We entered the kitchen, which was cleaner than the main area, with wonderful smells that made my mouth water. Sous went to the stove and started to fill some bowls with food. Gadget lead me to a small table, we sat down and started to chat.

“So, Ballad, is your name?” I nodded, shyly looking down as I did. “That’s nice. Is your Cutie Mark singing or something like that?” I started to blush and hid my rump with my tail as fast I could. “Um… no. I- uh.” I started to think of something to get that subject away from the conversation. “Why are you guys here? I mean it’s abandoned right?” I asked, hoping it would work. “Yeah, it is. We used to live here as live-in employees. Sous cleaned and I fixed things, but things went downhill with the business, they closed down and now demolishing it by the end of the month. So until then, we are allowed to live here until we have a place to stay, but… we haven’t had any luck with that.”

Sous came from the stove and gave us all bowls. “Here you go, Gumbo Sous-style.” She said with a smile. I took a sip and I looked up with surprise. “Whoa… It’s so good.” I said out loud. Sous laughed. “Thank you! It’s the best I can do as a cleaning lady.” She said. “I keep telling you Sous, it’s really good. You keep selling yourself short.” Said Gadget as he ate.

“I know, but it’s just food, something we need to survive. Nothing special.” She said. “Besides, my Cutie Mark is cleaning,” she said pointing at her rear, which sported a mop and a broom. “Not food. Anyways, so you talking about the Theater?” Gadget nodded, mouth full to speak. “It’s not that we don’t have any hardship looking for work,” Sous said to me, as she sat down. “It’s more than that, it’s just…so too hard to leave a place you have such good memories with. I wish we could keep staying here… it was such a magical place.” Gadget stopped eating for a while and looking a bit sad as he spoke. “Yeah it was… It was the only place I felt I could belong.” Sous nodded in agreement. “It was really the only place I felt I could belong.”

Sous then turned to me and asked me the one thing I tried to avoid. “So Ballad. I’m just going to ask straight out. Did you run away from home?” I didn’t know how to explain to her, so I told her, “I don’t want talk about it. I rather not.” Gadget and Sous just stared at me for a while. “Why?” asked Gadget, worried. “I rather not talk about it… please.” I said, pleading. They looked at each other for a while, “Okay. When you’re ready, you can tell us.” Said Sous. “But until then if you like, you can stay for a while.” I looked at her in surprise. “Really?” she nodded. I sighed in relief. But I then started to feel bad.

I sat there in silence… They are being so nice to me. There should be something I can do to repay them. I then started to think about what Sous said and my reasons for leaving. I know that feeling she said. Here’s two ponies that had their destinies already given to them, yet… they were as lost as I was. I hated seeing people like that, especially when they have a bigger chance than me to find that place of belonging. I have to help them, there’s has to be a way.

“There’s has to be a way to save the theater!” I cried, surprising them with my sudden outburst. Gadget looked at me in confusion, “What?” he asked. “I know the feeling you guys said, feeling like you don’t belong anywhere. I don’t have my Cutie Mark yet, and as much as I would like one, the only thing I want more than that is to feel like I can belong somewhere. I don’t belong at home, or at school… it’s hard. So please, let me help you. You guys are being so nice to me, and I feel I should repay you for your kindness. I don’t belong anywhere, but at least let me help you guys keep the place you do.”

“That’s sweet, Ballad, really. But you don’t have to. Besides how could we do that?” asked Sous, shocked with the statement. “You can be the manager!” said Gadget, excited and amused about the idea. Sous just stared at him in amazement. “Are you kidding me? I’m a Zebra. Do you know how hard it is, being a Zebra, let alone, a MARE Zebra? Equestria is in a state of racial problems, where Zebras can’t get equal opportunities anywhere! How in the hell am I supposed to be the manager?” “Well there’s no law that says you can’t own a place.” He retorted. “There’s none, but no will want to come at all because of that!” argued Sous back.

They went on arguing about politics, with me staring at them in annoyance. “Why not try?” I said, which stopped them. “There’s nothing to lose.” They stood there in silence, looking at their empty bowls. “Well, I guess… but any ideas how to re-open it?” said Sous after a while. “Well what do we need?” I asked. “We need the deed of the place and the city council’s vote and a citizen’s vote.” Said Gadget. “The deed is cheap because no one wants to buy it. It’s gotten too old, but it’s repairable.” I jumped from the chair in excitement. “Then let’s do that, buy the deed and fix it.” I said, hopeful. “That’s easier said than done.” Said Sous. “We don’t have the money to buy it or fix it.” I sat down, feeling down about that realization.

Sous is right, how will be able to get money to do that plan? Then an idea hit me. “We can do a bake sale.” The two adults looked at me in amusement. “What?” giggled Gadget, “a bake sale?” I felt embarrassed about what I said, but my motivation to help them made me keep going. “Yeah, Sous is a good cook, I’m sure she can make a ton of food that can be sold. We would probably earn enough money for the deed and repair.” Sous just stared at me, gaping. “I’m not a cook! I’m a cleaning lady! My Cutie Mark is cleaning, not cooking.” I just shrugged. “So? Why not try? Like before, there’s nothing to lose, but try.”

“Ballad is right.” Gadget agreed. As he said that, he got up from his chair and sat down in front of Sous and stared at her. “I’ve been telling you, for the longest time, that you are an amazing cook. Just because your Cutie Mark says cleaning, doesn’t mean you just have to clean. Why not listen to Ballad and at least try, it won’t hurt to try.” Sous stared at Gadget for a while, in deep thought. I could imagine her inner turmoil, doing something else that she wasn’t meant to do. But, maybe, just maybe, this could help save the theater, as I said to them, it wouldn’t hurt to try.

After a while, Sous sighed. “Okay… fine. We’ll try that. But we will need help, we can’t just do this all by ourselves, besides there’s others who should be involved in this since it’s their building too.”

“Who?” I asked. “I thought you guys were the only ones.”

Sous shook her head, “Yeah we are the only ones here in the theater. But the theater is part of a big building, The Glass Ceiling Building, it has a few other businesses occupying inside it. The occupants are still using them until the time of demolishing it, all in the same boat and feel the same way.” Gadget smiled and nodded. “Yeah! I’m sure if we gave them the idea, they could probably help to get the deed and fix it.”

For the first time since I came to this theater, I could feel the sense of hope in the room and in each of us. After a while of gather ideas on what say and do when we see them, we cleaned up our mess, then went to sleep. Sous lead me to a dressing room, giving me a sleeping bag to use. “Sorry we don’t have enough beds, but at least you’ll be warm.” The room was painted red with that classic dressing room vanity mirror, costumes and decorative room divider, giving that drama diva vibe. I felt classy being in that room, even though it was dusty and smelled of mildew, it was better than nothing. “It’s okay, it looks nice. Thank you.” She smiled at me, hugged me good night and closed the room as she left. I placed the sleeping bag on the floor and as soon as I laid on it, I felt instantly asleep.

Author's Note

Hello Readers!
I'm Amethyst Gem!

So nice to meet you and I hope you are liking the story thus far. It's just something I thought of, well actually, more like dreamed of. I guess I've been under lots of stress lately, my brain was telling me dreams to tell me something and lo and behold the idea came! I liked it enough and when I told people about it, they said it sounded like a good movie or story. SO I fixed it around, made it ponified and story is born!

So I hope you guys like the story, and if you guys see any grammar problems or you want to be my editor/beta reader, please msg me!

Thank you for reading!