> The Tales of Friendship > by maxisscrewed > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 1 — Tragedy Strikes > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The thunderstorm slammed against the roof of the small car that chugged through the cute little town of Ponyville. Twilight thought this new town that her family was moving to was absolutely disgusting. It was so much smaller than any other place she had ever lived, and the colors were too bright. It seemed like every house and shop in existence was painted a different, vomit-inducing color. Worse yet—it looked so uncivilized. "Oh, don’t be so upset, Twilight," she heard her mother, Twilight Velvet, snap from the passenger's seat of the bland, grey car. "You’ll make some great friends here. I just have a feeling." "This weather is terrible," her father, Night Light, grumbled. He squinted to watch the cobblestone road and Twilight Sparkle gazed up at a sign that read Carousel Boutique, which flapped wildly in the wind. "Just go slow, dear," Twilight Velvet muttered, looking back at the worried Twilight. "Are you nervous about the rain?" "What? No! I know for a fact it won’t be bad. There is no possible probability that this could be a devastating storm!" "That’s very good," Night Light chuckled as the rain slacked off into nothingness. "Hey, would you look at that? It’s gone! Why don’t you two go up and look at the orchard? It’s beautiful up there! Go talk to that farmer up on the hill, how about it? She looks very nice." Before Spike or Twilight even knew what was going on, they were shoved out of the car and pushed to wooden, tall sign that sat over a long, dirt path that read Sweet Apple Acres. "Well, it’s worth a shot," Twilight optimistically sighed, and the two trudged up the wet, muddy road. "You look absolutely darling, darling! How does it feel," Rarity squealed. Fluttershy held her arms up at the extremely sparkly dress and resisted the urge to just... Just... "Itchy," Fluttershy whispered very quietly. "What did you say?" "Itchy," Fluttershy breathed out in an even more silent squeak. "Please, Fluttershy, I simply cannot understand you!" "Itchy," Fluttershy whimpered in a louder voice. Her pale, pasty face quickly turned ruddy and she hid behind her long, pastel pink hair that nearly dragged against the floor. "Really? I would have never thought," Rarity pondered. "Oh well, I suppose we’ll have to start over with new fabric! The same color though, right?" "You’re not mad?" "Of course not!" The soft television on the wall began to screech in terror and the girls looked up to the screen with the red banner scrolling across the bottom. "A tornado warning has been issued for the following areas. If you are inside, find a location with no windows or mirrors. If you are outside or on the road, seek shelter immediately." "Oh no," Fluttershy gasped, ripping the dress’s pins apart to get the fabric off. "I have to go, Rarity, I’m so sorry!" "Fluttershy, those are always so silly!" "I have animals at home," the girl shrieked loudly as she stood at the front door. They looked at each other in shock, and Fluttershy tucked her hair behind her ear. "I, um... I’ll call you later, okay?" "O-Okay," Rarity stuttered, watching the girl flee from the boutique. It was a few moments of silence before the wind began to pull the doors open, and Rarity slammed them shut and locked them. "Rarity, there’s a really bad storm coming," Sweetie Belle shouted in a fearful tone, running down the spiral staircase that swirled around the entire, circular building of Carousel Boutique, which, in fact, looked like a carousel. "I know, Sweetie," she explained, trying to secure all of her loose objects inside of a closet or a cranny so that nothing would fly around and hurt the two. "Get into the hallway and I’ll be there in a second. Do you hear me?" "Yes," Sweetie loyally whimpered, grabbing Rarity’s flashlight for the table and a throw pillow from the chaise lounge before fleeing to the long, dark hallway. Rarity sighed and tucked her hair behind her ears as she collected her cherry red reading glasses, her keys, a throw blanket from the couch, and a bag of supplies that she kept in case of a storm. Her heels clicked loudly across the floor as she rushed to their safe spot and she got on the floor with the girl. "Here we are," Rarity calmly sang, wrapping them both up in the blanket. Opalescence meowed from Sweetie Belle’s lap, and Rarity smiled when the cat purred. They sat together on the pillow and she smiled, taking some crackers, a battery-powered radio, and a coloring book and crayons from the posh handbag. "Do you want to color in a picture?" "No," Sweetie Belle whimpered fearfully, resting her head on Rarity’s arm. "Well, I do." She opened the book and began to color, then she counted. 3... 