that there was something more. After all, there was no longer any reason to believe that Equestria was the only inhabited planet in the multiverse.
Once Twilight had gone through the mirror to the weird not-Equestria, she’d known that there must be countless other worlds out there, and had begun to pester the librarian to do more research. Unsurprisingly, it hadn’t been all that difficult to convince Twilight to do exactly that, and she’d been able to reverse engineer and improve the spell on the mirror portal, and—well, here they were. They hadn't even had to go to the Crystal Empire; Twilight's improved spell took out the frills, and theoretically they could return every few weeks—as long as Lyra had the strength to cast the spell—although the downside was they couldn't stay long. Not even one full day.
As Bon Bon slept, Lyra kept vigil on the beach, watching how the people interacted with each other, or how they behaved on their own. She began imagining what kind of relationship a pair of humans sharing a blanket might have, or if the slender boy letting the waves wash over him was perhaps the child of the heavyset woman who was watching him from a lounge chair, and she occasionally looked farther out in the ocean in the hopes of seeing a whale.
During a lull in the beach activity, she looked down at her bare stomach. Twilight had mentioned the lack of a coat in the mirror world, but it was one thing to be told about it, and another to feel it. Her skin felt weird under her hand, and she couldn’t discern any reason for why there might be some small patches of hair here and there, while the rest of her skin was tender and nearly bald. Especially since down near the water there was a stallion—no, a man; they were called ‘man’ here—who had a discernable coat of dark hair all over his body.
He was with a woman, and they were walking side-by-side in the damp sand where the waves occasionally reached. The two of them were conversing, although with her new immobile ears, she couldn’t focus well enough to hear what they were saying. They would occasionally wave at other beach-goers, and once the woman moved away from the man and spoke with another female sunbather.
Lyra watched it all with fascination—it was interesting to see how a new species interacted. She pushed off the blanket, shifting her weight forward, and balanced herself upright, her palms lightly resting on the coarse wool. She glanced over at Bon Bon's pale back, and debated with herself for a moment before resting her hand gently between Bon Bon's shoulderblades. She traced her hand across Bon Bon's shoulder and down her right arm before letting it fall back to the blanket.
The wind was picking up a little bit, making the marram grass sway and occasionally blowing sand into her side. Now I know why some of them set up windbreaks, she thought.
She saw the man looking in her direction, and she waved at him. He waved back. We do blend in, Lyra thought. They don’t know we’re from a whole different world! The thought of it sent a rush of adrenaline through her, and she was grinning like a fool.
She leaned over and prodded Bon Bon in the back. “Hey, Bons, wake up!”
“Huh? Whazzat?” Bon Bon turned her head slightly, before rolling onto her side. She struggled for a few seconds before remembering that she wasn't a pony any more, and finally twisted her head so she could see Lyra.
“People wave to each other!” She pointed down the beach.
“You woke me up for that? Ponies wave, too, you know.”
“I know, but doesn’t it seem . . . odd, that we have the same body language?”
“I guess.” Bon Bon rolled over onto her back. “That’s a little more comfortable. Now my boobs are only pulling on my breastbone.” She tilted her head back for an upside-down view of the oceanfront and watched the couple that Lyra had been observing as they made their rounds. “How come he’s got a coat, and I don’t?”
“I don’t know. He seems to be the only one. Maybe coats vary, like boobs." Lyra squinted down at the beach. "I think you have the biggest, though. It's hard to tell from here."
“None of them have cutie marks,” Bon Bon observed. “Well, that mare does, but it’s across her back, right above her butt. I’m not sure what it’s supposed to mean.”
“Women,” Lyra corrected absently. “They’re called ‘women,’ because they have a womb.” She tapped her fist against her leg. “Maybe people don’t usually get cutie marks. Odd, you’d think that would be something Twilight would have mentioned.”
“Maybe Twilight didn’t notice.”
“How could she not? They’re pretty obvious.” Lyra playfully traced her finger across Bon Bon’s hip.
“Tickles,” she groused. “Stop it.”
“I don’t want to ask about cutie marks,” Lyra said quietly. “That would give away that we’re outsiders for sure. I suppose most of the people on the beach could be juveniles; maybe they just don’t have theirs yet. I’m honestly not entirely sure how to tell. What if the full-grown humans are bigger?”
“Why don’t you go ask one how old it is?”
Lyra looked up and down the beach. During the time she’d been observing, there had been a small trickle of people coming down the path onto the beach. Now besides sunbathers and walkers, there were a few dozen playing in the tidal pools on the beach, and several brave souls splashing in the ocean breakers. “Well . . . I’d hate to look a foal. I think I want to watch them just a little bit longer. Now that there are more people, it might be easier to see a pattern.”
