The Future Will Change

Indeed. As Luna found out, there was a rather massive event being held at an estate near one of the hockey stadiums in Vanhoover. It currently wasn’t in use due to the summer weather, but the estate that overlooked it was where the festivities were being held.

Pinkie Pie, along with the various employees of her business, were hard at work to unload the food from a truck into the estate where the event was taking place. Apparently it was the wedding anniversary of one of the members of Mapleland’s Elite. An event so important that a member of the Trottingham Royal Family was present as well given that they still had jurisdiction over the nation.

“Pinkie, are you sure this is a good idea?” one of her employees--a young man--muttered as they pushed a food cart into the back of the building. “Considering your current condition…”

Pinkie was wearing a massive pink hoodie to conceal her face. “No…I’m fine. I can handle it. But thanks for asking, Carpenter.”

Another employee--a young woman--would speak up from a nearby cart. “If it gets bad, Pinkie, let us know and we’ll take you back. Your sisters and parents would kill us if we let you hurt like this.”

“No, Ambrosia,” Pinkie was determined, “I promised that this would be the best party possible for Mr. and Mrs. Valois and I’m not gonna let my face ruin it.”

Both Carpenter and Ambrosia exchanged an uncertain glance with each other. Their boss was an excitable woman that tried her best to make sure everyone was having a good time. Her commitment to her work was one of her greatest assets.

Unfortunately, it was also one of her greatest faults.

Because of her almost insatiable determination towards her job, Pinkie refused to back down from it even if she knew she wasn’t feeling well. Having suffered from the Anima Curse and having her appearance altered, she knew that being seen in public was a bad idea. But she also knew that her work was just as important and didn’t want her employees to work such an important event without her.

It was a risky move, but it was one Pinkie was willing to take.

“Don’t worry,” Pinkie added, “I’ll make sure I stay out of sight. I just wanna be here for my team. You know how it is, right? A hockey team can’t function without its captain.”

“...true, but--”

Pinkie cut Carpenter off. “Well a catering business can’t function without its head chef in charge. You guys need me and I won’t abandon you for a selfish reason like my face being all messed up. We got this, guys.”

Her employees were still nervous, but they were willing to go along with her word at least for now. Little did they know that trouble was already brewing on the horizon…

About an hour later, outside…

Aidon drove with Luna up to the hills overlooking Vanhoover. Specifically around behind the main building where they knew Pinkie’s catering company would be present with their vehicles.

“Alright, Aidon. How do you propose we handle this?” Luna asked, “We don’t know how these people are going to react if they see us.”

“I have something for that,” Aidon cast a quick refraction spell upon them both, shrouding them both in darkness to where no one would be able to see them. “There. We’re essentially invisible now so we shouldn’t have much to worry about.”

“Very good,” Luna clapped her hands, “I’ll admit, I’m also excited because I’ve never been invited to an event as extravagant as this.”

Aidon exited his vehicle and started walking. “But remember, we’re here primarily to see if Ms. Pie is okay and whether or not our Masked menace is going to stir up trouble.”

“I know, I know,” she nodded with an attentive smile, “...but I can’t deny I’m interested in seeing what the venue is like at the very least. Aren’t you, Aidon?”

“...maybe,” Aidon shook off the thought as they snuck into the building behind the rest of the caterers.

Sure enough, they’d find Pinkie’s co-workers stocking various tables with cakes, pies, and other desserts. But there was a glaring lack of Pinkie herself.

“That’s odd,” Luna muttered, “She’d almost always be at the center of events like these. Do you think the curse has already gotten to her?”

“It’s likely. But I’m not in the mood to allow the others to find out,” Aidon answered with a grim tone.

Thankfully, it wasn’t long before they heard Pinkie’s voice. It had been about an hour

“Good job, guys. Keep going.”

“Pinkie, I think you should rest,” a male voice spoke to her, “You’ve done more than enough already.”

“...I guess you’re right, yeah,” she replied with a sigh, “I think I’ll take a pixie-stick break outside. You guys keep at it, okay?”

Aidon sighed with relief upon hearing the voices. “Whew…alright, it seems as if Pinkie is headed outside. That’s good. She won’t cause any damage there.”

Or at least, that's what Aidon thought. Little did either of them know, that the Masked Figure had already hijacked the TVs located in the event's auditorium space where the guests were partying...