2... "Can I do one?" Rarity grinned and tore out her sheet, handing the book to the small girl to let her pick out a page. "Well howdy there, Miss," Applejack shouted over the sound of the storm. She held her cowboy hat down on her hay colored hair through the heavy, harsh winds, and Twilight clutched tightly onto her cardigan to keep it on. "Looks like tornado weather, dunnit?" "What," Twilight shouted over the sound of the hard wind. Applejack just so happened to hear a loud bell from the sweet little farmhouse on the hill and a loud, southern voice boomed down to them. "Applejack," her boisterous little granny shouted, "there’s a ‘nado comin’ fer us! Get yer apple-pickin’ booty in the house, y’ hear?" "Well would’ja look at that? I was right!" Applejack laughed, grasping Twilight’s hand. "Come on, now, we’re gonna have us a lil’ hurricane party! That’s what Granny Smith calls ‘em. I don’t think I’ve ever met’chya before, have I? Name's Applejack!" "This isn’t the time for introductions," Twilight screamed, looking back at the huge, black tornado, then down at Spike, who looked afraid of the storm. "It’s going to hit your farmhouse!" "No it ain’t, they barely ever blow through us! They’re too scared," Applejack reassured with a laugh, "and if the lil’ monster does hit us, we can rebuild!" "Applejack, my family doesn’t know what to do in a crisis and it’s heading for Ponyville!" "Do they have them cellular touchy-feely phones?" "Yes, why?" Applejack opened the door and shoved Twilight and Spike through before barging in, slamming the door shut. They jogged into the hallway where no windows or mirrors were, and there was an older, muscular boy holding a young girl around Spike’s age, as well as the old lady. "Tell ‘em to run up to Sugarcube Corner," she explained. "Not far away from anybody, and they got a basement that goes for miles! Built it myself, y’ see?" "Really?" Twilight was now more impressed than worried, and Applejack gave her and Spike a blanket. The whole house smelled so cozy and welcoming, like fresh, new pine straw and firewood. Twilight smiled and wrapped her and Spike up in the blankets. "Yep! Say, what’s your name, anyway?" "I’m Twilight Sparkle, and this is my little brother Spike." "Nice to meet y’all," Applejack chuckled, tilting her hat. "This is Applebloom, Big Mac, and Granny Smith. Y’all already know me." "It’s nice to meet you too," Twilight started, looking around at the family. They were so loving and nice, and she felt that she never wanted to leave. "Come on, Pinkie, in the basement," Mr. Cake desperately ordered, and Pinkie Pie scooped up the toddler twins into her arms. Mrs. Cake took the little boy from her and the tall, slender girl—who was still in her cute, diner uniform that she wore while working at the bakery—quickly looked back at a couple as they rushed into the doors. It was a tall man and woman: the man with dark blue hair and golden eyes; the lady with long, white and light purple hair, with straight across bangs. "Please, help us," they called out to her, and her pretty blue eyes widened as the couple began to get sucked through the doorframe by the huge, black twister. She scrambled to meet them, but she felt Mr. Cake yank her back down into the cellar, and she caught one last glimpse of them being pulled into the storm before he shut the door and everything turned black. "Oh my God," Pinkie whimpered, sitting down on the floor. Mr. Cake lit a candle and set it down to where only a certain area was lit. She received awful images in her vivid imagination of monsters in the deep darkness, and Mrs. Cake finally placed a hand on hers. "Pinkie Pie, don’t think about that family," she whispered, "they’re fine." "No, they aren’t," Pinkie mumbled. She could feel it in her stomach that it wasn’t alright. After a little while of waiting, Pinkie took up a bottle of water from the storage in the cellar and she poured it in a mixing bowl. She then dipped her face into the bowl, then waited for a few seconds before taking her head from the bowl, sputtering and coughing. "Do you feel better?" "Sure," she whispered. She was angrier than anything that she didn’t know their names, for if she had known and written them on paper before dropping them into the water, she could have seen their fate. "Is this storm over yet?" "The weather has now cleared. You are clear to check your home for any damages." "Alright," Rainbow excitedly shouted, grabbing up her skateboard and her backpack. She twisted her snapback cap around backward and slid on her butt down the banister of the stairs. Her family didn’t live in an awful house for sure, but it was in a strange location. Her family lived in the clouds, in fact, and her family had an odd job that had been passed down for years. Her family created the weather. Sometimes, a fight caused horrible weather, since the job had been passed down to Rainbow Dash after her dad retired. Speaking of a fight, Dash watched her dad sit in his recliner in silence. The man that had once owned a nice athletic frame and a big head of rainbow hair now had nothing more than a beer gut and a half bald, shiny head. She loved him very much and he did everything for her and her adopted sister Scootaloo, but he had started to get into arguments with her after he had his wings taken away and he started drinking. "Daddy," she asked, watching the man in the recliner. She approached him and looked down at the man, who had passed out in front of the television. She slowly reached down and gave him a kiss on the cheek, before she smiled and ran to the door. She threw it open before she took a few steps back. "Double Rainboom," she tried to pump herself up, before she jumped up and down, loosened her muscles, and jumped on her skateboard, pushing off through the door. Rainbow kicked her legs and screamed in excitement before she dived downwards. For years she had tried to cause an amazing phenomenon that her father was able to do called a Double Rainboom. It was where she could cause enough pressure in the atmosphere—mote than a speeding bullet—to create a ringed double rainbow. Rainbow held one arm out to cause more of a torpedo effect, and the wind began to deflect her body, but it was no use. She used her free arm to squeeze her necklace, and the ruby lightning cloud illuminated