> Raindrops' Wrap Up > by Arkensaw Pinkerton > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 1 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You finish brushing your hair and pull on your blue weather vest with a smile. The sun hasn't quite risen yet, but that's no reason to lie about- today's Winter Wrap Up, your favourite day of the year. The work is hard, sure, but the rewards are correspondingly large. There isn't a feeling as satisfying as clearing the last roof in the town or finally tidying the grey skies completely away, unless it's the quieter thrill of leading the birds back home. Whatever job you're going to get this year, you figure you'd better get a little bit of work done around your own home before the big meeting in the town square. Twilight Sparkle, the unicorn who lives over at the library, tends to make Winter Wrap Up a breeze these days; but some habits die hard and you like knowing winter's squared away in your own little corner of Ponyville. You grab a shovel in your mouth and set out to start clearing the driveway, garden and roof. You like this sort of physical labour- the hard graft that needs to be put in to achieve anything of substance. With a name like "Raindrops" you were probably always going to end up on the weather patrol, but you still find it satisfying work, even if your boss is a bit weird. You lose yourself in the work, getting warm with the exercise, and after almost an hour you're happy to take a step back into the road and admire your hoofwork. Just one thing left- you should sweep off your front steps and the little path down to the road. You should probably do it pretty quickly as well; that rising glow on the horizon means the sun's almost up, and ponies will already be gathering in the town square. You start clearing the steps easily enough, but on the left-hand side of the bottom step there's a lump under the snow. It only takes a couple of seconds of digging to uncover a book. Book doesn't really do it justice- this thing is pretty big! It'll barely fit in one of your saddlebags. It's got a weird, pale glow around it that disappears when you touch it with your hooves, and you figure that's what was keeping the wet snow out of it. It's ornate, with a reinforced metal spine, and the elaborate calligraphy on the cover says "Amniomorphics". You think. It really is elaborate writing and you're pretty sure that's not a word. Whatever it is, it's a heavy book that belongs to somepony else, and you need to get to the town square. To leave the book on your kitchen table and head to the town square, Click here for Chapter 2. To put the book in a saddlebag and take it to the town square, Click here for Chapter 3. To take the book to the library instead and risk being a little late for the meeting, Click here for Chapter 4. Requests closed for this chapter! By request, and creation, of the rather marvellous shutaro: a map of the story so far! > Chapter 2 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ah, forget this! Yeah, you need to deal with the book, but it's more important to get winter cleared away first. Later this evening, you'll take it over to the library, and if it's not theirs then you can leave it with the Mayor in the 'Lost and Found' box. Not that the box ever really helped anypony, you think to yourself. You lose daisy sandwiches all the time and they never show up there. You lug the book inside your house and leave it on your kitchen table before flying off towards the town centre. You're no Wonderbolt, but you can put on a pretty good turn of speed when you need to, and the crisp morning air encourages you to make it as fast a trip as you can. Before you know it, you've already arrived at the town square. It's pretty sparse- there are probably another five minutes until the meeting's supposed to start, and most ponies aren't that punctual in winter. You look around the crowd before you land- there are another couple of pegasi already there, not counting the boss, but you think you're one of the first three! Yes! That means you can pick your weather duty this year! All you've got to do is go and sign in with Rainbow Dash and then you can decide on whatever duty you like. You walk over to her, and see that she's standing with Twilight Sparkle- they're friends, you remember, and more to the point she's the all-team co-ordinator. It looks like they're discussing the schedule for today- perhaps after you've signed up you'll get a chance to tell her about that stupid book you found! You're about to talk to the boss when you notice two things. The first is a bright pink pony in the bushes, jumping up and down and apparently trying to get your attention. You gesture to yourself with a hoof, raising an eyebrow in confusion. She nods violently in response, waving you over and shouting "Pssssst! Raindrops!" in an exaggerated whisper. The second is Cloud Kicker, followed by another three pegasi, all of whom are about to land in the town square and steal your coveted top three spot. On top of that, Twilight's already moving towards the stage to start making her opening speech with Mayor Mare- you've only really got time to do one thing. You've heard the annual opening speech so many times you could probably recite it by heart. To go and see what the pink pony is so excited about, Click here for Chapter 5. You want to choose your weather duty, remember? To go and sign in, Click here for Chapter 6. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 1. > Chapter 3 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Okay, it's gonna be a hassle but you should probably take care of this book. You know Twilight Sparkle will be running the teams at the town square, so you can kill two birds with one stone and just take the book to the meeting. Once you've got it in your saddlebags, it becomes pretty clear that you're not going to be able to fly with this thing weighing you down, and you've definitely not got the time to get your air wagon out of storage. It looks like you'll be walking. That's not so bad on a day like this, though- it gives you a chance to actually enjoy the winter scenery, and even though you won't be able to sign in early and pick your favourite job you can enjoy being part of the big crowd of ponies arriving at the town square. On the way, you get the opportunity to chat a little with Roseluck- you two have been neighbours for a few years now, but you don't really know each other all that well. It's kind of nice to find out Winter Wrap Up's her favourite day of the year too. When you arrive, it's getting pretty busy, but you're still in time. You look around for Twilight, and she's standing with your boss, Rainbow Dash. It looks like they're discussing the schedule for today- perhaps after you've handed off this book you can sign up early enough to avoid the really unpleasant jobs. You're about to talk to Twilight when you notice something out of the corner of your eye. It's a bright pink pony deep in the bushes, jumping up and down and apparently trying to get your attention. You gesture to yourself with a hoof, raising an eyebrow in confusion. She nods violently in response, waving you over and shouting "Pssssst! Raindrops!" in an exaggerated whisper. It looks like Twilight's wrapped things up with Rainbow Dash, and she's already started moving towards the stage to begin her speech with the Mayor. Rainbow's muttering to herself about slowpokes as she starts to assign the jobs and you really don't want to be stuck babysitting the Junior Weather Patrol again. On top of that, the pink pony over there is getting really insistent, and you've only got time to do one thing before Twilight starts her speech. To go and chat with the weirdo in the bushes, Click here for Chapter 7. To listen to the speech and present the book to Twilight afterwards, Click here for Chapter 8. To push up to the front and insist that you talk to Twilight, Click here for Chapter 9. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 1. > Chapter 4 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is a creepy magic book. No doubt about it. Winter's going to have to wrap itself up without you for a little bit- you've got to take this thing to the library so that somepony who knows what she's talking about can have a look at it. You sigh as you wrestle the book into your saddlebags and set off for the library. Without a doubt, you're going to be so late to the meeting this year you'll get one of the jobs absolutely nopony else wanted, like foalsitting the Junior Weather Patrol. Again. At least this is giving you a chance to enjoy the last winter sunrise this year and it's absolutely beautiful. The sun's lazily shading the sky pink as you move through increasingly deserted streets, filling them with a wonderfully soft, soothing light. Everypony else seems to be heading for the meeting in the town square. You can only see one other pony by the time you get to the library and pound on the door; there's a mint green unicorn sitting in an uncomfortable position on the bench in the park who's watching the sun come up. She gives you a little wave as you wait for somepony to answer the door, and you wave back a little hesitantly. As you wait, you get a sinking feeling. There's going to be nopony home! Twilight Sparkle is the all-team co-ordinator, there's no way she's going to still be around! You're about to start running to the town square when the door creaks open, to your surprise. "Yeah, what do you want?" The little dragon who opened the door looks up at you with sleepy, accusing eyes. It's pretty clear that he's only just gotten up, and he adjusts his dressing gown, pulling the collar up against the cold. You're about to show him the book when you notice something out of the corner of your eye. It's a bright pink pony deep in the bushes, jumping up and down and apparently trying to get your attention. You gesture to yourself with a hoof, raising an eyebrow in confusion. She nods violently in response, waving you over and shouting "Pssssst! Raindrops!" in an exaggerated whisper. You look down at the dragon, and he's noticed her too- he rolls his eyes at you. "That's just Pinkie being Pinkie. Don't feel like you have to do anything about it. Look, do you mind if you ask whatever you're going to ask inside? There's a mug of cocoa whispering my name, and I'll make one for you too." Cocoa does sound good- you find your mouth watering in anticipation- but you're already super late for the meeting in the town square and this 'Pinkie' character seems to really want a word with you. There's no reason Pinkie should sit out in the cold. To ask Spike if it's okay to invite her in, Click here for chapter 10. Whatever the pink pony is up to is bound to be awesome. To go and talk to her, Click here for chapter 11. Forget her! To ignore Pinkie and head inside the library with Spike, Click here for chapter 12. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 1. > Chapter 5 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight's speech is sure to be, uh, informative. And it would be great to pick your job this year. But that pink pony is really starting to intrigue you and it's going to bug you all day if you don't find out what's going on. You trot off to the bushes, encouraged by a massive grin from her, and try to ignore the clack of Cloud Kicker's hooves landing right in front of the boss. Show off. She almost always gets in first for this kind of thing; you wonder what kept her so long today? As soon as you get close enough to the bushes, a pink hoof stretches out, grabs you around the neck and drags you in. "Hi Raindrops!" she says in an exaggerated whisper. "Are you super excited about your Wrap Up? I am! I even made cupcakes for you! But I didn't know-" "Whoa there- hey, it's Pinkie, right? You helped Thunderlane with my birthday party last year." You thought you'd recognised her! Pinkie's a decent sort, you guess, even if she could do with cutting back on the caffeine a little. Maybe a lot. She certainly seems pleased that you remember her. "I sure did! That was such a great party, wasn't it? See, Thunderlane knew you liked spicy food more than sweet food so he didn't think you'd want a cake at all, but who doesn't want a cake at their very own birthday party? So then I thought what if a cake could be sweet and spicy all at the same time! So I did some experiments and-" "Pinkie, what in the hay am I doing in the bushes? If you just wanted to reminisce you could have come round for a cup of tea sometime. I've probably already lost out on all the good jobs!" "Oh, don't worry about that, silly. Rainbow's one of my best friends and I head up the ice skating team! I'll let her know about it and we can hang out all day long! This is much more important than that." Suddenly, her demeanour changs as she brings out a tray of three cupcakes, pushing them in front of her. She looks genuinely serious. That's a little unsettling- you don't think you've ever actually seen her serious before. If she can really pull strings with the boss and get you on the ice skating team though, that'd be neat. You like to skate but you've never been on duty for it before- pegasi are usually given flight-only jobs. "These are special made-to-match-your-day cupcakes, Raindrops. See, I didn't know what kind of very special day you wanted, so you can have one of these, but only one, and then your day should match up. If I cooked them right. This is going to be the most special Winter Wrap Up for you ever!" Now she's back to her usual bouncy self, grinning furiously and waving at the cupcakes in front of her. They're all different. The first one has a heart design etched into the top, and icing the same colour and consistency as cotton candy. The second one has no design at all, and icing as grey as a thunderhead. The third one has multicoloured icing, and a little balloon floating from a tiny string on the top of it. "Go on! Pick the cupcake that'll match your day!" Pinkie encourages you. This is so weird. To eat the cupcake with a heart on it, Click here for chapter 13. To eat the cupcake with a balloon floating from it, Click here for chapter 16. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 2. > Chapter 6 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The crazy pony in the bushes can wait. You got here early for a reason- you want the best jobs this year. That means being top three, and that means signing in with the boss before doing anything else. You walk up in front of her and throw a sharp little salute. "Good morning, boss! Raindrops, reporting for duty!" you say in a cheery tone. "Someone's sure a fan of early starts," Rainbow replies dryly. "Hey, you're third to check in! That means you can pick your job this year. Ditzy and Snowflake have already checked in and they've both decided to go for bird duty, but everything else is wide open." Rainbow waves a hoof at the other two pegasi here, and they wave back. You kinda know Ditzy Doo- everyone in Ponyville does, since she delivers the mail- but you don't know Snowflake all that well. The guy's about as musclebound as they come. "That reminds me, I wanted to ask you something," Rainbow says conspiratorially as Cloud Kicker lands behind you. "I've got a shift manager opening coming up. Silverspeed's moving to Fillydelphia in a month or so and I was looking over a couple of candidates- you've never taken a sick day, have you?" You shake your head, starting to smile slightly. Shift manager would be a huge boost to your career! Everypony in the weather squad knows that it's only a matter of time before Rainbow Dash gets selected for the Wonderbolts, and when she leaves somepony's going to have to take over as Weather Squad Manager. That somepony could be you. "So yeah, I know you're dependable. What I don't know is if you're any good at actually leading a squad of ponies. If you want it, I'll put you in charge of one of the other jobs we've got to do. You'd be organising ponies according to Twilight's plan. Only if you want it, though. I'm not gonna promote somepony who's happy just to sit where they are." You take in what she's said for a couple of seconds, and have a think about your strengths. You're probably best at clearing the roofs of the town, working in conjunction with the earth ponies to move the snow out to the everfree. But it's not the high-profile job- the high-profile job is the cloud clearing, and everypony knows it. That's the one every weatherpony's supposed to want. Twilight Sparkle's about to make her speech, Cloud Kicker's making an irritated sort of move-it-along cough behind you, and the boss doesn't like to be kept waiting. "What's it gonna be, Raindrops?" You need to do your best to impress the boss. To pick the roof-clearing job, Click here for chapter 14. You need to take the toughest job there is. To pick the hardest work, Click here for chapter 30. WAIT! NO! NOT THE JUNIOR WEATHER PATROL! NOOOOOoooooo Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 2. > Chapter 7 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You need to deal with this book, sure. But Twilight's not going to be distracted from her speech and it's going to bug you all day if you don't find out what's going on with the weird pink pony. You trot off to the bushes, encouraged by a massive grin from her, and try to ignore Rainbow's pointed mutterings about pegasi forgetting to sign in as you pass her. As soon as you get close enough to the bushes, a pink hoof stretches out, grabs you around the neck and drags you in. "Hi Raindrops!" she says in an exaggerated whisper. "Are you super excited about your Wrap Up? And your giant weird book? I am! I even made cupcakes for you! But I didn't know-" "Whoa there- hey, it's Pinkie, right? You helped Thunderlane with my birthday party last year." You thought you'd recognised her! Pinkie's a decent sort, you guess, even if she could do with cutting back on the caffeine a little. Maybe a lot. She certainly seems pleased that you remember her. "I sure did! That