“You’re starting to sound like Twilight, Do all unicorns learn to talk like that in magic school?”
“Oh, hush.” Lyra looked over at the picnic basket. “Maybe I’ll have something to eat—just a little snack—and see who looks approachable.” She glanced over at the picnic basket and lowered her head.
Bon Bon snickered. “Forget something?” She tapped a hand against her forehead.
“I . . . oh, that’s right. No horn.” Lyra scooted over towards the basket, reached a hand in, and pulled out a sandwich. “Alfalfa and dandelion. You want one?”
“Sure.”
Lyra handed one over to her, and Bon Bon unwrapped it eagerly. She loved alfalfa and dandelion, and sandwiches were one thing Lyra could prepare, since there was no cooking involved. She bit into the sandwich as Lyra struggled to pour them glasses of wine—like most unicorns, she’d become dependant on her horn for the most mundane tasks, so even with her new dexterous hands, she was still spilling.
The sandwich tasted off, somehow. It wasn’t spoiled, but the alfalfa was tough and nearly flavorless, while the dandelion leaves were bitter. Bon Bon raised it to her nose and took a sniff—it still smelled okay. Should I stop eating it and risk offending Lyra, or just carry on like nothing’s the matter?
She grabbed the glass of wine out of Lyra’s hand and gulped some down. It was sweet—maybe a little too sweet—but it softened the alfalfa and dulled the dandelion. Lyra was struggling with her sandwich as well, and Bon Bon tilted her head towards Lyra’s cup.
The two ate in silence, interrupted only by another beachgoer. He came from the south, skirting the very edge of the dunes, and almost tripped over his own feet when he saw them. Lyra set down her sandwich and waved enthusiastically; he responded with a more subdued greeting. Bon Bon ignored Lyra’s antics, and focused on finishing her sandwich. Even if it didn’t taste very good, she got grumpy when she was hungry.
“Look, he’s putting out his blanket near us,” Lyra commented. “He’s facing us. He’s got a bag . . . he’s reaching into it—”
Bon Bon swallowed. “You sound like Pinkie narrating the Running of the Leaves.”
“It’s interesting! It’s human stuff.” Lyra picked her sandwich back up and took a bite. “He’s got a book,” she mumbled around a mouthful of food. “And he’s reading it.”
Bon Bon glanced over at him, figuring if his attention was taken by a book, he wouldn’t notice her staring. “Harri Potter a Maen yr Athronydd. Sounds like a book about magic.” She wiped some crumbs off her chest. “You know, I think that the spell changed our sense of taste, too—or was it just me?”
“No, it wasn’t just you.” Lyra made a face. “I think you’re right about the sense of taste. I’m not sure how much of the rest of this food is going to be edible. At least the wine still tasted good; I needed it to cleanse my palette.”
“I still don’t see any whales,” Bon Bon mumbled.
“Me, either. Maybe they'll come along later. I don’t really know that much about whales.” She looked down at the beach and watched the waves rolling in for a minute. “I have to pee.”
“We've only been here a couple of hours,” Bon Bon reminded her. “Are people bladders that small?” She considered this for a moment—she felt no particular urge—and looked at Lyra. “Or, did you forget to go before we left this morning?”
“I forgot! There were so many other things to think about.”
“Well, your mare parts still look mostly the same,” Bon Bon informed her. “And you won't have to worry about getting your tail wet.”
“That's not what I'm worried about. I just—where do you go?” She looked at Bon Bon. “Twilight said something about there being some kind of basin, and some other vertical trough that you could use while standing, but I never asked her for more details. Who wants to know about people bathrooms?”
Bon Bon chuckled. “You do, apparently.” She took a deliberately slow drink of her wine.
“I don't know what I should do. I doubt I can hold it until we get back to Equestria, but what if I use the wrong thing?”
“I don't see any fixtures, so you won't have to worry about that.”
“Oh.” Lyra looked around. The beach was devoid of any type of structure, save what beachgoers had brought and assembled in situ. “Good point.”
“Just go over there,” Bon Bon suggested, pointing towards a patch of marram grass. “I haven't seen anypony sitting in the grass, so it'll be all right. Besides, the grass will thank you.”
Lyra looked at the grass dubiously. “I don't—“
“Do you think we came in from the fields when I was a filly? It's called 'making water' for a reason.”
“Good point.” Lyra stood up and looked at the slope, screwing up her courage. Finally, she stepped off the blanket and walked towards the upslope of the dunes, until she was a few dozen feet away from their blanket and near the center of a low patch of marram grass.