before two huge, blue, soft wings shot from her back. It caught her only inches above the ground, and she laughed as she did a few flips in the air, landing on her feet in front of Fluttershy’s cottage. "Never fear, Dashie is here!" Fluttershy gasped as her sweet little critters fled away from her, and her kind eyes squeezed shut when the last little butterfly twinkled off of her finger. "Oh. Whoops." "Yes," she sighed, "whoops indeed." "So, what’s up? Anything new?" Rainbow Dash kicked her feet up as she flopped down on the girl’s sofa, and Fluttershy sighed. "Did you have a fight with your dad?" "What," Rainbow Dash laughed, before blowing a raspberry with her lips. "No way!" "Rainbow." Dash looked at Fluttershy, and the taller, skinnier girl’s eyes narrowed. Dash scratched her tan skin and bit her lip before sighing. "Yeah." "You caused a huge tornado to blow through, Dashie." "Nobody got hurt, did they?" "I don’t know, but it isn’t safe for us, and it’s not safe for your relationship with your dad! I know you love him and you’ve always wanted to be the better version of him, but that also means that you look up to him!" "No I don’t," Dash shouted, "he’s a drunk coward!" "Are you sure that you aren’t the coward, Rainbow Dash?" "I’m anything but," Rainbow muttered, folding her arms. There was a long silence before a Fluttershy scooped up a ball python from the floor, wrapping it around her neck. "Please, don’t be so awful to him—" "Hey, how about we go visit with Rarity?" "You never want to visit Rarity because you’re her perfect body style." "Applejack?" "You always argue." "Pinkie Pie?" "You think she’s annoying." "So," Rainbow Dash shouted, throwing her hands up. "Anything’s better than talking about Dad! Even Pinkie Pie, for Celestia's sake!" Fluttershy stood to her feet with the snake still around her neck, and the two slowly began to walk from the cottage. The sky was now blue and beautiful, and a Fluttershy hummed a nice little tune on their way. It wasn’t because she wanted to sing, but because she wanted to reassure that the animals were safe. They crossed under the weeping willow that she had hung many a bird feeder on, and she sighed when she saw half of the beautifully painted feeders sprawled on the ground. "I can help you make more," Dash offered, and they continued to walk. "So, uh," Dash began, and Fluttershy blushed crimson when she felt the girl 's warm aura. She closed her eyes with a smile, and they walked slowly down the path to the center of town where Sugarcube Corner sat. In the distance, they heard awful sobbing, and Fluttershy began to run ahead when she heard it. Her eyes widened when she saw a beautiful girl she had never seen before, with thick-framed glasses and long, dark purple hair held up in a bun. "Mom, Dad," the girl wailed, and Pinkie Pie was seen consoling her, still in her short-skirted uniform. Fluttershy had never seen Pinkie so solid and still in her life, and she had also never seen a house in such ruin as the craftsman house that sat right across from Sugarcube Corner. This would be the beginning of the end. > Chapter 2 — Property Stakin’ > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight Sparkle didn't know the pretty, pink-haired girl that tried to comfort her, but she let the sweet young lady take her into her shop with loving arms and fix her a milkshake anyway. It was her favorite flavor, and she sucked it down gently as the tears rolled down her cheeks. "Bacon?" Twilight's eyes searched up the girl's short denim shorts and a graphic band tee, up to her smiling, pale face. "No, thank you," Twilight sniffled, squeezing her eyes shut. The girl had given Twilight some time to cry, as she had gone to the bathroom to take her long curls down. She still wore a forced yet happy look on her face as she carried five baskets with a greasy burger and well-seasoned fries to the table, all lined and balanced up and down her arms. The pudgy woman brought two bowls of peas to the table and sat them in front of the babies that sat in their high chairs, squealing angrily for food. "Here," she cheerfully began, placing two baskets down in front of Spike and Twilight. Spike dug in immediately, chewing his burger loudly. "Spike, manners," Twilight snapped, but the girl giggled, followed by a little snort. "I know it's good! Everybody says I make the best burgers." The girl passed out the three remaining baskets around the circular table, and Twilight looked to the blue-eyed, pink-haired across the table. "Can you pass me the ketchup, please?" The pink girl gave her another sweet giggle before grasping onto the bar in the middle of the table, pulling to her left. The family spun around a circular insert in the middle of the table, which was piled up with condiments. Twilight and Spike had wondered why there was a step-up to the table, and immediately Twilight remembered riding the teacup ride at the amusement park with her father long ago when Spike was just a little baby. Their dining room table was a spinning teacup cart. "Your house is so cool," Spike excitedly shouted, and Twilight held her hand up to him. "Quiet down! I'm sure this nice family doesn't appreciate you yelling in their home—" "Oh, honey, don't worry about it," the heavy woman laughed, "we live with Pinkie Pie!" "Pinkie Pie?" "That's me," the pink girl shouted loudly right back with a huge smile, nearly blowing Spike and Twilight's hair off with her volume. As the girl screamed, she jumped up to her feet on the table, crouching down as she ate. Twilight Sparkle had never