was such a great party, wasn't it? See, Thunderlane knew you liked spicy food more than sweet food so he didn't think you'd want a cake at all, but who doesn't want a cake at their very own birthday party? So then I thought what if a cake could be sweet and spicy all at the same time! So I did some experiments and-" "Pinkie, what in the hay am I doing in the bushes? If you just wanted to reminisce you could have come round for a cup of tea sometime. I've already lost out on all the good jobs!" "Oh, don't worry about that, silly. Rainbow's one of my best friends and I head up the ice skating team! I'll let her know about it and we can hang out all day long! This is much more important than that." Suddenly, her demeanour changs as she brings out a tray of three cupcakes, pushing them in front of her. She looks genuinely serious. That's a little unsettling- you don't think you've ever actually seen her serious before. If she can really pull strings with the boss and get you on the ice skating team though, that'd be neat. You like to skate but you've never been on duty for it before- pegasi are usually given flight-only jobs. "These are special made-to-match-your-day cupcakes, Raindrops. See, I didn't know what kind of very special day you wanted, so you can have one of these, but only one, and then your day should match up. If I cooked them right. This is going to be the most special Winter Wrap Up for you and your book ever!" Now she's back to her usual bouncy self, grinning furiously and waving at the cupcakes in front of her. They're all different. The first one has a heart design etched into the top, and icing the same colour and consistency as cotton candy. The second one has no design at all, and icing as grey as a thunderhead. The third one has multicoloured icing, and a little balloon floating from a tiny string on the top of it. "Go on! Pick the cupcake that'll match your day!" Pinkie encourages you. This is so weird. To go for the grey cupcake, Click here for chapter 15. To eat the balloon cupcake, Click here for chapter 34. To eat the- hang on a minute. How could she have known you'd have a big weird book today? Something fishy's going on here. To interrogate Pinkie about the book, Click here for chapter 17. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 3. > Chapter 8 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You don't want to try and interrupt Twilight before she makes her speech. Your cousin Thunderlane thought it would be the perfect opportunity to ask her for a date last year and she teleported him a quarter of a mile straight up before he'd even finished his sentence. Looks like you'll have to listen to the speech and then seize the first opportunity you can get to actually have a word with her. The mayor's about to speak, and you take advantage of the last couple of seconds to quickly chat to the boss. "Rainbow Dash! I'm here. Ready to work. In before the deadline," you say, nudging her with a wing to get her attention. "Only just, Raindrops. Look, Winter Wrap Up is a big deal for the weather squad and I expect- never mind. You're not late, that definitely counts for something. We'll be on the west side of the fountain after the speech to sort everypony into groups." You're about to explain that you got slowed down by this enormous freaking book when Mayor Mare begins to address the crowd, welcoming you all here and introducing Twilight Sparkle. "Good morning everypony! This year, we're going to do things pretty much the same way as we did last year, except I think we can actually get everypony back home at a reasonable hour if we make just a few changes." The unicorn levitates over a flipchart and starts discussing the changes to the animal team, and after a couple of minutes you zone out a bit. It's such a beautiful morning; you know winter needs to be packed away so that the farming can start up again, but it's still a shame. You'll miss the cold, crisp air; the crunching of fresh snow under your hooves; the comforting, supporting pressure of your sisters on either side when you've been filed away correctly. Wait, that wasn't right. You shake your head to clear the cobwebs away and try to focus. She's talking about some kind of soil treatment thingy now, which the leader of the plants team seems pretty excited about, but it looks like she's about to finish it up. "That's all the major changes we'll be making this year, everypony! I'll be at the side of the stage if anypony has any questions. Have a great Winter Wrap Up!" Twilight gets a polite round of stamping applause from the crowd, and most of the ponies present start to split off into their own groups. A few hang around to speak to Twilight in person, and you join them. There doesn't seem to be much of an order to the group, though- they're just shouting out questions at her while she checks her list again. You raise your voice and shout over them. "Hey, Twilight, I-" "Twilight!" You're interrupted by a panicked young earth pony. "I can't find the grass seeds!" "They're in the Apple family's barn, Caramel, and you're not in charge of them." "I found this book-" "Twilight, Fluttershy says she needs a word with you about hedgehog timings," one of the animal team shouts, cutting you off. This is ridiculous. "Twilight, I'm a book!" you shout, and everypony seems to stop for a second. Twilight raises an eyebrow at you. "I mean, I found this really big old book on my steps, and-" "That's great. Could you drop it off at the library with Spike? I'm kinda busy here." Other ponies keep pressing for her attention- you'd like her to actually take a look at the book, but you'll really have to push to catch her notice. On top of that, the weather team's gathering over by the fountain and Rainbow seemed pretty ticked at you earlier. To yell that it's a magic book, Click here for chapter 18. To sigh, walk over to Rainbow Dash and find somewhere to leave your saddlebags, Click here for chapter 19. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 3. > Chapter 9 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Enough of this- you've got a book, the librarian's right there, and time's a-wasting. You shove your way through the crowd, ignoring the irritated mutters, and manage to catch Twilight before she reaches the stage. "Twilight, I found this really big old book-" you start, but she doesn't slow down. "Good for you. I've got to deliver this speech now, so..." "No, it's all weird! It's not my book, and when I found it-" "Listen - what's your name?" she asks in irritation. "Raindrops," you say. "The book had this strange-" "Raindrops, I'll talk to you about this tomorrow, alright? Drop by the library and we'll chat." She teleports past you and starts walking up the stairs to the stage. "It's called Amniomorphics!" you shout in frustration, and Twilight seems to freeze. "It had this weird white glow around it when I found it," you add, and Twilight turns to face you, disbelief written across her face. "You found a copy of Amniomorphics?" she asks in a quiet voice, and before you know it she's practically run back to you. "Is that it? Can I look at it?" You nod as she levitates the book out of your saddlebags. "Oh wow! It's a first edition!" she squeals. "I've always wanted to study this but the one in the Canterlot archives was in one of the really, really restricted sections! Raindrops, can I borrow this for a while?" "Uh, sure," you say. "It's not really mine, though. I just found it on my steps." "Well, you're still the one who found it. Raindrops, this is great! I wish I could-" Twilight is cut off by a deliberate cough from the stage, and you both look up to see Mayor Mare waving her on. Twilight's ears fall, and she sighs as she returns the book to your saddlebags. "You don't fancy going on for me, do you?" she asks, smiling. "Look, could I ask you to get that book to the library for me? Just leave it with Spike, and when you get back here I'll find a job for you." To take the book to Spike, Click here for chapter 20. To ask to wait until you've sorted your job out, so you can drop the book off on the way, Click here for chapter 21. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 3. > Chapter 10 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cocoa sounds champion, but you don't want to leave anypony out in this weather unless they really want to be out in it. "Can she come in for cocoa too?" you ask the little dragon, pointing a hoof in the same direction as Pinkie. "Sure, whatever. Just get in here and close the door! My tail's getting frostbite." The dragon turns and walks back into the library. You beckon the pink pony over and she points at herself in confusion, mimicking your actions from a moment ago. You roll your eyes and shout. "Yeah, you! Come on, this little guy's losing all his heat." Her answering smile is faintly terrifying in its intensity. She bounces up to you and takes a sharp left inside the library, and you pull the door closed behind you both. Now you've got a better look at her, you realise who she is- she's the assistant baker at Sugarcube corner! Last year your cousin Thunderlane threw a totally sweet party for you and she helped him out. "Hey, I remember you!" you smile. "You're Pinkie Pie, right? You helped throw my birthday party last year." "I totally did!" she practically screams at you. "That was a great party. You didn't have to invite me to have adventures with you, though! I think that's really nice of you, making sure I'm included in your special Winter Wrap Up. I mean you've already got the weird book and I had special narrative causality cupcakes lined up but this is even better! I get to be part of what you're doing and I think that's really swell." She bounces up and down for a couple of seconds. She's actually pretty sweet- she seems totally stoked about helping you out with this book, at least, and given how apathetic the dragon seemed you could do with all the help you can get. The little fella in question walks back into the main room with three mugs of cocoa on a tray, and sets it down on the reading table. Pinkie immediately grabs the one with the most marshmallows, and you reach for one of the others as he starts to speak. "Here we go- hot drinks for all. Just make sure you put them back on a tray or use a coaster, because if I have to sand out one more coffee ring I think- wait, that's mine! You've already taken a pull of the cocoa before his cries register, and you pull back from the mug in surprise. This isn't the normal sort of milky, sugary cocoa you're used to- it's almost bitter, with a spicy kick to it. It's really good! You lick your lips in appreciation as the dragon raises an eyebrow. "You like it? Most ponies can't handle chilli that well." He picks up the last mug and slurps at it appreciatively. "You go ahead and enjoy it. I like chocolate however it comes. Now, what was this about a book?" You pull the book out of your saddlebags with no small effort and deposit it on the table. The dragon and Pinkie both greet it with a chorus of impressed noises. "It had a weird glow around it when I found it," you explain. "I thought it looked magic, so I figured I'd bring it here." "It's definitely magic. Good thinking, uh..." "Raindrops." "Nice to meet you, Raindrops. I'm Spike. You were right in bringing it here, but I don't think we should open it. You two wait here with it, and I'll go fetch Twilight. I don't like the look of this thing." "I think we should open it up and take a look inside!" says Pinkie, as Spike smacks her hoof away from the front cover. "I bet it's got secret spells and stuff in it!" "Exactly," Spike says. "That means Twilight should have a look. Raindrops, you'll keep an eye on her, right?" To look at the book the second you think you can get away with it, Click here for chapter 22. To wait for Twilight, because it is The Right Thing To Do, Click here for chapter 23. To leave for the weather meeting- you're late enough already- Click here for chapter 24. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 4. > Chapter 11 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The dragon seems like he could maybe help you out, sure. But somepony's going to a lot of effort trying to get your attention, even to the point of skipping the big town meeting today, and you'll kick yourself later if you don't find out why. "Hold that thought," you say to the dragon as you walk over to the bushes, and you can yeah him groan as he shuts the door behind you. As soon as you get close enough to the bushes, a pink hoof stretches out, grabs you around the neck and drags you in. "Hi Raindrops!" she says in an exaggerated whisper. "Are you super excited about your Wrap Up? And your really weird book, and the fact that I'm getting minor deja vu? I am! I even made cupcakes for you! But I didn't know-" "Whoa there- hey, it's Pinkie, right? You helped Thunderlane with my birthday party last year." You thought you'd recognised her! Pinkie's a decent sort, you guess, even if she could do with cutting back on the caffeine a little. Maybe a lot. She certainly seems pleased that you remember her. "I sure did! That was such a great party, wasn't it? See, Thunderlane knew you liked spicy food more than sweet food so he didn't think you'd want a cake at all, but who doesn't want a cake at their very own birthday party? So then I thought what if a cake could be sweet and spicy all at the same time! So I did some experiments and-" "Pinkie, what in the hay am I doing in the bushes? If you just wanted to reminisce you could have come round for a cup of tea sometime. I really need to take care of this book!" "Oh, don't worry about that, silly. Spike'll take care of the book, you can leave it with me to give to him. I've known him forever, he won't mind doing me a favour! This is much more important than that." Suddenly, her demeanour changs as she brings out a tray of three cupcakes, pushing them in front of her. She looks genuinely serious. That's a little unsettling- you don't think you've ever actually seen her serious before. If she can get this stupid book thing sorted out, though, you're willing to listen. As soon as this is off your back you'll feel a lot lighter, metaphorically and physically. "These are special made-to-match-your-day cupcakes, Raindrops. See, I didn't know what kind of very special day you wanted, so you can have one of these, but only one, and then your day should match up. If I cooked them right. This is going to be the most special Winter Wrap Up for you ever!" Now she's back to her usual bouncy self, grinning furiously and waving at the cupcakes in front of her. They're all different. The first one has a heart design etched into the top, and icing the same colour and consistency as cotton candy. The second one has no design at all, and icing as grey as a thunderhead. The third one has multicoloured icing, and a little balloon floating from a tiny string on the top of it. "Go on! Pick the cupcake that'll match your day!" Pinkie encourages you. This is so weird. To take the grey cupcake, Click here for chapter 25. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 4. > Chapter 12 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Pinkie", whoever she is, can stay in the bushes. Cocoa and explanations await you inside, and you waste no time following the little dragon into the library. As soon as you get in, he trundles off towards the kitchen and you get the chance to have a quick look around. The library is pretty big, and more homely than you'd have thought. There's a fireplace with some big cushions beside it, a little desk for writing, and the genteel smell of quietly mouldering scrolls. You're no great reader, but this would still be a nice place to catch a quiet moment in future. You file that idea away in the back of your mind and start pulling the book out of your saddlebags and onto the table when you hear a shout from the library's kitchen. "How do you take your cocoa?" You let the book thud onto the table before shouting back. "Dark, please! Not too much sugar." "Really?" The dragon runs back into the main room for a second. "Because if you like it dark I like to add a little chilli. What do you think?" "That sounds great!" you say with enthusiasm, and he nods and heads back into the kitchen. "Thanks so much for letting me in, uh..." "Spike!" he shouts back. "What's your name?" "Raindrops." Spike walks back into the main room with two cups of cocoa on a tray, and you take the one closest to you. Spike eyes the book over as you take a long slurp. " 'Amniomorphics'. That officially sounds creepy. This is Twilight's sort of thing for sure, Raindrops. Where did you find this?" "It was on my steps, under the snow. It had a sort of white glow around it that was keeping the damp out." "That's pretty weird. Do you think someone left it for you?" You stop to think for a moment. That actually makes sense- that someone intended for you to find this thing. Why else would they leave it on your doorstep? "I dunno," you say. "Maybe." "Well, in any case, we need to get a unicorn who knows what she's taking about to look this thing over. Do you want to go fetch her or shall I?" To go yourself, Click here for chapter 26. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 4. > Chapter 13 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Okay. Cupcakes to match your day. You don't trust the balloon, and the grey one doesn't look particularly appetising, so you guess you're stuck with the heart one. You tentatively pick it up and Pinkie makes a satisfied noise. "Ooooh, romance! That's a really great choice! Go ahead and take a bite. I made it so you should like it!" You cautiously bite into the cupcake, and raise your eyebrows in pleasant surprise. It's really good- there's a delicate strawberry taste, and a salty, savoury undertone that's really satisfying. You take another bite and Pinkie explains things to you while you polish it off. "That's one of my famous Saltwater Strawberry Sweetcakes! They're the perfect start to a day filled with romance and smooches and your very own special somepony. Now that you've eaten one I just know you're going to find some lucky stallion or mare who just thinks you're the tops!" You smile back at her as you swallow, and she holds up a hoof to silence you as she drops her voice a little lower. "You can try for anypony you've got a thing for! Except me or Big Mac because we're secretly dating and I don't think he'd like it if we got all smoochy because I sure as hay wouldn't like it if you tried to get all smoochy with him. Not that you're not totally smoochable!" She giggles to herself while you process the sentence, and she pulls the bushes open and leads you back towards the crowd. Twilight's opening speech seems to have finished, and the three teams are starting to pull together into loose groups. Pinkie bounds over to Rainbow's weather team and waves you over- she's explaining something to Rainbow, but the boss does not look pleased. You wince a little as you get closer and Rainbow snorts before she speaks to you. "Raindrops, you're late. Hanging out with Pinkie is no good excuse for missing work, okay? She wants you on the ice-breaking team, but Cloud Kicker's requested you on the cloud clearing squadron." "Wait, Cloud Kicker requested me?" You and Cloud Kicker do not get on. She's a decent flyer and a hard worker, but she's kinda stuck up. She and the boss both act like weather work is beneath them, but Rainbow's at least got dreams. As far as you can tell all Cloud Kicker's got planned for the future is looking down on everypony else, and you've let her know it a couple of times after a bad shift. She doesn't like you, you're sure of it. "Yeah, she did. Pinkie wants you on ice-breaking, Cloud Kicker wants you on cloud clearing and if I got my way then you'd be on Junior Weather Patrol. So I thought I'd leave it up to you, Raindrops. Which job do you think you should do this year?" To join the ice-breaking team with Pinkie, Click here for chapter 27. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 5. > Chapter 14 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You know what you're best at, and you want to excel this year. "I'll head up the roof-clearing team," you say confidently. "Really? Out of every job, that's the one you're going to pick?" "It's the one I can do best," you explain. "I live here, I know the earth ponies who'll be hauling the snow away. I know most of the pegasi from our job, and I'd like to prove I can handle the biggest team anypony's going to be leading." "Alright!" Rainbow Dash smiles. "That sounds good to me. I'll sort other ponies into the teams as they sign in and give you a list after the big speech. Good luck, Raindrops!" "Thanks!" You smile in genuine pleasure, and you're about to try and find somepony to tell your good news to when you overhear Cloud Kicker behind you talking to Rainbow Dash. "Hey there boss! I was hoping I could head up the cloud clearing team today-" "You got here fourth, Kicker. That means you go where you're put, you know the rules." "Absolutely, boss, and ordinarily I'd agree with you, but I heard a rumour that Silverspeed was moving away soon. That means there's a shift manager position coming up, right? You know there's no pony more qualified. Let me prove it to you." "Yeah, right," you say, and immediately regret it. You and Cloud Kicker don't get on, that's no secret, but you should have just let the boss handle this. "You got something to say, Dropsy?" Cloud Kicker rises to the bait, and you can already tell from the look on Rainbow's face she's going to let this play out. You take a deep breath. "I think there are a lot of qualified candidates. I'm one of them and I've had this job just as long as you. Rainbow's going to give us all a chance before she makes her mind up, so don't get your mane in a twist because I beat you to the sign-in." "That was because- ugh, it doesn't matter! You're such a suck-up!" "I'm the suck-up?" you flare your nostrils. "You don't miss an opportunity to kiss rainbow flank, you stuck-up little-" "Enough!" Rainbow shouts, and for a moment the square is quiet. "You two are pretty much my hardest workers but if you don't learn how to pull together neither of you are going to get a sniff of a promotion. Cloud Kicker, Raindrops beat you here fair and square. That means she gets her pick of the jobs and you go where I tell you." "Damn straight," you nod. "Not so fast, Raindrops. I'm assigning Kicker to rooftop clearing duty today. She'll be working with you." "What!?" You shout in unison with Cloud Kicker. "No arguments!" Rainbow stamps her hoof. "Go wait on the other side of the fountain. I'll send the rest of your team over when they've signed in." Reluctantly, the two of you file over to the fountain without looking at each other. When you get there, Cloud Kicker leans against the edge, muttering to herself and pouting. A lot of ponies saw that, you realise- Ditzy gives you a halfhearted little wing flutter in support, and you can see Time Turner give you a smile. You should probably deal with this- Rainbow's going to need to see that you know how to work with a difficult pony. But what's the best thing to do? To really try and patch things up with Cloud Kicker, Click here for chapter 28. To just try and work around her bad attitude, Click here for chapter 29. To count to ten and agree to disagree for the sake of your jobs, Click here for chapter 31. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 6. > Chapter 15 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The other two look way too sweet for your liking- the grey one in the middle seems much more your style. You pick it up and bite into it, and hear Pinkie let out a faintly disappointed sigh. It's really good! It's extremely bitter, dark chocolate, with a chilli and nutmeg taste in the icing. It's almost savoury, and you smile at Pinkie as you finish it off. She doesn't seem that pleased, though. "Aw, I was hoping you wouldn't pick that one. That means you're not going to have the sort of day where you want me around, believe me. We'll wait here for a minute and then I'll tell Rainbow I need you ice-breaking up on Yew Tree Tarn. It's not very big so you'll be on your own." You wipe the crumbs away from your mouth as you frown. You don't know Pinkie all that well, but it's still weird to see her without a smile on her face. "Pinkie," you ask quietly, "what sort of day was supposed to happen when I ate this cupcake?" "The book said that it gave you the sort of day where you find out who everypony is. Especially yourself. But it's not supposed to be very pleasant." "Why wouldn't I want you around for a day like that?" you ask, genuinely confused, and her expression's so forlorn you don't have the heart to push it any further. You sit in faintly uncomfortable silence for a few minutes before Pinkie abruptly gets up and leaves the bushes. You follow her out to see a furious Rainbow Dash sending off the last of the weather teams- she does not look happy to see you. "Raindrops! Look who decided to join the party! I've got the Junior Weather Patrol all ready for you-" "No can do, Dashie!" Pinkie says, and you almost double-take. She's practically bouncing again. There's not a hint of the worryingly quiet mare you were with a moment ago. "I need Raindrops to fill out my ice-breaking team! We're a pony short on account of Lyra not showing up today." You're about to ask her when she had time to find that out but a glance at the boss tells you that probably wouldn't be the best idea. "Ugh. Fine. Just get her out of my sight, okay?" Rainbow mutters at Pinkie before turning away. You've lost some points with the boss for sure here. Pinkie herself walks you away from the main square and pulls out a map, showing you Yew Tree Tarn. She points out a couple of landmarks to you and sets you on your way with a sad little smile. That smile sticks to you for so long you're there before you realise why the journey was so tiring. It's this stupid book! You still haven't dealt with it! You undo your saddlebags, letting them thud to the ground, and take a look around Yew Tree Tarn. It's not that big, and you reckon it should only take you an hour or two to score the ice properly. You'll have a bit of free time then, since you know this lake's so far out it won't need melting until pretty late on. The lake's a ring, with a tiny island in the middle with the tarn's signature yew tree growing on it. There's something red stuck in the branches, you realise. You sit down in the snow with a sigh. It has not been a good morning. What now? To investigate the mysterious red object, Click here for chapter 32. To chuck the book in the lake, Click here for chapter 33. Your day's already been ruined- why should anypony else have a good time? To sabotage Winter Wrap Up, Click here for chapter 35. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 7. > Chapter 16 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The cupcake with the little balloon is just too amusing not to go for. It's extremely light, and when you pick it up Pinkie lets out a delighted squeal. You cautiously bite into it, and- BANG! The cupcake bursts with an enormous pop, spreading confetti and streamers across your face and the ground in front of you. It's only slightly quieter than Pinkie's raucous laughter, which immediately follows. "You picked the balloon cake! Oh, that's the super funnest fun cake I know how to make! You're day's sure to be a blast!" She giggles again. "Do you get it? Because it was a balloon! And it burst all over your face!" "Yeah, I get it. Hilarious." You curse inwardly. You skipped out on picking your job for the day to have some pink maniac burst a balloon in your face, and now Cloud Kicker is going to head up the weather team and turn into your boss and make you stay inside when it's raining and- "You should probably go and pick your job, Raindrops. It's sure to give you the funniest day!" "I'll wait until the speech is over," you say, grinding your teeth. "I don't want to interrupt. It'd just make her madder and then I'd get stuck on Junior Weather Patrol duty again." "You wouldn't interrupt at all!" Pinkie says, bouncing up and down. "The speech ended four minutes ago. Those balloon-cakes really pack a punch! You were all woozy for about ten minutes and then you snapped back to your senses." You bite back the insult- you don't have time for an angry tirade right now- and charge out of the bushes towards the main square. Every other pony in the weather team's gone off to their jobs except the boss, who's waiting for you with a big smile on her face that in no way reaches her eyes. "Good afternoon, Raindrops!" "Boss, I'm so sorry. I was here early, but Pinkie-" "Pinkie being Pinkie is no excuse, Raindrops. You're last. You know what that means." "Oh, no, boss, please-" "Oh wow! It'th Mith Raindropth again! Hi Mith Raindropth!" Rainbow smirks at you and takes flight as the Junior Weather patrol congregate in front of you. You remember some of the names- the filly with the lisp is Twist, and as far as you can recall she's the only one who actually likes you. Dinky is Ditzy's little girl, you remember, but last time you did this she didn't speak a word to you. Snips and Snails, the two unicorn colts in the group, are more trouble than they're worth and Diamond Tiara and her little minion are the sort of snooty little fillies who you always used to hate. The rest of them are new, or at least unfamiliar, to you- a lanky Pegasus colt with a feather cutie mark, and three blank flanks standing in the rear with matching capes. They look really enthusiastic, you realise as your heart sinks. "You have confetti on your face!" One of them shouts cheerfully. "Oh, Yeah." You start pulling it out of your mane, but it's sticky with sugar. Most of it's stuck fast. You make a mental note to stab every cupcake in future before you bite it, and another mental note to drop Pinkie from a great height. "Tho what are we doing today, Mith Raindropth?" Twist asks you with a big grin. It's not a bad question- literally the only job the Junior Weather Patrol have to get done is de-icing the fountain in the main square. Any other work, you have to beg, borrow or steal from the weather, animal and plant teams, and if you take on something too big or complex these foals won't miss an opportunity to mess it up. You've got to think of something to do with them. Preferably something that involves being quiet and getting Miss Raindrops a big glass of wine. To get the fountain de-iced before bugging the other teams if you've got time, Click here for Chapter 36. To ask them what they want to do in the hopes of killing a little time, Click here for Chapter 37. To set the Junior Weather Patrol ferrying snacks and drinks to all the other working ponies, Click here for Chapter 38. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 5. > Chapter 17 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You're about to pick one of the cupcakes when something strikes you. "Wait a minute. How did you know I'd have a big weird book?" you ask. "It's poking out of your saddlebags, silly! How could I not see it?" "No, that's not what I meant. If you made me special cupcakes because you knew I was going to have a special day you must have known about the book already. And I didn't see you there this morning." You've stood up, you realise, and with good reason. Is this some sort of game? Is she just playing with you here? Somepony has messed up your Winter Wrap Up and so help you Celestia, if it's Pinkie you'll buck her into next Tuesday. "Did you dump this book on my steps, Pinkie? Because if you did-" "No!" she says, quickly. "It wasn't me! I promise! Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye! I just saw it being put there. And I was going to deal with it myself, but then I thought you could have a really special day because of it, so I went home and made you your cupcakes." "Okay. Great. You made cupcakes. Just one thing- who left this book on my steps, Pinkie?" "Are you sure you wouldn't rather just have a cupcake and get on with your super special-" "Pinkie! Book! Steps! Who!?" "I don't think I should tell you. You seem pretty angry and I don't let angry ponies on the ice-breaking team." "I seem angry? I am angry!" "Well, just stop being angry! It's not a big deal, right? You can just have a cupcake! Or even no cupcakes! We can just do ice-breaking!" The problem is, she's right. Time's getting away from you here- if you want a nice Winter Wrap Up, you should probably drop it. But somepony's dragged you into this, and they gotta pay. Right? To fly up in front of the crowd and get whoever lumped you with this book to own up RIGHT NOW, Click here for Chapter 39. To give up on the book so long as Pinkie can get you on the ice skating team, Click here for Chapter 40. To blow off Pinkie and just get on with your day- including getting rid of this freaking thing- Click here for Chapter 41. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 7. > Chapter 18 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Oh, for crying out loud- you make one last, big effort to get her attention, shouting as much as you can. "It's a magic book! I had a weird glow when I got found this morning! I think it's called 'Amniomorphics'!" Twilight freezes still for a second, and looks at you carefully. Another pony tries to get her attention, and she holds up her hoof to silence him before walking over to you. "I must have misheard you. What's the book called again?" "Raindrops, but my name's not important. This book's called 'Amniomorphics', see? It was glowing this morning. It's weird and magic and not mine. Now could you take it off my hooves so I can get back to the weather team? The stupid thing's already cost me the good jobs." Twilight levitates the book out of your saddlebags and takes a look at it before emitting a high-pitched squeal of joy. "Oh my goodness, I think this is a first edition! Raindrops, have you any idea how rare this is?" "No clue, I'm afraid. Are we done here?" you scratch at the ground, anxious to get moving. "I really need to get back to the library." "No you don't," Twilight says, and you can hear the question in her voice. "You've already given me the book." "Uh, yeah," you say. "I think I meant the weather team. I need to get flying!" "That's probably what you meant to say. But it's not what you said. What's your job normally?" "I'm a weatherpony," you say, raising your eyebrow. That question came out of left field. "How old are you?" "I'm twenty-four, but I don't see-" "What are you best at?" "Getting water out of clouds, and can we get back on-" "What's your name?" "Amniomorphics! Twilight, what's with the third degree here?" you ask, before realising what you just said. You can feel yourself frown. Your name is Raindrops, you remind yourself, and you have a sudden stab of worry that it was something you'd forgotten. "I think we need to get you back to the library, Raindrops. I think the book's done something to you and I'll need to study it to find out what. I'm just going to go and hand the list to Rarity, she's probably our best bet to organise the wrap up while we work this out. I'll be right back, Raindrops." She shoots you a smile as she canters off to find her friend. "I'm going to miss the wrap up?" you say to yourself. It feels like everypony's looking at you. The weather teams look like they're about to take off without you, and you've never felt so small. To wait for Twilight, because something weird is going on, Click here for Chapter 42. Twilight is obviously nuts. There's nothing wrong with you, you're just having a bad morning. Maybe some honest work will clear your head. To go join the weather team, Click here for Chapter 43. Twilight is obviously nuts. There's nothing wrong with you, you're just having a bad morning. Maybe some honest work will clear your head. To go to the library and file yourself under "Classics", Click here for Chapter 44. Requests closed for this chapter! There's a few ways you could have gotten here. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 8. Or Click here for Chapter 41. > Chapter 19 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sheesh, fine. If she's not going to listen to you, you're not going to force it. You wander back over to the weather team just in time to hear your name called, and you start struggling with your saddlebags. "Raindrops, Drizzle, Flitter, Bon Voyage- you'll all be working cloud control on the east side, which means you're reporting to Cloud Kicker." You're about to raise a voice in protest, but Rainbow just raises her voice and carries on. "That means you take any problem- including which team you're on- to her, not to me. Are we all good?" "Yes, boss," the chorus comes. Most ponies are pretty enthusiastic about it, even if your response is a little lacklustre, and you realise- what are the odds Cloud Kicker's going to be on your flank every second of the day? You can probably get some really nice work in, and just enjoy the wrap up. You finally loose your saddlebags and leave them by the fountain, and you're about to take off when you realise you've forgotten how. Something's badly wrong. You turn to shout at Rainbow, but the words come out all wrong. "Base. Base, wafer bee! Alpha weed." There's something broken in you. You try to sit down and collapse to your side instead, and the road dust tastes like sweet pears and smells of burnt hair. You try to work a spell to save yourself but there's no energy pulling into your horn at all. Your magic's gone! You flail, trying to stand upright, and you see the boss hovering in front of you with a worried expression. "Pane tops? Pane tops! Claw cake airlock rafter fur, save bottle mind firefight!" She goes, and Cloud Kicker lands by you and puts wings on you and you pass out. ----------- Time passes. At some point, you remember that you are Raindrops. ----------- "Hey there, sleepyhead." Thunderlane's voice is coming from a long way away, and he's looking all blurry. You blink a couple of times and force your eyes wide- the boss is here too, looking relieved, and Twilight's standing with the doctor- they're both concentrating on a spell, and you think you're the target. "Hey." Your voice is flat and creaky. "How long was-" "Two weeks. You're fine now, though. Right? Miss Sparkle?" "Yes! Concentrating here!" Twilight snaps at Thunderlane, and he cowers slightly. "What- what happened-" "That book you were carrying did something weird to you. Don't worry though, Twilight's got it sorted. She says you'll need a week off to recover, so I'll see you back in a month, okay? Thunderlane's been filling in for you and he's, well, terrible-" "Hey!" "-but you need the break. I'm gonna get your parents now. You rest up." "Okay," you croak. Much as you'd rather not admit it, you're on the verge of tears. Seeing your parents would be a good idea. You close your eyes and start to drift off again the moment you hear a satisfied, tired sigh from Twilight and the doctor. "Raindrops! Miss Sparkle, she's-" "She's sleeping, Thunderlane. Let her rest. The spell's cleared out of her now." That's good to know, you think. The bed's warm, and the machines beep reassuringly, and you're fast asleep by the time your parents silently arrive and your mother takes your hoof in hers. THE END You received an incomplete ending. That means things went alright for Raindrops, on the whole- they certainly could have gone worse- but you didn't get the whole story. There's a few ways you could have gotten here. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 8. Or Click here for Chapter 41. > Chapter 20 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Not a problem," you say. It's not a long trip to the library- you should have finished dropping it off before Twilight's ended her speech, and if you rush back here then Twilight won't have to wait more than five minutes for you. She grins at you and walks up to deliver her speech; you set off at a canter through the streets of Ponyville. Halfway there, you decide to cut through the park, enjoying your solitude and the last glimpse you'll get of it in all its wintry splendour. The snow 's covered everything in a thick white eiderdown, making it clean and quiet. You'll miss this in summer, you think with a wry smile. Before you know it you've left the park and you're at the door of the library. You knock a couple of times on the door, and while you're waiting for Twilight's assistant you look around with a quiet smile on your face. The crackling cleanliness of the air, the- wait, is somepony there? You squint a little, and on one of the benches in the park you see there's a mint green unicorn sitting in an uncomfortable-looking position. Her forelegs are hanging limply at her sides, and her shoulders are shaking. She's crying, you realise. It's times like this you wish you were better with ponies- you've no idea what the right thing is to do in this sort of situation. "What can I do for you?" The voice from the doorway surprises you a little- you hadn't heard it open. Twilight's assistant, Spike, is a little dragon, you think. He looks like a dragon, anyhow. He sounds a little sleepy, but basically cheerful. "I've got this book. Twilight wanted me to drop it off," you say distractedly, looking over your shoulder at the mare in the garden. "Alright, come on in. We'll file it up and you can have a cocoa, if you like." He gestures inside the library. "Unless you've got some place else you have to be?" To go see what the unicorn is crying about and get Spike to help you out, Click here for chapter 45. To drop off the book and then go talk to her on your own, Click here for chapter 46. To have cocoa with Spike and see if he has any idea what to do about her, Click here for chapter 47. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 9. > Chapter 21 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Actually, would it be okay if I dropped it off after I've sorted out my job with the boss?" you ask tentatively. "I don't want Rainbow Dash to think I've wandered off." "That's fine, Raindrops. I've got to deliver this speech now- so long as the book's there by the end of the day you'll have made me a very happy pony. I'll let you know what I learn from it!" You smile at her as she takes her place on the podium, and go back to have a word with Rainbow Dash. She doesn't look pleased at how late you are, but at least you've got an excuse. "Good afternoon, Raindrops!" "Sorry I'm late, boss. Duty called," you say as you indicate the tome in your saddlebags. "I've got a big weird magic book here. I had to show it to Twilight- she's asked me to drop it off at the library when I get a moment. Is there any chance I can get a job that takes me in that direction?" "Yeah, we can work that out," Rainbow Dash says as she rolls her eyes at you. "Just don't make a habit of this. You work on my weather team, not in her library." "Sure thing, boss!" you grin. "Alright, so you'll be on roof-clearing duty. I'll put you in charge of a team of four- you can start where you like, and I suggest you drop off that book before you catch egghead fever," she snorts. "You and Flitter will be working with Time Turner and Roseluck as ground support. Get to it as soon as the speech is over, okay?" The speech is interminably long, and after forever and a day you're finally allowed to split into groups. Roseluck and Time Turner get their carts, and you head in the direction of the library- you figure you'll start at the far end of the park, right next to the library, and go from there. On the way, you chat about little things; Roseluck's frustrations with her latest line of Noisettes, Time Turner's patented oscillator that's starting to really make him some money, Flitter's gossip about the drama that infests her amateur dramatics group. As soon as you get there, you tell the other three to set up on the first thatched roof while you drop the book off at the library. You knock on the door and take off your saddlebags, taking a last look at winter. You hear the door open and try to turn round, but instead you pitch forwards into the snow. You can hear the dragon behind you say something, first concerned and then panicked; but it doesn't make any sense. "Bayou unlight? Hiss? Hiss? Pay! Pay hair, forget health! Cyclone three pet firefight!" You try to stand up, but you just tilt your head instead- something's not working right. You feel sick. You try to say something, to tell somepony, but the words come out all wrong. "Dyed lone sink dime unlight," you murmur, and you almost whimper at how wrong it sounds. There's something broken in you. The snow tastes of white pepper and smells like spearmint. You try to work a spell to save yourself but there's no energy pulling into your horn at all. Your magic's gone! You flail, trying to stand upright, and you see the little dragon standing in front of you, one claw on the side of your neck. "Spittle fear