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// Hey dol! Merry dol!// Story: A Marry Fellow// by Dartack//------------------------------//
One fine morning not far in the Everfree Forest three fillies we're walking down a dimly lit path. in the lead was a yellow pony with a large bow in her red hair, on her back was a bulging saddlebag. Behind her was an orange pegasus with a purple mane. At the back of the group was a white unicorn with a pink and purple mane who seemed to be dragging her hooves. “This is a stupid idea” said the unicorn.
“What'ch mean” said the pony “if this works we’ll get our cutie marks in no time.”
“All’s we have to do is find the that pool Pinkie Pie used to copy herself, use it to make a few copies of ourselves.” Said the pegasus “Then we have each set do different jobs till they get there cutie marks and copy them!”
“But what about all the copies? And didn’t twilight seal the entrance? And for that matter do ether of you know where the cave is?”
“Well we’ll come clean and tell Dash or AJ and they can get Twilight to take care of the copies, sure we’ll get in a little trouble, maybe grounded. But we’ll know what are talents are” said the pegasus “small price to pay if you ask me.”
“And I grabbed some of Pinkie’s fireworks, an’t real dynamite but it should do the trick if there is enough stuffed in the right spots. And Twilight marked it on a map she’s been makin of the Everfree.” Said the little earth pony pulling a paper out of her saddlebag. “An I made a copy.”
Sitting the paper on the ground so the three fillies could all see it did seem to be a map if very crudely drawn. “See all we got to do is stay on the main path just past the old castle till we get to a tree that looks like a flamingo… least ways that’s what Twilight’s map made it look like.”
“Alright the faster we get this done the faster we can get out here.”
Putting there map away the three fillies continued down the forest path. Walking in silence for what felt like an eternity for the young ponies though was really only about an hour the old castle came in to sight. “Hey as long as wer’re pass’in by whana check out that tree of harmony the Twilight keeps going on about?” said Apple Bloom “we should have more than enough time.”
“Really I’ve wanted to see it ever sense Rainbow told me about it” said Scootaloo
“Yha Rarity said she found it inspirational” added Sweetie Belle
“OK lets go!”
The three fillies took a small side path that led down in to a small chasm. Small shafts of light were caught and reflected off of a tree that seemed to be made of crystal. Upon the ends of the largest branches where cradled five of the elements of harmony with the sixth element, magic, at the center.
“Wow, its beautiful” said Sweetie Belle.
“Sure is” replied Apple Bloom
“Look its Rainbow’s element, this is so awesome!” said Scootaloo her wings buzzing so fast all that could be seen was an orange blur. Her eyes fixed on the branch that held a red lighting bolt as she made little hops. “Lets get a closer look.”
The fillies drew close to the base of the tree eventually climbing over the roots to see every side of the mysterious tree. Ending there inspection of the tree the three fillies turned there attention to the locked box that sprang from one of its roots. “So this is the thing that’s driving Twilight crazy every other day?” said Sweetie bell poking the box with a hoof.
“I guess don’t look like much tho.” Said Apple Bloom looking around “Ya know it really is peaceful here, what do you girls say we take an early lunch?”
“Sure, I can eat.” Said Scootaloo.
“I’m not hungry, but I wouldn’t mind resting my hooves” said Sweetie Belle dropping to her belly.
Apple Bloom dropped her saddlebag and pulled an apple out. She yelled “Catch Scoots!” just before gently tossing it in her friends direction. After making sure Scootaloo caught the apple she dug one out for herself. Leaving her bag where she dropped it she took her apple and laid down beside Sweetie Belle.
“Thanks Bloom.” Said Scootaloo laying down to Sweetie’s other side taking a bite of her apple.
The three lay there in a companionable silence listening to the sound of crystalline leaves tinkling against each other in a gentle breeze. Sweetie closed her eyes and began to hum along with the tree’s music. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo blinked a few times then both let out a deep yawn, the latter dropping the half eaten apple core from her mouth. “knock that off Sweetie yur gona put me ta sleep like that” grunted Apple Bloom halfheartedly.
“I don’t know, a nap sounds good right now” said Scootaloo laying her head down forgetting about her unfinished lunch.
Sweetie’s humming turned in to a soft snore and she slumped against Scootaloo. Apple Bloom yawned again looking over at her two friends already fast asleep. “I guess a nap couldn’t hurt none.” She said to herself snuggling in to Sweetie Belle’s side and putting her head down on her crossed hooves.
The grove around the tree went quiet except for the sound of sleeping fillies, witch all and all did not amount to much. For a few minutes all was still but slowly a root closest to the sleeping fillies began to pull itself free of the ground around it. Slowly and gently it started to push the sleepers toward the base of the tree toward a small hollow that was not there before. After the fillies were all tucked in to the hollow the root slowly put itself back. After another moment there was a quiet snap and the hollow was gone leaving the grove empty except for a small saddle bag and a half eaten apple core.