seen anybody so energetic in her entire life. "Hey, this is, like way off-topic, but you can sleep in my bed tonight with me! It'll be like a sleepover!" "I've never had a sleepover." "Really? They're super fun! We can stay up late and eat candy—well, I can't eat candy because it keeps me up later than usual because I have this thing called ADHD, so I can't focus on anything for long—hey, look at that!" Pinkie Pie smiled and looked through the window before she grabbed the handlebar again and twirled the table so that Twilight and Spike could look through the large window that covered most of the wall. Twilight looked out at the beautiful sunset and began to feel a bit of nausea rise in her stomach from all of the spinning and Pinkie Pie's sickeningly fast pace. "What am I looking at?" Pinkie Pie sat up on her skinny knees and reached behind the teacup, grabbing a pair of binoculars from the wall before plopping back down with a little bounce from the leather seat. She tossed them to Twilight with a "whoop" sound from her mouth, and Twilight cringed while she caught them. She then held them up to her eyes, and hesitantly took a look through the binoculars. Through them, she saw Applejack and Rarity passing by the lot that her yellow, ugly house once sat, with Applejack surveying the land and Rarity jogging down notes frantically on a notepad. "Oh, sweetheart, I simply do not think all of this is exactly necessary." Rarity tried her best to keep up with Applejack in the deep mud, but her feet felt as if they were stuck in a glue trap. Applejack took no trouble at all wading through the mud in her cowboy boots, but Rarity was wearing dainty little heels. "Not necessary," Applejack asked in a huffy tone, "it's definitely necessary! You gotta know how much land you got! Do you even know how many acres y' got?" "No, Jackie, I do not! Can't we go back home and look when it's not so—" Rarity's eyes widened when her foot slipped out of her heel, and she squealed, nearly falling face-first into a puddle of mud. She caught her balance and moved her foot back into her shoe, whimpering at the sight of her adorable shoes. "I just got these!" "They'll wash out in the hose," Applejack sighed, looking back at Rarity. "They're designer suede, Applejack, they will not 'wash out in the hose' quickly, and they will be absolutely stained!" The girl sighed and wiped some wet mud off of her face before cocking a brow. "Let me get this last stake measured, m'kay?" Applejack quickly took the end of the tape measure and whipped it outwards, just so happening to catch the end of the stick on the other side. Applejack then smiled. "Whoo-whee! Would' jya look at that, Rare-Bear? Ten by twenty-five!" "What now," Rarity groaned unhappily, and Applejack squished to the edge of the lot where Rarity stood. "Now we get to go home and have us a good ol' movie night," Applejack replied softly, and Rarity grinned when Applejack wrapped her muscular arms around her slightly chubby waist. "Oh, really?" "Really," she whispered, and Rarity smiled as she received a kiss on the forehead. "I thought you said we were watching a movie," Rarity wailed dramatically.. Applejack rolled her eyes and finished scoping the living room on the upper floor of the Carousel Boutique. "Rarity, have ya even had yer house inspected?" "What is that supposed to mean?" "You got mold in the walls!" "Mold," Rarity squealed, sitting up on the couch. "Yep! Water damage 'round the ceilin' where it's at, too." Applejack looked around and pondered the building. It was all one color—which wasn't Rarity at all—and the walls were cracked and riddled with darkened, moldy water damage. "Do you even come upstairs?" "Only when I have to use the restroom or sleep," Rarity admitted, and Applejack smiled. "Don't worry! I'll have this up to OSHA standards in a jiffy!" "OSHA? Who cares about OSHA anymore, Jackie? That's so last week." "Do you know what OSHA is?" "Obviously," Rarity shouted, seemingly disgusted that Applejack would even ask. "It stands for over-stated hashtag adorable!" "What in the hell did you even just say?" "It's a whole fashion promotion, dear, but it's so 2005. What is that not what you were talking about?" "OSHA is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration!" "Well, I sure didn't see OSHA when that poor girl's house was destroyed!" "Rarity, that was a natural disaster! Things happen, sugarcube!" Applejack sighed and reached to the side of her belt, removing a hammer. "Alright, here goes." She raised her hand over her head and slammed the tool through the sheetrock, exposing layers upon layers of oozing, black slime. Rarity fainted to the floor, and Applejack covered her mouth and nose with her orange button-down shirt. This would be a doozy. "Here's my room!" Pinkie Pie slammed open the door to a room that was in complete disarray. There were streamers and paper chains strung all over the ceilings and pink-painted walls. She had a computer with many different colored sticky notes all over the rim of the monitor and the back wall around the substantial machine. There was a spreadsheet on the computer with different sorts of finances on it, which seemed out of character for the silly girl. "Oh, oh, let me show you something cool!" Twilight Sparkle gently sat down on the bed as Pinkie Pie bent down, rummaging around in the back of the closet. Then, with a few powerful tugs, she pulled out a vast, blue canon. "Oh my God," Twilight panicked, but Pinkie Pie held up her hands. "It's okay! It's not really a canon, silly!" "It sure looks