//------------------------------//
// The Big Bug Battle 
// Story: My Little Pony: The Brothers of Discord 
// by mr.myxsiple 
//------------------------------//


CHAPTER 48
THE BIG BUG BATTLE


A high pitched scream, courtesy of Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, tore trough the air as the scorpion advanced towards the ponies. It was massive like a dark brown house covered with black scales that resembled armor balancing on eight legs. It's dark red eyes narrowed at the ponies as its stinger raised and hurled itself at them. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon screamed and clutched each other, their brief lives flashing before their eyes.

"Oh no you don't!

Ironhead stood on his hind legs and caught the mighty stinger before it could impale the two girls who had suddenly grown silent. The force of the strike was enough to push him back, leaving two long trails where his hind legs were. When he finally stopped just a few feet from the girls, he grinned and relaxed, but the stinger suddenly retracted pulling him with it. With a leftward flick of the scorpion's tail, Ironhead was sent flying through the air screaming as he crashed into a tree and disappeared from sight.

"N...No..." Silver Spoon whispered as the scorpion turned it's attention back to them. The arms wrapped around her tightened as her vision blurred from the tears welling up in her eyes. It felt like the fear was gripping her throat rendering her unable to speak.

"I don't wanna die. I don't wanna die. I don't wanna die. I don't wanna die. I don't wanna die. I DON'T WANNA DIE!" Diamond Tiara repeated louder and louder tightened her grip on her best friend. Ignorant or just dismissive to their sobbing and pleading, the scorpion raised its stinger once again this time with nothing between them. Two hearts stopped. Two minds went blank.

"DADDY!"

BAM!

The scorpion got the shock if its life, when Ironhead suddenly ran in and rammed its side. The scorpion hissed and clicked its mouth pincers in irritation as the blow knocked it away from its mark. Its left half rose due to the impact, legs waving uselessly in mid air, forcing its right half to scuttle away so as to not tip over.

"Why the hell are you two still standing there?!" Both fillies snapped out of their daze at his shout. "Get outta here! GO!"

But the girls, shaking, whimpering and sobbing, couldn't move their legs. Realizing that its targets weren't going anywhere, the scorpion pursued but found itself unable to move forward. Behind it, Ironhead had his hooves around the base of its tail and looked like he wasn't going to let it go after the girls.

"You're not going anywhere!" With a loud cry, Ironhead dug his hind legs into the dirt and twisted his body. The scorpion found itself leaving the ground and hurled through the air just like Ironhead was not too long ago. After knocking over a few trees, it finally crashed several feet away in a large heap.

With the scorpion down, Ironhead hastily looked over his shoulder and saw the girls still held in place by their fear. Fierce clicking made him look forward and see the scorpion turn towards him with its eyes narrowed. He let out an annoyed sigh as he galloped towards the two girls. They looked absolutely pathetic covered in tears, sweat, snot and zits, but Ironhead was more worried about their safety.

"I'm getting you two outta here." Both girls yelped when he grabbed them and tossed them on his back. Diamond Tiara grabbed his neck while Silver Spoon held onto his sides. Looking further back, he gasped as he saw the scorpion scuttling towards them. "Hang on girls; this's gonna get real bumpy!"

Both girls cried out as he suddenly sped forward. Twigs and leaves slapped against the earth pony trio as they fled from the scorpion. Silver Spoon buried her face into his back as her shoulders heaved with sobs while Diamond Tiara was holding onto his neck for dear life while screaming in his ear.

"AHH! AHH! TREE! TREE! TREE! LOOK OUT! ROCK! AHH!"

No thanks to her, he made to to dodge ever tree, rock and vine bundle that came their way. He kept his eyes out of any obstructions and for the crusaders; he still had no idea where they went. Behind them, the scorpion pursued. Ironhead had no idea where to go exactly, but he knew to get that thing as far from Ponyville and Zecora's as possible. His best bet was to find somewhere safe to hide these to then-

"DUCK!"

