Twilight Gets a Puppy
Season 4
By TDR
BASS!,
Part One.
[Golden Oaks library]
“Seriously?” Twilight raised an eyebrow, looking between Applejack and Fluttershy, the latter of which was currently bound to a push cart in a straight jacket with a odd half goalie mask muzzle on her face. Rahs was glaring down at her in clear annoyance.
“Durn right. She's waylaid at least six attempts at cooking... just today!” Applejack snapped.
“Really?” Twilight blinked .”I have a hard time thinking Fluttershy could just run off with a cage of fruit bats. Don't you have a large portion of your orchard full of them?”
“Yeah we do, they're pests. If ah didn't plan tah eat um, ah'd have had some one come and magic um out!” Applejack fussed. “ Because of that summer shield or whatever it is they've been breeding like crazy and moving intah other fields. We coulda thinned down the numbers quite a bit by now if we hadn't had everything hijacked!!”
“They are thinking and feeling creatures Applejack. Not meals.”Fluttershy added.
“Fluttershy you do realize that Rahs and now Applejack are predators right? Carnivores at that.” Twilight frowned.
“They have plenty of fish and other things that they can eat in the forest. These little bats are practically domesticated and they all have little families....” Fluttershy explained.
“Cause they been breeding in mai trees like it's spring time. They weren't this bad last year but tha populations exploded this year fer some reason.” Applejack snapped.
“Never the less, there are other things for you to eat and you do not need 'treats' like you were calling the fruit bats.” Fluttershy said calmly.
“They ain't fruit bats, half of um are vampire fruit bats. Have you seen the mess left of mai apples? Mai eating a couple's just fair play!” Applejack snapped.
“Why is she wrapped up like that?” Twilight asked finally, pointing a hoof to the bound Fluttershy.
“Woof.” Rahs grumbled ticking off on his fingers as Twilight's eyes got wider.
“Seriously? She set the kitchen on fire? Where did you even get trained monkeys? And a tiger?!?” Twilight stammered looking at Fluttershy. “The tiger would eat the fruit bats.”
“Mr. Hobbs is very gentle and he only likes tuna.”Fluttershy corrected.” And George and his friends wouldn't have caused such a mess if Rahs hadn't tried to eat one of them.”
“Bork!” Rahs snapped.
“He did not fling poo at you it was a bit of mud.” Fluttershy huffed.
“BORK!” Rahs snapped pulling up the hem of his coat and showing the tears in it where the monkeys had tried to bite him.
Before Fluttershy could answer, Rahs was belted in the back of the head by a tendril of shadow and a voice from across town cried out.
“I TOLD YOU TO NOT DESTROY IT FOR AT LEAST A WEEK!”
The shadow tendril reformed and quickly sewed up the rent before fading into nothing.
The group stared a moment.
“Woof.”
“I'll check your coat for alarm enchantments later.” Twilight sighed.
“Is any one else weirded out by this? Like how stuff like this is normal now?” Pinkie Pie asked as every one looked at her. “ No ? Just me? Okay.”
“In any event Fluttershy. I would like you to stop. Fruit bats are considered a pest species everywhere in Equestria and many other countries. That they have a use here, even this gruesome, means that they are going to be some what protected from over hunting and extermination.” Twilight explained, “Right now they are only a problem at Sweet Apple Acres because that's the only place producing fruit in the middle of winter. Once spring hits they will spread everywhere and be an even bigger problem if their numbers are not thinned a little.”
“I see. It seems I cannot rely on your help in this Twilight Sparkle. If you are not with me, you're against me.”Fluttershy growled making Twilight lean back a little her eyes wide. “I'm going home.”
The pink maned mare wiggled a little in the straight jacket and muzzle before sighing and looking to Rahs.” Can you wheel me back home please?”
Rahs rolled his eyes moving to start pushing Fluttershy's cart out the door.
Pinkie Pie let out a long sigh as Twilight and Applejack looked at her curiously.
“Yeah, sorry about this guys, usually after one of our trips she sometimes gets stuck on a 'save the animals at all costs' kick and it takes a bit for her to get back to normal.” Pinkie Pie muttered “She should be fine in a little while once she calms down.”
“That doesn't explain why she was strapped to a dolly.” Applejack questioned.
“Trust me. It was necessary.” Pinkie Pie sighed and trotted out.
[Sweet Apple Acres, sundown]
“You want me, to do what now?” Sunset tilted her head looking at Fluttershy like she had lost her damn mind.
The pair of them were out in the west field sitting by a tree that had a number of fruit bats in it. The animals were screaming and screeching as they flitted about the tree stripping it clear of off season fruit.
“I need your help with a spell, or something. None of them are listening to me about the danger they are in here, all they see is food and warmth. Applejack and Rahs have some how masked their scent and these little things won't even run unless it's already too late.” Fluttershy explained.
“Oh, so it does work, great.” Sunset smirked.
“What?” Fluttershy demanded.
“I made a charm for those two, with blood magic to mask their scent, getting the proper bit to stick was rather difficult as I couldn't use blood from a dead fruit bat and get it to radiate enough...”Sunset started to go into the technicalities.
“You helped them kill these poor things.” Fluttershy growled Staring at Sunset.
Sunset raised an eyebrow meeting the gaze.” You're doing something, what are you... oh … that stare thing of yours that Twilight mentioned from the dragon.”
“What!?” Fluttershy blinked.
“Fluttershy. I jumped through a portal as a teenager that could have led any where and was supposed to be filled with things Starswirl the Bearded considered threats to pony kind, I argued constantly with a mare who controls the sun, stared down and fought an angry Twilight Sparkle and her brothers, I am dating a very toothy predator, have been threatened by my mothers nemesis, Have Princess Luna as my 'FUN' uncle, and I regularly watch the Cutie Mark Crusaders with out Spike to help, or actively NOT helping.” Sunset huffed.” My Castle is great, you have no power over me.”
“Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaseeeeeeee help...” Fluttershy immediately switched over to super cute watery eyes with a pouty lip and Sunset gasped clutching her hoof to her chest.
“GAH!!! Turn it off! Turn it off, I'll help, geez, I'm not immortal like mom... fuck, mare....” Sunset panted glaring at Fluttershy who smiled cutely.” Stop that.”
“Right so all I need to do is get them to understand that they should go back into the woods and hibernate, but I can't get them to do that.” Fluttershy sighed.
“Well probably because you can't talk in ultrasonic. I don't think anyone short of a stallion getting hit in the nuts with a hoof ball can hit that volume.” Sunset considered.
“Oh.” Fluttershy muttered. “They understand me, but it's like they don't hear everything. That explains why though, I thought I just didn't speak enough bat to translate well.”
“Whelp I do have good news. Blood magic does have an spell that allows you to use animal empathy, all we have to do is find the leader of this flock...”
“Colony.”
“What?”
“A group of bats is called a colony not a flock.” Fluttershy explained.
“Learn something new every day, any how find the leader and I can set up a sympathetic link between you and it and you can explain everything in a way the bat will understand.” Sunset offered.” Now, unless you have any more animal grouping facts, lets find the lead bat and get this done, the girls and Spike ordered pizza and I wanna get back to that. Some foods are universal, though I miss pepperoni.”
“A group of pandas is called an embarrassment. However, they can also be called a cupboard of pandas or a bamboo of pandas.” Fluttershy offered.
“What?”
“You said unless I had more animal facts, like a group of ducks on the water is called a raft, and a group of jellyfish is called a smack.” Fluttershy explained.
“No, no. focus, bat leader, mare, the bat leader.” Sunset muttered rubbing her forehead.
“But I was just going to go into how turtles are natures suction cups but, if you insist. He's right here.” Fluttershy offered lifting her foreleg showing a very large fruit bat that looked like a grape hanging from it.
“Wow, he is a big one . Any way I'll cast the spell and hold it in place, that should act as a limiter. “Sunset mentioned.
“Wait, is this dangerous?”Fluttershy asked.
“Hmm nah, even if things went haywire the worst you would have is sensitive hearing for a couple of hours, maybe more a taste for fruit. The bat might develop anxiety for a while but it'll be fine, this spell isn't casting anything on you directly, it's forging a translation connection between you and the bat. Basically its a babble fish spell using blood magic. The only reason it's connecting to you is to take a scan of you and turn it to bat and vice versa.”
“Oh well .. lets do this, hopefully I can convince them that they need to hide so no more will get eaten.” Fluttershy sighed.
“That's not how nature works, but what do I know studying blood magic and such. Also if you tell Rahs I ruined his lunch and lower my chances with him I will set fire to every fruit bat I see for the rest of my life are we clear?” Sunset grumbled, casting the spell, the aura from her horn wrapping around Fluttershy and the large bat.
The pegasus mare immediately began talking to the bat in high pitched shrieks, the fruit bat speaking back in turn. Sunset sighed rubbing the back of her neck with her hoof as she flattened her ears to her head. The constant screaming sounded like a lot of that new wave screech techno or whatever that was getting popular before she left the human world.
“HEY SUNSET!” Applebloom shouted from right behind her.
“GAH!!” Sunset shouted, her horn flaring for a second before she dropped the spell turning to glare at Applebloom.”Don't do that!?”
“Foods here.” Applebloom grinned cutely.
Sunset sighed.” Curse this kryptonite of mine.”
“Hey is Fluttershy okay ? She sort a fell over.” Applebloom pointed out.
“Oh right, crap.. yeah she should be fine. The spell only fired a little, though try to be quiet, her ears are gonna be sensitive for a bit.” Sunset offered trotting over to where Fluttershy was squirming on the ground with her hooves over her ears.”Oh hey, the bats are gone, guess it work huh shy?” Sunset added softly pausing.” You okay?”
Sunset leaned down to touch the mares shoulder only to draw back quickly as Fluttershy whirled with a hiss displaying large fangs which she promptly bit into Sunset's neck.
“GAH!!”Sunset flailed.
“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! VAMPIRE!!!!” Applebloom shouted reaching a hoof behind her bow and drawing out a few flasks flinging them.
[Farm house.]
Spike bit into a slice of pizza looking over his notes for tonight's game. He had decided to run something different called Planet of Shadows. It was an odd setting where magic was to be hidden, vampires ruled the night and were ponies were eco terrorists.
The name confused him wer, was old Latin for man, which was short for mannulus, which translated to pony, so the things in the game were pony ponies. Clearly what a man was was a miserable pile of secrets, and dodgy translations.
Sweetiebelle was in love with the setting and had her own little vampire outfit ready to go, the cape was a bit much but Spike was more concerned how she pulled off a widows peak. Scootaloo was fussing over the rules of the magic users and Applebloom was gonna copy her sister a little with a werepony.
Not the sort of group that usually hung together in game, but this was what they wanted to play and Spike could adjust enough. Now if only he could get Scootaloo to stop calling Sweetiebelle a leech before a fight broke out.
The sudden explosion that shook the farm house didn't startle any one.
“Hey Scootaloo, wanna hand me a blank piece of paper?” Spike asked.
“Yeah, here yah go. Sending a message to the Princess?” Scootaloo asked offering the paper and looking back at the rules.
“Yep. That was at least a three on the explosion scale so it bears checking out, and since Applejack and Rahs are seeing a movie in town, and Twilight and Big Mac are out of town for that festival thing, and I don't want to deal with it, Luna can. “ Spike admitted.
“Good call.” Sweetiebelle nodded.