***
At the Golden Oaks Library Spike was milling around the kitchen per pairing to start lunch for himself and his sister/boss. “Hey Twilight! I’m about to make lunch what do you want?” Spike called out. Getting no answer he let out an annoyed huff as he headed out of the kitchen and made his way to Twilight’s personal study. After a quick knock on the closed door Spike pushed it open “Twilight lun…” was all he managed to get out as he took in the state of the room. Almost every book was pulled off the shelves laying open on every table, seat and a crossed the floor.
Twilight sat with her muzzle buried deep in a book with many more scattered around her. Her mane was frizzed and in desperate need of a brushing. One eye began to twitch as she pushed away one book with her magic only to have it be replaced with another book seemingly at random.
Watching the frazzled alicorn from the door he let out a tired sigh “3,2,1 and…” he mumbled to himself.
“GWAAA!” Twilight shouted her magic cut out and fell backward wings splayed out. The book her magic had been holding fell heavily on her stomach driving the air from her.
“Twilight lunch time”
“No lunch, research” came a moan.
“You have two choices, ether you come down for food or I send all your reference books to Celestia and tell her not to give them back for a week.”
“You wouldn’t dare” Said Twilight with a scowl witch looked comical sense she was still on her back with a heavy book digging in to her stomach.
“Two weeks and you have five minutes to the table” was all Spike said as he left the room.
“Tyrant!”
Exactly four minutes and forty-seven seconds later found a still scowling Twilight sitting at her dinning table. Spike placed a simple daffodil sandwich and a glass of milk in front of her. Using her magic she brought it to her mouth and took a bite just then realizing how hungry she was. Making short work of the rest of the sandwich followed by the glass of milk. Her scowl gone replaced by a sheepish grin “Um, thank you Spike, I guess I just got to wrapped up in my research again.”
“You know Twi a wise pony once said ‘Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.’” Spike said finishing his own plate.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” said Twilight eyeing her assistant.
“It means no ponies ever heard of this before, you’ve never even heard of the tree of harmony before the Everfree attacked. And you’ve read every book here, every book in Canterlot except the princess’s privet collections. And you made a large dent in the crystal empire’s library.” Taking a deep breath before continuing “Your going to drive yourself nuts, your in here reading the same books over and over getting no answers. Driving you self to mini mental breakdowns till I pull you away by threatening to take your books away. Face it Twi this is something new, your not going to find your answers in a book this time.”
Letting out a sigh Twilight began “Maybe your right Spike, Its just books have never let me down in the past and…”
Twilight’s words were cut off by the sound of the library's front door slamming open. “Twi! Yall in here we got an emergency!” It was the familiar voice of Applejack.
“We’re in the kitchen AJ” Twilight called out. A moment later Applejack was standing in the kitchen looking scared as Twilight had ever seen her. “AJ what’s wrong, what happened?”
"Pinkie Pie just told me she was checking her party supplies, said she had a feeling a new pony be showin up soon. But when she checked her fire work supply she said that most of them were gone.”
“That’s it?” Twilight asked.
“Course that an’t it.” Applejack nearly shouted “She also said there was a note in the box that said her fire works were commandeered by the cutie mark crusaders”
Spikes face went pale “Wait the crusaders have fire works… they have explosives?!” He squealed “How many are hurt, what’s on fire, is anypony dead?”
“Nothin yet Spike no ponies seen a crusader all day. Twi, I need you to find Apple Bloom now!”
About twenty minutes later found all six elements and Spike out side the Everfree Forest. Along the way Applejack and Twilight were joined by the rest of there friends. Twilight paced in front of her friends.
“OK, Pinkie can you and Fluttershy patrol the edge of the forest? I can only track Apple Bloom if Sweetie Belle or Scootaloo have gotten separated they may wonder out some where off the main path. Pinkie if you think you can get some of the town ponies to help that will be a big help.” Said Twilight.
“On it.” Said Pinkie Pie giving Twilight a salute then disappearing in a pink blur.
“Um, OK.” Said Fluttershy looking relieved she would not have to go in to the forest.
Twilight stood in front of Spike “ I want you to go to Zecora's and see if she has seen the fillies.”
“Got it, Twi” said Spike turning and running down the path in to the forest.
“The rest of us will head in the direction of Apple Bloom, hopefully the others are with her.”
Rainbow Dash gave Twilight a suspicious look “Why can you only track Bloom and not the squirt?”
Twilight looked over at Applejack “Care to take this one?”