He reacted instinctively, digging his hooves into the dirt and lowering his head. He did so just in time as an entire tree soared over them and crashed some distance away,blocking their path. Heart pounding, Ironhead saw the scorpion close in on them and jumped over the fallen tree before galloping away. The scorpion merely swatted it aside as it passed and continued its chase.

After emerging through a clump of trees, Ironhead suddenly found himself screeching to a halt. The fillies on his back gripped him tightly as they lurched forward from the sudden stop. Diamond Tiara raised her trembling head and addressed their savior. "Wh-why'd you sto-"

Her words fell dead when she finally noticed the massive cliff before them. Ironhead gulped and looked down at the solid fifty foot drop to another part of the forest. He hurriedly turned away to find another way but found the scorpion standing before them snapping its pincers. "W...We're trapped..." Diamond Tiara said cowering behind Ironhead's head as the scorpion approached.

She suddenly felt hooves on her sides pick her up and place her on the ground. Ironhead reached over and put her friend down as well. "Alright listen up." He jerked his head to the side. "I'll take that thing on while you guys get outta here." Their eyes widened, and they shook their heads. "That thing's not gonna let you guys go you hear? I need you guys to get somewhere safe? Hide in a bush or something, and I'll go get you when I'm done taking this bug out OK?"

Both fillies whimpered and nodded. With a deep sigh, Ironhead turned and faced the creature. "Hey pinchy!" He punched the ground leaving a few cracks in it. "You're seriously picking on kids?! What; scared to take on a real stallion?!"

It responded by brandishing its stinger and snapping its claws; it wasn't going anywhere. Ironhead couldn't help but grin at the angry bug staring him down. If this thing wanted a fight, then it was going to get one. He widened his stance and lowered his head, pawing the ground with his hooves. The scorpion narrowed its eyes at him as if accepting his challenge before charging towards him.

"LET'S DANCE!"

As Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon scampered away, Ironhead charged in letting out a mighty battle cry. As it charged, the scorpion ripped another tree out of the ground and tossed it at the charging pony. Ironhead quickly spun around and split it in half with a powerful buck. Afterwards, he leaped at the scorpion which scuttled back to avoid him. He then jumped sideways to avoid a stab from the stinger, but the scorpion followed it up with a swing of its pincer forcing to cross his forelegs over his head and take the blow.

To his surprise, he was knocked off his hooves and sent tumbling across the forest floor. He eventually came to a halt and looked up seeing the scorpion scuttling towards him once again. His eyes darted to the bottom half of the tree he just crashed through; he picked it up and threw it as hard as he could. The scorpion swatted it away with its pincer but was surprise to find Ironhead galloping straight towards it. He jumped, pulled his hoof back and delivered a solid punch right below its eyes.

He jumped back as the scorpion thrashed around in pain swinging its pincers around. Ironhead avoided two swings before catching another stab from its stinger. The scorpion tried pulling it back, but Ironhead refused to let go. Grunting, he raised the stinger and jammed it into the ground getting it in as deep as he could. He jumped back and watched with a smirk, the scorpion clicking and snapping angrily as it tried to yank its stinger out of the ground, unaware of Ironhead running towards it. It realized this to late, about a second before it received a solid, rock-splitting buck.

Ironhead smirked as the scorpion was pushed back from the impact. It shook its head and snapped its pincers threateningly at him still willing to fight. Seeing its stinger hurtling towards him, Ironhead jumped aside and countered with a buck. The scorpion quickly yanked its stinger away before the blow could connect and countered by smacking him with one of its pincers.

A little dazed from the blow, Ironhead ducked as the pincer swung at him. He charged and delivered a flying kick bellow its eyes followed by a solid buck to its face. Again, the scorpion was knocked back several feet almost knocking over yet another tree. Ironhead noticed its tail drooping lower than usual and realized that their fight was close to ending. With a loud cry, he leaped at the weakened bug.

Its right pincer shot out and grabbed him in midair before slamming him against the ground. Groaning, he dug his hooves under the claws and pushed them apart. He dropped down and dodged another lunge from the stinger. The scorpion launched its claw at him with the intent of grabbing and tossing him around senselessly like a rag doll.