like one!" "No, silly, it's a party canon!" "I' m the silly one," Twilight mumbled to herself, watching as Pinkie Pie grabbed the long, pink string. "Ready?" "No!" "Great!" The girl yanked the string, and in the blink of an eye and a boom, the room was filled with streamers, confetti, and balloons. "It's incredible, isn't it? I made it myself!" "It sure is, uh..." Twilight cocked an eyebrow before leaning down to look inside of the barrel. "It has an air pump inside?" "Yep! Ten of them!" "How does it work?" "It's a secret!" Pinkie Pie jumped up onto the edge of the footboard, which seemed like a very tall height for anybody to be able to jump. "It's like she's lighter than air," Twilight whispered, glaring as she looked between Pinkie's feet and the floor. "Huh?" "Nothing! Nothing, really," Twilight insisted with a fake giggle. "What else do you have?" "Oh, right! This is the best one of all!" Pinkie Pie fell back off of the footboard and onto her back, letting the squishy mattress propel her back into the air. She squealed when she was launched gently into the air, and she landed back on her bottom instead of her back. She plowed through the pillows to look for something, and Twilight looked back at the canon. "Dad would've loved to pick that apart," she whispered, and she felt the prickly tears come back into her eyes. "Here you are! This is my stuffed alligator, Gummy!" Pinkie Pie showed Twilight the cute, cartoony alligator in her arms, and the hyperactive girl smiled even brighter. "I can't have a real pet because I'm irresponsible or something, but Mr. Cake said I could have a stuffed animal!" "Good for you, Pinkie Pie," Twilight sighed, looking down at the floor. Pinkie's smile vanished, and she tilted her head. "Do you want to go to sleep for tonight?" "Yeah," Twilight sniffled, and Pinkie Pie turned off the light. The fan continued to blast cold air into the room, and Pinkie Pie lay down in bed. Twilight lay on her other side, and Pinkie Pie sacrificed Gummy to Twilight. "You can sleep with Gummy tonight," she explained, shutting her eyes with a big smile on her face. "I can't take Gummy from you, Pinkie." "Don't worry—he wants to sleep with you!" Twilight slowly took the alligator, and Pinkie Pie pretended to be asleep until she heard Twilight snore instead of sniffling her tears back. Her smile turned a bit more sinister, and Pinkie Pie silently turned on her phone, turned on the voice recorder, then placed it upside down on the table before she lay back down and was able to sleep soundly. She would get answers about Twilight, and in return, Twilight would get answers about her. "So, are you coming over tonight or what?" Rainbow Dash listened to Fluttershy nervously stutter, and Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "That means yes, I suppose!" "Please reconsider," Fluttershy whined, and Scootaloo grabbed her backpack hastily. She folded up her scooter and tucked it safely into her pack, and she grabbed Fluttershy's skirt with wide, sweet eyes. "Please," Scootaloo pleaded, and Fluttershy's heart softened. "Oh, of course, I will," she passively cooed, and the girl turned around to give Dash a high-five. "Hey, stop using the child to get to me!" Scootaloo pulled out a large and small skydiving harness. The buckle plate on the back of Dash's had a lightning bolt coming from a cloud, and the straps were blue and yellow. Scootaloo's was just plain maroon. Between the two, there was a strong tether cord that connected the girls. "Ready," Dash asked as she wrapped her arms around Fluttershy, and Scootaloo pulled her backpack onto her back, jumping up and down from excitement. Fluttershy whimpered, and Rainbow Dash's pendant began to illuminate. The blue wings unfolded from her back, and she gave them a hard flap to launch the three into the air. Fluttershy shrieked at the top of her lungs—which was much unlike her—and Scootaloo screamed in excitement. "Rainbow Dash put me down! Please! Please!" The sky began to shrink, and Fluttershy watched her feet disappear into the clouds. "Too late now—we're already halfway there," Dash shouted over the sound of the wind, and before they even knew it, they were above the clouds. Nestled gently into one was the bright blue bungalow that Rainbow Dash's family lived in. Fluttershy began to panic as Rainbow Dash plopped her and Scootaloo onto the porch, and her wings shrunk into her shoulder blades, letting her drop down onto the porch. Fluttershy dusted off her skirt and gained control of her nerves before she tried to assert herself. "What on earth will be your outlet for this when you get older, Dashie," she huffed in her sweet little voice before she whimpered and looked down. "I'm so sorry, Dashie, that was so rude of me—" "—I dunno," Rainbow Dash replied, taking off the tether and the harness, helping Scootaloo out of her own. "Huh?" "Don't know yet! I guess I'm just kinda the keeper of the skies until I die. What I really want to do is play soccer on the Wonderbolts team!" Rainbow Dash unlocked the door, and Scootaloo ran inside. Fluttershy approached Dash as the two girls recklessly entered into the messy house. "You know what?" "What?" "I am gonna do it one day because I believe in myself just—that—much." After every pause, Rainbow Dash used her finger to poke Fluttershy's nose, and the rainbow-headed girl ran into the house. She saw the empty recliner and quickly used her mind to think of something to make Scootaloo feel better. "Daring Do! It is I—Ahuizotl, and I have the eternal flower you search for!" Scootaloo