Bon Bon watched her closely—if Lyra accidentally peed all over her leg, at least Bon Bon would have an example of how not to do it.
Lyra moved around, considering her position and the wind direction, before she committed herself. She finally settled on standing with her legs apart, straddling the driest-looking clump of grass, and began.
When she was done, she practically skipped back to the blanket. “I did it! And I didn't get any on myself! Just like a human!”
“You're as proud as a filly using the toilet for the first time,” Bon Bon said dryly. “Should I give you a cookie?”
“When you pee down your leg, I'll laugh and laugh and laugh. . . .”
“I had the foresight to go before we left,” Bon Bon reminded her.
“Spoilsport.” Lyra sat down on the blanket and surveyed the beach. The man who was sunbathing near them was ostensibly reading a book, but she noticed that he kept looking at them before returning to his book.
“I was wondering how Twilight knew anything about this place,” Bon Bon remarked. “The mirror portal took her to a different world than this, didn't it?”
“She used a seeker spell,” Lyra told her. “Probably set on an object, like a come-to-life spell. It would just sit there and observe until it was stopped, then she could watch it at her leisure.”
“Well, that’s pretty useful. Can you cast seeker spells?”
“Yes; we learned them my senior year.”
“And they can be cast on anything?”
“Pretty much, although it gets tricky if there are already other enchantments on the object.”
“And then you can just watch it later?”
“Yup.”
“Over and over again, like a film?”
“Well, it’s not that simple, but basically, yes.”
Bon Bon looked at her suspiciously. "Have you ever—”
Lyra pointed down the beach. “Look, that man’s looking at us again. I think I’ll go over and talk to him, find out some . . . stuff.”
As Lyra stood, Bon Bon smacked her in the butt. “I want to watch it too.”
“Wh—” Lyra’s cheeks colored. ‘Ah—”
“There’s more than one, isn’t there?”
“We’ll talk about it when we’re back home.”
Bon Bon crossed her arms and glared daggers at Lyra, who tried and failed to return an innocent look.
“I should have told you. I’m sorry.” She glanced back down at the nearby sunbather. “Are you coming with me?”
“I’ll just stay here and watch. You’d better not hit on him.”
“Aw come on, Bons, don’t you want to try and make it with another species?”
“Nope.”
“Whatever.” Lyra stuck out her tongue.
Bon Bon ignored her and took a drink of wine.
Lyra was halfway between their blanket and the man before he noticed her approach. She'd planned on getting close before saying anything, but he'd happened to look up from his book and spotted her. His eyes stayed on her as she closed the distance between them; when he realized she was headed his way, he sat up straight and grinned.
“Bore da,” he said as she got close.
“Bore da,” Lyra replied. “Sut wyt ti?”
“Im 'yn gwneud yn dda, diolch i chi. A ydych yn lleol?” He seemed to be having trouble looking up at her face, so she sat on the blanket next to him.
Okay... translate... dot... Google... dot.. com. Okay! ...Ha, poor dude. He's so hopeful, and he's just going to fall flat.
WEEEEEEE Have I ever mentioned how happy I get when I read your stuff? Seriously, I'm starting to worry... I don't want to become a crazy stalker fan, but... I don't know. HELP!
4128183
Allow me to correct my earlier statement; after much research, I found pictures of beaches with blue FKK signs which I believe to be in England, so apparently they use it in England in the sense you mean.
Have you considered not writing dialogue in another language, forcing all your readers to use Google Translate?
4139757
I meant to put the translation in the box at the bottom. But I forgot.
You can stalk, or you can become crazy.
Doing both will be awkward for both of us.
4139827
I meant to put the translation in the box at the bottom, but forgot before I hit 'publish.' It's there now.
From this point on, all dialogue will be in English.
4139843
*Cough cough*
You mean like this?
Or maybe this?
Welp, guess I'm stuck with my choice now. Might as well take it all the way.
Prepare now, for thou shalt never know when thy doom may come...
4139928
Given that I actually work with developmentally disabled adults, and have already dealt with all that entails. . . .
The only real down side I could see to a fun 'who's crazier' fight on the internet is that it would cut into my writing time.
4140006
That's ironic, because it would probably increase mine!
...HEY WAIT DID YOU JUST CALL ME DEVELOPMENTALLY DISABLED?! Oh, it. is. ON.
Interesting translation at the end.
4140208
Is it wrong?
I don't speak Welsh, and so far I haven't been able to find anyone who does.
Transmit on all frequencies and in all languages including Welsh.