Ironhead quickly stood on his hind legs and stopped the claw from closing in on him with his forelegs. The scorpion clicked angrily as it tightened its grip, but Ironhead's strength kept him from being trapped. An idea suddenly struck him, and he raised his forelegs up allowing the claw to clamp around his sides.

The scorpion prepared to lift him, but Ironhead clamped his arms over the claws and jumped back pulling the scorpion with him. Off balanced, it hurriedly scuttled forward, but Ironhead jumped back once again making sure to shake its balance every time. When he reached the edge of the cliff, he grinned and jumped back one final time. This time, he reached higher up the claw and leaned back yanking the claw as hard as possible.

The scorpion suddenly felt itself leave the ground and flip in mid air. It came down and fell right off the cliff tumbling down and down until it crashed against the ground bellow letting out a loud boom and a cloud of dust. As the dust cleared, Ironhead peered over the cliff and was met with the sight of the scorpion shaking its head and rubbing it with its pincer.

Thankfully, it couldn't climb back up for round two. A sudden rustling from a nearby bush made him jerk towards the bushes to his left where he saw a pink pimpled hoof sticking out. His brow furrowed, he trotted towards it. "You guys can come out now. I thought I told you guys to get outta here. Eh what the hell; that bug thing's gone anyway."

Slowly, Diamond Tiara walked out of the bush no longer crying but still shaking slightly. Silver Spoon fared a little better though her face was still damp from her sobbing. "I...Is it really gone?" she asked, her eyes darting around.

"Yeah. I took care of it. Told you guys I'd protect you." Ironhead said smiling at their damp faces. "So c'mon. Stop crying; I won't let anything get to you guys."

For the first time since she left the class and got lost, Silver Spoon felt truly safe. She sniffed and wiped away her remaining tears. She took a deep breath before showing him her crooked, misaligned teeth in a smile. "That's better. You OK Diamond?"

"Y-Yeah. Let's just get out of here already." she replied still little afraid.

"Yeah sure. Just lemme go find Applebloom and her friends. They're still around here somewhere-"

"HEEEEEELP!"

One second later, Ironhead was peered down the cliff once again. The scorpion had risen after its fall and was facing something in the trees ahead of it. Ironhead leaned closed and could make out three shapes hiding in the bushes, one yellow, one white, one orange-

"AW COME ON!"

Unbeknownst to the scorpion, Ironhead glared at it angrily dropping into a crouch. Seeing this, the two other fillies gasped as they looked from him to the scorpion and back. "You two stay here. I'll come back when I'm done." he ordered through gritted teeth.

"Th-that's really far down." Diamond Tiara interjected. "Are you really gonna jump?"

"Duh." Ironhead steeled himself as the girls gasped. "I'll make it; I'm a weirdo remember?" Diamond Tiara was taken aback by his comment. She let out several choked sputters not knowing what to say. "Y'know what, you're right, but I saved you, and now I gotta save those guys, and its only 'cause of these freaky powers that I can do that. I'm not just a freak...I'm a hero.

Without further ado, he launched himself off the cliff. Both fillies scrambled towards the edge where they watched their savior fearlessly plummet towards the ground right foreleg extended and fiery eyes narrowed. Meanwhile, the scorpion, maliciously eyeing the three fillies cowering before it, raised its stinger ready to impale them.

Ironhead hit the ground with the enough force to make the ground shake. causing the scorpion to lose its balance and miss its strike at the fillies who had also fallen down. The scorpion eyed the crater in the ground warily not knowing what to expect all of the sudden ironhead jumped out of the hole as the scorpion tried to impale him.

That's when Ironhead reached up and grabbed the stinger. The scorpion hissed at the sudden interruption and responded by swinging around with reckless abandon, but Ironhead held on for dear life. Applebloom and her friends immediately hid behind a tree and watched as he struggled to maintain his hold.

"C'mon! Punch! Kick! Slug 'em! Get him Mr. Ironhead!" Scootaloo cheered hovering in place before falling abruptly.

Sweetie Belle cringed as the scorpion continued to thrash about with Ironhead still clinging onto its tail. "H-He can't hold on forever! He could get really hurt."