played along and jumped up onto the couch. "Not today, Ahuizotl!" Rainbow Dash let Scootaloo tackle her to the ground onto her back, and the small girl laughed wildly as Rainbow Dash tickled her. Fluttershy smiled and sat gently at the edge of the large recliner. Rainbow Dash picked Scootaloo up by lying on her back and letting the girl stand with their feet and hands together. "Wanna hear some sick riffs I've been learning?" "Yeah!" Then, just like that, Scootaloo joined Fluttershy in the recliner, letting the girl wrap a skinny arm around her shoulders. Fluttershy sat next to Scootaloo in the recliner in front of the prominent speakers in the living room. She was much better off watching the two play together, but now she supposed that it was the annual nine-o'clock-guitar-time. Rainbow Dash's dad had left a note on the fridge saying he had "left for a little while," which was a tell-tale sign that he was out to get alcohol. Rainbow Dash was always so upset when she knew that Scootaloo was exposed to their dad, and Fluttershy had known for forever that Dash was Scootaloo's biggest role model. Rainbow Dash was the apple of her eye since her older sister would play with her, teach her how to play sports, and hang out with her and her friends occasionally. "Look," Scootaloo whispered, nudging Fluttershy. Her eyes widened as she saw Rainbow Dash's strings start to glow rainbow colors. Fluttershy gasped when they got brighter, and she looked down to Scootaloo. "Has this happened before?" "No, I was wondering the same thing," the girl commented, and Fluttershy looked back to Rainbow Dash. "Dashie? Oh my goodness," Fluttershy whispered as Rainbow Dash strummed on her guitar one last time. The glowing strings used this as their opportunity to shine, and the different colors of light wrapped around each other to create a spiraling, rainbow beam. Fluttershy and Scootaloo screamed as they scurried over either side of the recliner. It exploded in between them, blowing the recliner up into nothing but a pile of feathers on the floor. Rainbow Dash stared in shock at the feathers, and Fluttershy began to have a panic attack. It was just then that the door creaked open, and the three looked to see Rainbow Dash's dad, holding a suit in his hands and a shopping bag with cologne in the other. For the first time in a long time, he wasn't drunk, and he whistled just like he used to long ago. When he saw the exploded chair, though, his face twisted in shock, and he dropped the suit to the floor. "What happened here," the heavy man asked frantically, and Rainbow Dash shook her head. "I don't know! My guitar just, like, made a bomb happen!" He sighed and shut the door, but Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash were still shocked and ecstatic that he wasn't holding a pack of beer in each hand. The girls both ran to greet him, and he seemed confused that the girls both hugged him tightly. Fluttershy looked at the chair, then back at the girls, and she smiled nervously at the man. > Chapter 3 — The Big Super-Duper Secrety Surprise Party > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight Sparkle had slept well the previous night. Strangely yet, she was hardly sad over her parents. It was like the past event had never even happened. She sat up in bed and rubbed the sleep from her eyes, seeing Pinkie Pie at the computer, chewing on an ink pen. "Twenty bucks a bag at Flim n' Flam's Thing-Or-Two Shop, but I could always make it myself. If I get three packs of construction paper for one dollar each at—" "Good morning, Pinkie," Twilight yawned, and Pinkie Pie nearly jumped out of her skin with fright as she looked back at Spike and Twilight. It was apparent that Spike had crawled in bed late at night when he couldn't sleep. "Oh, I nearly forgot you were even there! Say, I have some errands to run today. I wonder where I can find a smart, pretty girl and a totally awesome little guy to help me plan the big super-duper secrety surprise party?" "Me, me," Spike chanted excitedly, and Pinkie Pie flashed a big, white smile. "Great! Go comb your teeth and brush your hair, because we've got an exciting day ahead of us!" Spike threw himself out of bed, and his feet pittered quickly to the bathroom. Twilight Sparkle smiled wearily. "What's the duper super big party thingy?" "The big super-duper secrety surprise party is a surprise, silly-billy!" "Thanks for the offer, Pinkie Pie, but we don't have any clothes or, um, anything anymore, really." "Oh, right. What size jeans do you wear?" "Size eight," Twilight slowly concluded, and Pinkie pondered for a bit. "I wear a size four, but you could probably wear some of my—oh, I got it!" Pinkie Pie jumped from her seat and tucked her pencil behind her ear, rummaging through the racks of clothes. Then, after a minute, she pulled out a plain, light blue dress from her closet. "This should work! It's a bit too big for me, but it should work perfectly for you. Oh, here's some leggings, too," Pinkie added, throwing a pair of white leggings at the girl. "Go get dressed, and I'll be ready in a jiffy!" Pinkie Pie was acting ominous, but Twilight accepted this about her newfound—dare she think it—friend. How could she make a friend in such a horrific setting? What if she was glad that her parents died? "I simply do believe that you should look into the engineered hardwood." "Rarity, there ain't nothin' better than a bit of blood and sweat goin' into yer wooden floors if ya know it's all done correctly. They should be handled with care—not slapped down like a damn