Applejack looked at the ground rubbing her fore hooves together. “Well after Bloom took my pie cart and tried to make my rounds I promised Bloom I’d give her space. But I was still worried about her so I pestered Twi till she put trackin spell on all of Blooms ribbons. Ya know just in case an all.”
“Look darling we can go in to magical ethics later after we find the girls.” Said Rarity.
“Right” Twilight said her horn lighting up “follow me. This will take us in a straight line so keep an eye out we probably wont be on the path much.” With that Twilight followed by AJ, Dash and Rarity took off in to the forest.
***
In a clearing at the center of the forest sat a cottage. It was made of stone surrounded by a neat lawn and a straight path leading from the forest right up to a large wooden door. Two feet from the door a small blue stem pushed it’s way from the packed dirt of the path. From the end of the stem a blue bloom began to grow and grew till it was the size of a full grown pony. With a loud pop the bloom opened leaving three little fillies sleeping on the path, the bloom and stem dissolving in to a silvery dust that scattered in a nonexistent breeze leaving only a small hole in the ground. A moment later the door was opened wide filled by a large figure. “Hmm, hey now. What be this now?”
The first to awaken was Sweetie Belle. With a yawn she brought a hoof up to rub the sleep from her eyes. It took a moment of looking around for her to realize something was off. She was a laying on a large pillow, be side her were Apple Bloom and Scootaloo each on there own pillows, they were in a large room before a fire place. The fire place was unlit but was clean with a stack of logs on a metal stand ready for lighting. Bright sun light was coming in through large windows. Sweetie jumped up and hopped in between her two sleeping friends wrapping a foreleg around each. “Girls! Wake up!”
Apple Bloom gave a wide yawn and started to blink awake. She started to silently look around the room taking in a kind of bleary puzzlement. Scootaloo groaned “Five more minutes” as she pulled herself out of Sweetie’s grip and rolled on to her back.
“Where are we?” said Bloom. “Last thing I remember was laying down by the tree of harmony.”
Sweetie was poking Scootaloo’s shoulder. “No clue, I just woke up myself.”
Apple Bloom stood up and began to explore the room. Beside the pillows sat a large arm chair, it looked old but well cared for. Behind her was a long table to big for any pony to use except the princesses. Everything in the room seem to be scaled for something bigger then the average pony. “Think a minotaur lives here? Everything here is to big.”
“Got me.” Said Sweetie who had given up trying to wake up Scootaloo, who had rolled over to her side. Looking around the room herself her eyes locked on to a tall podium with a large red book sitting on top. “Hey can you give me a boost? I want to see that book.”
“Sure thing”
Going over to Sweetie Apple Bloom knelt down allowing Sweetie to climb on to her back. Standing the ponies still came short of the top of the podium but it allowed Sweetie to safely hop up landing beside the book. Gripping the book in her magic she opened the cover and flipped the first few pages.
“So what’s it say?”
“I don’t know, I’ve never seen this language before”
Apple Bloom’s eyes where drawn to one of the windows when a large shape outside went past followed by loud thumps that came from the other side of the door. At the sudden noise Sweetie shut the book and jumped down beside Bloom. ”Someponies coming” said Bloom “We need to wake Scoots up, who knows what this ponies like.” Both fillies ran over to the sleeping Scootaloo. Apple Bloom grabbed Scootaloo pulling her in to a sitting position and started shaking her back and forth. “Scoots you need to wake up now!”
“Hu what? I’m up, I’m awake!” said Scootaloo. As She was getting her baring’s the knob on the door began to turn.
When the door swung open a tall figure was revealed. Sweetie studied the creature in the door way, it stood on two hind legs and was as tall as Celestia but broader in the shoulders. From hoof to head it was wearing clothes and a pointed hat. It had hands much like a minotaur but except for a brown beard and mane it seemed to be hairless on the rest of his, if the beard was any indication, exposed skin. She thought Rarity would have a fit at the creatures apparel, it wore yellow boots and light brown pants. Over his chest was a long blue over coat with a green shirt poking out around his neck. The hat he wore looked to be made of the same material as the pants with a band of darker material that ran around the base it’s end join by what seemed to be a silver brooch of blue stones. In one of it’s hands was the door knob and in the other was a tray piled with loafs of bread.
The fillies staring fixed on the creature none of them have ever seen anything like it. His blue eyes seemed to sparkle when he saw his guests where awake. “Well now my furry friends it's nice to see you awaken. I’m Tom Bombadil and this is my home.” His voice was deep and filled with mirth. He walked in to the room leaving the door open behind him. Placing the tray on the long table he turned to face his guests, they just stood there seeming unable to move or speak. “Well then I hope that you'll join me for food and then you can tell me your tale.”