"He's gonna be fine girls." Applebloom told her friends over the sounds of the battle. "He's got those powers an' stuff. There's no way he'd-"

With a flick of its tail, the scorpion sent Ironhead flying and crashing into the side of the cliff. Ironhead groaned and clutched his head as his surrounding spun around him. Though his disorientation, he realized the deep hole he had made upon impact. Raising his head, he saw the scorpion pull its stinger back ready to deliver a killing blow. Six hearts stopped.

"NO!"

BAM!

The impact caused a loud crashing sound as well as a small dust cloud to form around his body. All five fillies could just stare at the spot their hero was now with the sharp stinger of a giant scorpion sticking out of it. Applebloom fell down on her haunches unable to believe her eyes. Sweetie Belle opened and closed her mouth like a fish gasping for air, but no words came out. Scootaloo was to stunned to even move or think straight. High above the cliff, Diamond Tiara's jaw dropped, while Silver Spoon covered her mouth in horror.

As the dust slowly dissipated the scorpion pulled its stinger back. When the dust around Ironhead's body finally cleared up, Sweetie Belle whimpered and turned away. "I can't look!"

"Sweetie Belle, check it out." Scootaloo said nudging her with her hoof. "C'mon, you gotta see this!"

"I can't! There's gonna be blood everywhere!"

"No! Seriously, look!"

"How can you be so excited about this?! He just died for pony's sake!"

"Just look and find out!"

Gingerly, she turned around, curiosity getting the better of her horror. As soon as she saw a bit of brown, she whimpered and shut her eyes. After being nudged by Scootaloo again, she looked again and saw that it was all just brown, not a hint of red in sight. Ironhead was shaking his head and groaning on pain, but the stinger hadn't even pierced his skin.

Clicking angrily, the scorpion struck again, its stinger stabbing into the same spot on the cliff's face. Wafting the dust cloud away with its tail, the scorpion looked again at Ironheads body expecting to see his body splattered with thick, red blood, but he was just as unharmed as ever. Shifting a little, Ironhead raised his head and shot the scorpion a defiant grin. "Heh...That it..."

Apparently it wasn't, and the scorpion stabbed him again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. Ironhead knew that there was no chance he would get impaled, but the repeated blows were taking their toll on his body. His skin may be tough and impenetrable, but his insides weren't as invulnerable. Several times, he attempted to catch the stinger, but it slipped through his grasp every time. He continued to take blow after blow after blow desperately trying to think up a plan.

"Somepony do something!" Applebloom cried out in a panic.

Beside her, Scootaloo beat her wings and failed to get any lift. "Ugh. If I just had my scooter, I could totally zip around and get that thing's attention."

"Then what?" Applebloom asked. That thing's still gonna catch you."

"Well do you have any ideas?"

"Well, if I had a lasso, I reckon I could do something."

"You don't have your lasso."

"Well you ain't got yer scooter either."

"Uh, girls? What're they doing?"

Following Sweetie Belle's outstretched hoof, the other two girls looked up the cliff when a large rock slowly approached the edge. On top of the cliff, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were hard at work rolling the rock towards the edge. "Th-this is too heavy Silvy! Ugh, Randolph!" Diamond looked around, but nopony showed up. "Great..."

"C'mon DT...Just...a little...more..." Though her back ached and her hooves throbbed, Silver refused to let that scorpion kill their hero. Her friend obviously was less than thrilled, only having helped to save the only pony who could get them out of the forest alive. The boulder dislodged some dirt as it reached the edge, but the scorpion was too busy pummeling Ironhead to notice the oncoming danger.

"Take this...you stupid bug!"

The boulder crashed twice along the cliff wall as it fell. The weakened Ironhead, gritted his teeth and raised his forelegs ready to attempt another catch. The scorpion pulled its stinger back ready for another blow, when the boulder crashed right on top of its head. It let loose another round of angry clicks, rubbing the top of its painfuller head with its pincers. High above the fight scene, the two fillies grinned at the scorpion's thrashing and clicks of pain.

"Bump, bump, sugar lump rump!"