jigsaw puzzle!" "Alright, alright, whatever you say, dearest." "What color do ya want?" "Something dark," she pondered, "like a—" "Mahogany, gotchya," Applejack began, showing Rarity a sample of the dark wood. "It's perfect," Rarity gushed, and she jumped as she felt a firm finger tap on her shoulder. She squealed and whipped around, nearly knocking Applejack down to the floor with the force of her hip. The country girl stumbled to the side and turned as well, straightening her cowboy hat. "Well would 'jya looky here," Applejack laughed, grabbing Twilight's hand to shake it firmly, "if it ain't lil' miss Twilight Sparkle and Spike!" "Who is she," Rarity hissed with a sense of jealousy in her voice, and Applejack smiled to her. "She found asylum in the farmhouse last night when that big ol' storm blew through. Whoo-whee, that was somethin' else, huh? Sorry 'bout yer family, darlin', that was awful. I am so, so sorry to hear that. If y'all ever wanna swing on by for supper, we'd be glad to have y'all!" Rarity gasped and pushed Applejack to the side, grasping Twilight Sparkle's hands." "So it was your house where Applejack was scoping the property!" "Don't you listen to anything I say, Rare?" "Oh, I'm so sorry that happened, darling! I couldn't imagine—" Rarity stopped speaking and closed her eyes before taking a deep breath. "Um, excuse me," she whispered, "but where did you get that dress?" "Pinkie Pie let me—" "I made that dress for Pinkie Pie's birthday, and you stole it from—" "I didn't steal anything," Twilight Sparkle insisted. "She let me borrow it because the storm took all of my clothes with it." "Well, that's hardly acceptable," Rarity gasped in horror. "Don't worry—I'm getting a huge shipment of fabric into the boutique tomorrow, and I promise that I will help you in any way I can." "Thank you so much," Twilight whispered, looking down at the floor. "I'll have to decline, though. I don't have any money." Pinkie Pie grabbed Rarity and whispered something into her ear, showed her the notebook, and Rarity looked to Pinkie Pie in confusion. "Really?" "Yes, really!" "Twilight, dear, don't worry about money, alright?" "You can't make them for free, though—" "The world does not revolve around money, but rather around what comes from others." Rarity spun around with Pinkie Pie and shot a smirk and a glare to her as they began to walk away, leaving Applejack to converse with Twilight and Spike. Rarity leaned over to the girl and glanced around the store. "Pinkie Pie, are you sure about this?" "Of course, I'm always sure," Pinkie snapped, and Rarity pointed at the notebook. "Look at how much work you're doing over something you can't help—" "I'll work overtime," Pinkie insisted, and Rarity sighed and smiled. "Just don't worry about it," Rarity sighed with a smile. "You can do favors in return. That would be a bigger help than money." As Pinkie Pie picked up her gallon of paint and left with Spike and Twilight trailing behind, Rarity leaned against Applejack's arm and sighed. "What's wrong, dumplin'?" "I'm so torn about the color." "Pinkie wants to what, now?" "You heard me! It's crazy!" Applejack smothered some mayonnaise on her sandwich and squished it down over the turkey that was on her other piece of bread before taking a big bite out of it. Rarity took a sip of fresh milk straight from Applejack's farm and sighed, running her long, purple, glittery nails down the glass. "You say that like nothin' Pinkie Pie does is crazy." "Well, you're right, but at the same time, this is probably the craziest thing she has ever done in the history of mankind!" "Maybe she's just tryn' to help in the only way she sees fit?" "If one person in this entire world should not be helping economically, it is Pinkamena Diane Pie!" "Well, if one person in this entire world can pull it off, it's gonna be Pinkiemeenie Diana Pie." The girls sat in silence before Rarity took a sip of her milk once again and looked up at the torn out wall. Applejack had cleaned out all of the molds by herself while Rarity watched. She was used to this—it tended to happen a lot with Rarity's projects. If it didn't involve fabric or string, then she wanted no part of it. "When will we start putting up the wall?" "Today, but it won't be done today." Applejack smiled and folded her arms. "Sheetrockin' is a delicate process, Rarity. You gotta treat it like yer wife—gentle, but at the same time, y'all got mutual respect and love for each other." "It's a wall, darling, not a Tinder date." Applejack sighed as Rarity stood up, walking towards the paint swatches on the floor. She didn't understand the process of building. Still, Applejack would admit that she knew nothing about the fashion business. So Applejack stood up, grabbed her hammer and nails, and walked up to the wall. "Don’t worry, Twilight!" Pinkie Pie used her pogo stick as her mode of locomotion as they went down the street. She had a worry deep in her chest, which made her hair start to flatten out a little bit. "We'll be throwing this party in no time at all! We need one more thing from Dashie, though!" "Dashie?" "Rainbow Dash, silly! She's the keeper of the clouds!" Pinkie Pie launched herself off of the stick and into the grass, right on a square, stone pedestal. "Keeper of the clouds? What sort of joke is that?" Pinkie Pie winked at Twilight and put her fingers in her mouth, blowing loudly. "Dashie! Come down here, I need some help!" "You're not silly enough to believe there's a weather goddess, are you?" Twilight shrieked when a light blue bullet rocketed in between