Ok, so now Im wondering what kind of guy can deliberatly place his patch near to two hot nude babes, then pull out his Harry Potter.
Oh, new develpments in portal generation. Caltechs Optical Phase Array Emmiter. Combined with Prime Harmonic Chaos coding, will give extremely compact space time disruptors. According to SLAC.
Hmm. I really should stay off the chocolate in the evening. I dont have a spare Bon Bon to dip it in.
4140315
...Say, would you like to join the crazy parade?
Because I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND HALF OF WHAT YOU JUST SAID!
4140340
Congratulations. I plan crazy parades, and as for half, the average is 90% and rising.
I havent even pulled out my university notes.
4140315
I've only ever taken Clancy, but as far as I know, none of his books have been translated into Welsh.
4140353
What I really want to know is who 'SLAC' is.
P.S. Your hair is on fire.
4140417
SLAC=Stanford Linear Accelerator. They announced last year that calculations showed it was possible to build a laser cannon powerful enough to rip space time apart so that matter and antimatter spewed out more efficintly than the current bombard a matter target with a high energy beam.
One, My hair looks like that normally.
Two, Headbut drywall. Gypsum is nice and soft and absorbs the thermal energy, smothering it.
4140417
Stanford Linear Accelerator Center.
All the cool stuff is in Californa. Maybe the Stanfordians are shooting their colliders at Grey's Wizard School.
According to Google Maps, the two are only 78 miles apart.
4140230 I wouldn't know. Just was an interesting twist to include a sudden speech change, but very glad you included the translation for it at the bottom.^^
4140434
Excellent! We can finally build those FTL drives and teleporters we've been going on about for... what, a hundred years now? 'Bout time, science! Sheesh!
4140448
Ah yes. I do enjoy making fun of the Welsh (my ancestral home!), since their language forgot to include vowels. Seriously, I think that's the reason we had to learn in school that 'y' and 'w' were sometimes vowels.
4140441
SLAC is right next to where BABScon is going to be held... darn. I wish I wasn't broke. I'd take a trip to see the future of tech while I was there!
Also, the curvature of the Earth only allows a view range averaging between five and twenty miles depending on height from the ground, so Stanford would either need to curve the beam or use a satellite deflector to hit Grey's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
4140469
Who the heck taught you that W is a vowel?!
4140521
Caltech's Optical Phase Array Emitter can steer light (I think), so that shoudn't be too much of an issue. They also might be able to launch neutrinos at it from the SLAC [disclosure: I don't know if the SLAC can actually make neutrinos, but I bet they can], and those could take a straight-line path through the earth and anything else that happened to be in its way. While neutrinos normally don't have any effect on a person, wizards might be especially susceptible to them.
4140526
Mrs. Lusher, my kindergarten teacher.
It's used as a vowel in some borrowed Welsh words, such as cwm, and crwth.
It's also used to represent a specific vowel sound (a dipothong) in words such as 'brown' and 'cow,' and also occasionally at the end of words such as 'saw' and 'drew.' In those cases, though, it doesn't stand alone.
4140590
I'm going to be honest and say that I really have nothing left to say to continue this... intriguing series of comments. I'm just really bored + have nothing better I could be doing (coughcoughtotallynotlyingrighthere) + have a headache. Which apparently = desperately trying to carry on a conversation for some sort of human interaction with people who are probably fed up with all those notifications that keep popping out of their speakers every time I comment.
P.S. I'm lonely and it's raining.
4140631
I don't mind carrying on a random comment thread., although this might not be the appropriate forum for it. (except that it might increase the heat on this story, which would improve its chances of hitting the feature box, and that's always a good thing)
If I can remember my FB password, I'll give you a link, or we can jump to PMs on FimFiction.
4140631
Okay, got it. If you want to go the Facebook route, search for Thomas Davis and find the profile with my FimFiction avatar.
This is an open invitation to everypony; I'm re-activating that account for all who will, as they say in the SCA.
EDIT: This (thomas.davis.733450@facebook.com) might help narrow your search.
4140701
Sorry, but I don't use Facebook. Or MySpace, so no you can't make fun of me for that. Actually-- hang on a sec, there's someone at the door.
Well, my house was just razed. Yeah, I don't know how they did it so quickly either. Who's they? The Facebookians, duh! Haven't you been paying attention? Really now, do try to keep up!
Anyway, the most I use in the way of social media is Skype, and then only very sparingly. FiMFiction PM's would be fine if you want, but I'm totally fine with adding heat to this story too. Do comments really add that much? If so, I might have to start begging on my stories...