Down below, Ironhead and the Crusaders were smiling as well. "Ugh...Crap, that's gotta hurt...Good job guys..." he said rubbing his stomach. Grunting, Ironhead planted his hooves against the cliff's face and glared at the scorpion. "And this's gonna hurt more!"

He pushed off with all his strength, launching himself at his opponent. At the sight of him leaping out and soaring through the air, a jumping, ecstatic Silver Spoon grabbed her friend and shook her screaming: "He's alive! HE'S ALIVE!"

The scorpion scuttled back just as Ironhead landed sending cracks racing around the ground. Clicking angrily, it swept its tail at him; Ironhead ducked and charged in at it, jumping aside as one of its pincers came down. After ducking a swipe from the other pincer, Ironhead dove underneath its body and quickly got on his back. With another battle cry, he kicked its underside and surprised everypony else by launching it into the air.

Once again finding itself off the ground, the scorpion let loose another barrage of angry clicks. As it fell, Ironhead stood on his hind legs, allowing it to fall right into his hooves. He gasped and stabilized himself before looking up. "Let's see how you like that cliff!"

With a mighty heave, Ironhead flung the scorpion straight into the wall, shaking the entire cliff hard enough to make the fillies on top lose their balance. After crashing back on the ground, the scorpion rose and launched its stinger. Once again, Ironhead caught it mere inches from his face; he raised the stinger and jammed it into the ground. Before the scorpion could pull back, he raised his hooves and smashed them against the stinger.

With a gut-wrenching crack, the stinger busted open splattering thick, green slime all over his chest, face and hooves. The scorpion let out a fierce shriek as it yanked its tail back. Stumbling around dizzy from pain, it drooped its tail over its face; its once proud stinger was now nothing but a painful mass of broken shells and slime which continued to drip onto the ground. While Applebloom and Sweetie Belle wretched, Scootaloo exclaim: "Cool!".

The scorpion turned its attention back to its brown opponent who was cracking his hooves. "Want another round?"

A heartbeat later, the scorpion was scuttling, not towards Ironhead or the girls but towards the trees on the other side going as fast as it legs could carry. The sound of shaken branches and pained clicking slowly grew further and further as the scorpion put as much distance between them as possible. With it gone, the Crusaders rushed towards their savior.

"You guys OK?"

"Yeah; that was amazin' !" Applebloom exclaimed with a jump. "That was th' most heroic-ly heroic thing I ever-"

"WHAT THE HELL WHERE YOU THREE THINKING?!" Ironhead roared causing all three fillies to shrink. With stern eyes, he approached them himself. "Why aren't you three with the rest of the class?" he asked in a much softer tone that still showed his disappointment.

A trembling Scootaloo poked her head out of her wings to answer. "W-well...we heard you and Ms. Cherilee talking about finding Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon and-"

"Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon!" Ironhead suddenly exclaimed jerking towards the top of the cliff where the two fillies in question stood thankfully unharmed. "Just hang tight you two! We'll be there in a jiff!" He turned back to the Crusaders who all gave him sheepish grins. "C'mon, we'll meet up with them before we head back to Zecora's."

Ironhead led the way as they went around the cliff looking for a way back up while the Crusaders huddled up behind him. "At least that took his mind off us right?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"And don't think I'm not done with you guys yet!"

*gulp*



"Pfft...Ahe...Aha..."

"Don't. You. Dare-"

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

Both Diamond and Silver went beet red as the Crusaders dissolved into a giggling, hysterical fit. Diamond huffed up in response to their laughter while Silver ground her already messed up teeth. To the side, Ironhead was watching trying to catch his breath after the huge fight he had just had.

"S-Sorry! Ahahahahah...but-but y'all look so dang funny!" Applebloom exclaimed clutching her sides.

"C-C'mon...ahahaha...you guys...haha...laugh and pick on us at all the time...ahahahahaha...only...heh...only fair we...ahahaha...get to do it too!" Scootaloo blurted out unable to make a perfectly coherent sentence.