the two girls, and Pinkie giggled hysterically, watching Rainbow Dash land on the ground in a crouch. "No way," Twilight whispered, watching the girl flap her wings gently before they retracted. "What's up?" "I need a big favor!" "Yeah?" "Can you play your guitar at a party I have tonight?" "Uh, what kind of party?" "It's the big super-duper secrety surprise party!" "Why didn't you just say that to begin with," Rainbow Dash shouted enthusiastically. "You just—you just—" "Flew?" "Yes!" "I suppose you're new here, then! You came to the right place if you want to study magic!" Rainbow Dash grinned, then looked back at Pinkie Pie. Pinkie's smile slipped into a straight line, and she ducked down to whisper something in Rainbow Dash's ear. Dash's smile fell, and she looked up at Twilight. After a Pinkie pulled away, Dash shook her head. "What's wrong?" "I'm so sorry, Twilight, I didn't know." "Know about what?" "When I get mad, storms happen. I'm so sorry, Twilight, I didn't mean to hurt you." Twilight looked down, and Rainbow Dash reached her hand out. "Name's Rainbow Dash. I control the weather, and I'm a Wonderbolt Trainee Team member." "Wow, you're the Rainbow Dash, like the soccer player who totally deserves a spot on the team and keeps getting swerved every year," Spike gasped, looking up at her with big, shimmery eyes. The girl had a heroic look to her, and she flashed her award-winning smile at him. "You're Rainbow Dash! It's really you!" He slowly walked over to her, and Rainbow Dash let go of Twilight's hand. "The one and only!" "Wow, I can't believe it!" "Can I have your autograph?" "Why get an autograph when you can just be my friend?" "You really wanna be my friend?" Spike's eyes illuminated like a Christmas tree, and she smiled at him. "Sure, why not? You guys will be here for a while, right?" "Yeah!" Rainbow Dash usually didn't give a second look to fans, but if they were kids, she always tried to provide them with at least a little bit of time with her. Spike seemed like a good kid, and she never really had time for friends in the first place. Fluttershy was her first friend she ever had, and Pinkie Pie came second. Everyone else was either her father or a fan. "Rainbow Dash," Twilight snapped, and Dash whipped her head up to look at the girl, blinking quickly back into reality. "Uh-huh?" "You went blank for a minute." "Head in the clouds?" Pinkie Pie laughed at her own joke, and Twilight couldn't help but giggle. Rainbow Dash smirked and nodded a little bit, looking between the two. "Really funny." Dash pulled a soccer ball from her backpack that the wings had slithered underneath, and she flicked it to Twilight. The girl jumped with fright and caught it in her hands, looking almost shocked when she saw she was holding the ball. Dash grew a competitive smile. Finally, she, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle were playing soccer with Spike, who was more than thrilled to be able to play his first game of soccer ever. What made it even more special was the fact he got to share it with his idol. They stopped when Twilight spun around, hearing an eerie song coming from the woods. Dash grinned even more than ever: this was going to be a totally awesome prank. Fluttershy sang as she watered the flowers. In the deep, lush valley that her family lived in, Fluttershy's voice would echo off of the rolling hills. Still, they were so far out of the way that nobody would ever hear. "Flutters," a whiny, recognizable voice pouted, and her singing never ceased. She did, however, tense up. "What's the matter, Zephyr? Did someone hurt your feelings again?" "Yes!" "Mom and Dad?" "Well, yeah, but—" "Did they ask you to fill out your college application again?" "How did you know? Were you spying?" Fluttershy turned to face him as calmly as she could and smiled. "This is the third time it's happened, Zephyr." "Okay, and?" "The third time today." His face dropped, and he scratched his hair, making sure not to mess up his long, blonde hair. "Right, but that doesn't mean they have to be rude about it." "Do you want to live with Mom and Dad forever?" "Sure! I don't have to pay rent or anything!" Fluttershy's gaze hardened. This is what Rainbow Dash called "The Stare"—where she would look so hard into someone or some animal's soul that they would freeze like ice. She was like the Grim Reaper in the sense that she could get the truth out of anybody. "What did you say?" "Nevermind," he mumbled, watching her eyes cautiously. She took a step towards him, and he took one back, but she stared harder into him. "You don't expect to freeload off of them forever, do you?" "No, I'm sorry!" "You don't think they'll be around forever—" She watched him as he tripped over a tree root and fell back, but she continued to intimidate him, leaning down to him. "Do you?" "No," he whimpered. "You're raising your voice, stop it! Stop doing The Stare!" "Then why don't you go and get a job or fill out your application," she shouted as loud as she could at him, which wasn't exactly booming. It was more of a wispy, slightly loud talking. She broke eye contact and shrieked when she heard two screams and the sound of Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash howling with laughter. "Yeah, some Everfree monster she is, huh? Intimidating as a butterfly!" The two laughed harder as the unfamiliar faces held each other, trembling with fear. Fluttershy whimpered and covered her blushing, pallor face with bony hands, visibly shaking from revealing her voice to the worst sort of people ever—strangers.