P.S. My house didn't actually burn down. 'Twas a joke. And now it's ruined, because you made me explain it! Thanks a lot, bro! THAT WAS SARCASTIC TOO IN CASE YOU COULDN'T FIGURE IT OUT!
4140754
You mean I spent all this time re-activating a dormant Facebook account for nothing?
Ah well, it gave me a chance to scroll through my vast collection of pony pictures, and to lie, lie, lie about my age, hometown, people I know, and so on.
I even had to unfriend my real self from my fake self. That hurt a little bit.
Oh well, maybe other people will seize the opportunity to
stalkfollow me on Facebook.4140754
Oh, and I don't know how much comments actually weigh in on the decision whether or not a story's featured, but I'd think the view count and like/fave ratios are far too low for it to actually be a contender. Ah well.
4140798
Oh well. Maybe someday we can all
I don't know what I'm writing any more, I've just kind of got all this stuff up in my head and It's all interupting itself so I jjust wandering t night and raining did I mention it's raining hey how bout that TO YOUTUBE or somthing? i don't know maybe we can sing carols wait no it;'s summer I'm hungry be right back.
4140826
Oh yeah, rain's good for you guys out there in Sunny California.
I was going to mention that but got distracted with pictures of Octavia.
4140826
Also,
For you, maybe.
Here it's 29 degrees (and we're happy it's that warm, let me tell you; it was single digits this time yesterday, IIRC).
My yard is still under a couple of inches of ice, and heaven help us when the ten-foot high snow-piles start melting, because then everything will be mud, followed by mud under water.
4140830
Sorry about last post = my brain w/ filterset:off.
Rain= good, yes, but it's only light rain unfortunately.
Random question: Octavia Van Clef or Octavia Philharmonic?
4140850
It's currently... hang on... ah... 59*F and light showers. Two days ago, it was a record-breaking 85* and sunny.
4140853
I went with Van Clef in CSI/OPP as a nod to Private Gig by NavyPony. It was the first story I can remember reading which gave her a last name, and was influential in my characterization of her.
Her official name is Octavia Melody; I don't know if I'd use that in the future or not. I got some grief for using "Berryshine." I do prefer using the official names when I can, but sometimes they change them (like the long running Dr. Whooves/Time Turner/Dr. Hooves saga), and if all my readers know who I'm talking about, why not roll with the more-popular fan name.
4140887
I know what you mean with the Berryshine thing. I went to research some ponies on the wiki for a story I'll probably never finish, and I discovered that particular name change... ah well, I'm still going to call her Berry Punch.
4140902
That's probably the best choice. Readers will get upset when you don't.
I do manage to get away with Golden Harvest/Carrot Top, though. Or maybe I haven't published that story yet. I can't remember if she's called both in A Night at the Bar.
4140924
That reminds me of this epic story I was going to write about how the ponies were living in a "cartoonized" version of our world, how such a dramatic change came to be, and what it meant for both the immediate and long-term future.
4140935
Would cartoonized humans still be there, or would we have been replaced by ponies?
I think there is one story (maybe more) where the human finds himself 'cartoonized' when he arrives in Equestiria.
4140949
Hoo-manz r ded. Pwneez rool, hoo-manz r gawn. Except one, but shhh it's a secret!
4140957
well, no big loss, although seven billion corpses would probably stink up the place for a while.
If the ISS had its own landing craft (or if there was a shuttle mission during the die-off), the astronauts would return to a very strange word indeed.
4140986
Well, considering the original concept involved black holes, gradual physics conversion, advanced space-age tech, mass hysteria, many failed contingency plans, and a last-ditch-effort codenamed the "God Project", it would be an odd world indeed. If they survived, that is.
4141021
Projects named "the God Project" never work out like intended.
There's probably a TV trope about that.
I wouldn't know, though, since none of my readers are Tropers.
(that's what I attribute the lack of a TvTropes page to).
Well, I've got to sign off for the night. Not only is it not summer here, it's after midnight and I have to get to work in seven hours or so.
4141045
Gl,hf. I'll see what I can find in the tropes about a god project.
4141045
Well, I looked. Closest I could find was this: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DeityOfHumanOrigin. A "God Project" could fit under that, or perhaps it could be its own category? I couldn't find anything for "last chance" either, oddly enough.
I lol'd
Whoa! She found an actually welsh speaker in Wales! Even I have yet to experience this! Though then again it is up in the north.
So far, I just know that Wales is part of the UK and has its own language like Ireland.
8615099
That's pretty much it.
Also, FWIW, their language doesn't have proper vowels, so you end up with words like Ynysbwl.
8617067
learn something new