At least Sweetie Belle at the decency to cover her mouth and let out a few, soft giggles. Nevertheless, they were seriously getting on the rich fillies' nerves. Seeing their rapidly reddening faces and twitching eyes, Ironhead stepped in before a fight could break out. "Alright, that's enough you guys."

It took a while due to the chuckles and the murderous glares, but both parties eventually settled down. "Are you alright Ironhead?" Applebloom asked.

"Huh? Yeah; still standing." he replied grinning in spite of his messy, dirt-matted mane, slightly wobbly stance and shortness of breath. "Just glad you're all OK too." His smile then suddenly morphed into a frown. "Seriously though, what were you girls thinking?" He pointed at the rich fillies. "You should've gone back after you touched the Poison Joke." He pointed at the Crusaders. "And you three never should've left."

"You saw how those three blank flanks were laughing at us. The whole class was gonna do the same if we went back." Diamond angrily retorted.

"So you thought it was a good idea to head into the forest?" Neither of them could answer him. "And you three, just what were you thinking?"

Applebloom stepped forward before any of her friends could answer. "I-It was my idea Ironhead. I thought that if we helped save 'em, they'd stop pickin' on us a bit."

"We were gonna look for you first, but we got lost." Sweetie continued. "Then we accidentally ran into a scorpion nest, and that thing started chasing us."

"We're sorry we made you worry." Scootaloo apologized bowing her head. The the other two repeated the gesture hoping for forgiveness. Ironhead sighed and shook his head.

"I get it OK. You guys wanted to do something good." He pouted. "But that doesn't mean it was a good idea to leave the class and go find me. I mean, Applebloom, how am I gonna tell Applejack she lost her sister? Heck, what's Cherilee gonna tell all your families if something happened to you huh?"

They were just glad he wasn't shouting though it still hurt. "We just wanted to be heroes like you Mr. Ironhead." Scootaloo explained.

"I know, but that was still a pretty dumb thing to do." he pointed out. "Heroes don't just run right into danger thinking they can already win. Heroes don't stop thinking about themselves or others when have to do what they gotta do. Heroes aren't idiots. Heroes-" He stopped abruptly, his eyes widening. "Heroes...don't...don't...don't..."

We just wanted to be heroes like you Mr. Ironhead.

"Oh sweet Celestia..."

To their surprise, he suddenly fell on his haunches, his face twisted up forming a look of anguish. He covered his face with his hooves wishing that he could hide away that fact from himself. All his life, he had wanted nothing more to be a hero, to help others in need, to be a shield to protect and anypony and everypony from harm.

Heroes don't just run right into danger thinking they can already win

Did he not show that overconfidence with the scorpion?

Heroes don't stop thinking about themselves or others when have to do what they gotta do

Did he not just abandon Diamond and Silver when he heard a cry for help?

Heroes aren't idiots.

Maybe the real idiocy here was thinking he was a hero...

"D...Dammit...you three almost died!" he exclaimed as if the thought had only just set in. All fillies became alarmed as his body trembled. Fear gripped his heart, squeezing it tightly to the point when he thought it would pop like a balloon. It was all him; they just wanted to be just like him, and they almost died because of it. Heroes don't put others in danger. "You-you tried to-to be like me-b-but-but that's not-not like a hero-I-I'm not a hero..."

Much to their surprise, he suddenly rose on shaky legs and started pacing around. "I'm not a hero. I'm not a hero. Can't-No-Need to be." He suddenly stopped and turned to the girls, flashing them and twisted grin that made them all cringe. "D-don't worry girls-I'll-I'll-I'll make sure you get back safe." he said quickly. "I-I-I-I-"

"Ironhead?" Applebloom said warily approaching him. The adult's smile dropped as she stopped in front of him. "As mah sister would say, that's a buncha...horse apples. Anyhow, you are a hero Ironhead."

"But-but-b-but-but-"

"If ya don't believe me, jus' ask the rest o' them." She gestured to the other fillies. "Ya saved all of us Ironhead. Ain't that all ya really wanted?" He gave a shaky nod. His breathing was noticeably much slower. "Ya see? You are a hero Ironhead. Yer our hero."

Swallowing a lump in his throat, Ironhead looked up at her gentle smile. All around him, the fillies were all giving comforting smiles save for Diamond who merely stuck out her bottom lip. They were happy, safe, alive thanks to him. Surely that's all that mattered to a hero right? He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths; it took him about a minute, but he eventually calmed himself down. He opened his eyes and sighed.

"S-Sorry 'bout that guys. It's just...I just really like being a hero and well...I guess I kinda forgot some important stuff." Another sigh. "Thanks for setting me straight guys. We better get back to Zecora's. You're all still in a lotta trouble."

All five of them cringed at his words; they guessed that no amount of buttering up would save them from their teacher's and their families' wrath. He once again led the way away from the cliff while the fillies following all dreading what punishment they'd have to face. Scootaloo took one last look at her pimply, crooked-toothed bullies and snickered.

"Totally worth it..."



"And then...BAM! I jam the scorpion's stinger into the ground, but I wasn't done yet. I raised my hooves and CRACK! I smashed it stinger to bits. I got green slime stuff all over me, but the scorpion ran off. That'll teach it to mess with me!"

All around him, the class cheered. They were all in front of Zecora's hut where he had begun his tale of how be beat a giant scorpion. As he stood proudly before his cheering crowd, Cherilee trotted up to them.

"Time to go class. Remember to thank Zecora for her wonderful display." she said waving to the zebra who merely took a humble bow. A chorus of thanks erupted from the class before they got up and left.

"A giant scorpion?" Cherilee asked Ironhead in a hushed whisper as they traveled.

"Uh...yeah. Aheh..." She shot him a stern glare which made him gulp. "So uh...what's gonna happen to them?"

"Well they'll all be getting detention, but we'll discuss that once we get back to the school." she said before grinning. "I have to thank you Mr. Ironhead, for getting them all back safely. I admit I was still unsure about you, but now I know I made the right choice."

He grinned back at her. "No prob miss. That's what heroes do."

They shared a laugh before continuing their trek through the forest. In a matter of minutes, they had left the dark woods and found the familiar sight of Ponyville in the distance. "Before we go back class," Cherilee said turning around. "Let's all thank Mr. Ironhead for everything he's done for us today. It was such a short notice, but I'm glad he was able to come with us today."

Once again the subject of praise, Ironhead grinned as the class cheered for him. His eyes traveled around spotting the Crusaders chanting his name and they stomped their hooves. Some distance away from them, Silver looked like she was cheering her little heart out with Diamond joining in at the last second.

He waved to them as they all left. Sighing, he turned away and walked the other way back to the farm. Hopefully, Granny had cured Big Mac of his cold already and got him back outside, but what really got him excited was seeing Applejack; he couldn't wait to tell her about how he saved her sister from certain death.

"M-Mr. Ironhead?"

Confused, he stopped in his track and turned around. Silver Spoon was standing there alone and smiling shyly, a hint of red on her cheeks. It honestly looked kinda strange to see her without Diamond around. "Glad your teeth are back to normal." he commented. She giggled and showed him her perfectly normal set of chompers.

"Thanks again for distracting the class while we got cured..." Her face turned slightly redder and she absentmindedly twirled a lock of her mane with her hoof. "And well...Thanks again for saving my life." She found herself unable to meet his gaze. "You...You'll always be my hero..."

Huh... she's actually a lot nicer than her friend. he thought as he approached. "Hey, you guys helped me out too huh? Was that rock thing your idea?" She nodded quickly. "Thanks for that Silver. You were my hero today."

Hearing that, she finally looked right at him, her heart racing and her head spinning; she honestly looked like she was going to faint any moment. With one last nod, Ironhead turned and left her watching his retreating figure forlornly.

"Silvy!" Diamond was suddenly at her friend's side looking slightly annoyed. "You're lagging behind. C'mon, I don't wanna get into anymore trouble."

Giggling a little, she followed her friend and regrouped with the rest of the class. Still red-faced and giddier than foal at their birthday party, she gazed at the figure of her brown coated savior trotting into the distance.

"*sigh*...Mr. Ironhead..."