light, Fool three. firefight scumling." His claw burns hot and cold and he puts wings on you and you pass out. ----------- Time passes. At some point, you remember that you are Raindrops. ----------- "Hey there, sleepyhead." Thunderlane's voice is coming from a long way away, and he's looking all blurry. You blink a couple of times and force your eyes wide- the boss is here too, looking relieved, and Twilight's standing with the doctor- they're both concentrating on a spell, and you think you're the target. "Hey." Your voice is flat and creaky. "How long was-" "Two weeks. You're fine now, though. Right? Miss Sparkle?" "Yes! Concentrating here!" Twilight snaps at Thunderlane, and he cowers slightly. "What- what happened-" "That book you were carrying did something weird to you. Don't worry though, Twilight's got it sorted. She says you'll need a week off to recover, so I'll see you back in a month, okay? Thunderlane's been filling in for you and he's, well, terrible-" "Hey!" "-but you need the break. I'm gonna get your parents now. You rest up." "Okay," you croak. Much as you'd rather not admit it, you're on the verge of tears. Seeing your parents would be a good idea. You close your eyes and start to drift off again the moment you hear a satisfied, tired sigh from Twilight and the doctor. "Raindrops! Miss Sparkle, she's-" "She's sleeping, Thunderlane. Let her rest. The spell's cleared out of her now." That's good to know, you think. The bed's warm, and the machines beep reassuringly, and you're fast asleep by the time your parents silently arrive and your mother takes your hoof in hers. THE END You received an incomplete ending. That means things went alright for Raindrops, on the whole- they certainly could have gone worse- but you're not really sure what the whole story was. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 9. > Chapter 22 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Sure thing, Spike! Don't worry about Pinkie getting into the book. I'm on the case!" Spike gives you a grateful nod and leaves. To your credit, you wait at least fifteen seconds before you both turn back to the book. "I bet it has spells in it for endless candy! Or for an infinite piñata! Or for-" "I don't know what's in there. And I promised Spike I wouldn't let you look in the book." "Aw, just a little peek?" Pinkie sticks her bottom lip out, and you can't help but giggle. "Are you saying that there's absolutely no way I can stop you from looking?" "I'm not saying that! I just bet it would be neat." You sigh and try again. She's got to pick this up eventually. "I didn't hear that. Are you saying that no matter what I do, you're going to look at the book, so I might as well look at it with you?" You grin broadly. "Ooooh! Yes! I am going to look at this book no matter what, Raindrops! I will find a way!" "Then as a responsible pony, the responsible thing to do is to look at it with you, so I can document your access even if I can't stop it. Because I am so responsible." "That does sound responsible!" You both chuckle at yourselves and turn to the book. Carefully, you open it up to the first page. "Amniomorphics," Pinkie reads aloud. "By Starswirl the Bearded and Raindrops. A compendium of spells designed to manipulate and create auras, especially those which create life. Hi there." You both stare at the page for a moment. "Pinkie?" you ask quietly. "Yes?" "Why is my name in the book?" Before she can answer, writing starts to appear in the book, scrawling across the page in a delicate, cursive flow. Your name is in the book because you have contributed so much to it, reads the writing. You are as responsible as Starswirl was for my content. Thanks! "Wow!" Pinkie squeals. "It's a living book! How awesome is that? At least the most awesome thing that's happened today!" Pinkie keeps talking to the book while you start to worry. How in Equestria can you be responsible for the content of this book? It's so old! You start pacing around and you're about to start chewing your hooves, which is a habit you thought you'd kicked back in kindergarten, when you hear Twilight and Spike walk up to the door. You think you've got time to close the book before they get in, if that's what you want to do. You feel a little lost. To freak out about having a magic foal book until Twilight explains what the feather is going on, Click here for chapter 48. To run away with the book before Twilight can barge in and take over, Click here for chapter 49. To slam the book closed and pretend nothing happened, Click here for chapter 50. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 10. > Chapter 23 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Sure thing, Spike! Don't worry about Pinkie getting into the book. I'm on the case!" About fifteen seconds after Spike closes the door, you realise that Pinkie is leaning over the book, about to open it. You slam a hoof down on the cover and look her in the eye. "No, Pinkie. Come on, I promised Spike. Just drink your cocoa and wait for him to get Twilight." She sticks her bottom lip out, and it begins to quiver. "I said no! It could be dangerous! That's the whole reason we're not supposed to look!" Her eyes start to water, and she is somehow dilating her pupils. Sweet Celestia, that's disturbing. And adorable. Distorable. "If you can't stop yourself from looking at it I'm going to have to keep it away from you." You stamp a back hoof for emphasis before lifting the book in your forelegs and hovering out of Pinkie's reach. She sighs theatrically and walks into the kitchen. "Pinkie, I'm sorry! We have to be careful!" You feel a little bad. You're about to go into the kitchen to see if she's alright when you hear a primal yell from behind you- she's somehow made her way to Twilight's balcony room and is launching herself at you. She lands on your back as you try to dodge and immediately starts tickling you. "Augh! Pinkie, ha, no! I'll crash!" You shout, desperately trying not to laugh as you start to spiral around the room. "So land! And we can look at the book! It might have recipies in it, or a secret candy compartment! Come ooon!" "No looking at the book!" You try to shake her off with a barrel roll, but you lose your grip on the book and the second it's slipped your grasp Pinkie drops off your shoulders. The sudden shift in weight makes you lose your concentration, and you end up jamming your head somewhere in the "G" section of the shelves. You pull yourself together after a moment and yank your head out of the shelves, dislodging 'Green Hoof's Guide to Grocery Growing' and 'Great Unicorns of Magical Theory' as you land in a heap. Pinkie's sat with a pair of reading glasses and a new mug of cocoa, somehow, and is about to start reading the book. "Oh, hello Raindrops!" She says in a mock-cultured voice. "Would you care to join me? I was about to get some- ah!" You grab the book to pull it away from her and she drops her cocoa on the floor as she grabs it right back. She's distressingly strong- freaking earth ponies- and it takes a couple of solid yanks before you get it away from her, holding it triumphantly over your head as Pinkie falls backwards into the spilled cocoa. You don't notice the door open, or hear Spike say anything, before you start to crow over your triumph. "I'm sure they haven't looked at it, Twilight. Raindrops seems really responsi-" "HAH! SUCK FLOOR COCOA, PINKIE! NOPONY LOOKS AT THE BOOK! YOU SHOULDA oh hi you two." This may require some explaining. To attempt an explanation despite looking pretty guilty, Click here for chapter 51. To throw the book at Twilight and run away, Click here for chapter 52. To take refuge in an audacious stream-of-consciousness lie, Click here for chapter 53. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 10. > Chapter 24 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I can't!" you say, distressed. "I'm already late for the meeting and I just know I'll get an awful job unless I go right now. I'll tell Twilight for you, okay?" You leave, quickly, before Spike realises you've just dumped him with Pinkie and a magic book, and lift off as soon as possible, soaring over the park. As you approach the town square, you spot Twilight- she's surrounded by a group of ponies who seem to need her advice. You roll your eyes- you're in no mood for waiting around. You land right in front of her, shoving a couple of disgruntled-looking ponies out of the way. "Twilight, there's a weird magic book in the library that Spike needs you to look at," You say, cutting her off before she can speak. "Pinkie's there too and she seems really excited about getting it open." In credit to Twilight, she only looks horrified for a moment before fleeing at an impressive speed in the general direction of the library. You're going to be fine, so long as the weather team's still- oh, horsefeathers. Every other pony in the weather team's gone off to their jobs except the boss, who's waiting for you with a big smile on her face that in no way reaches her eyes. "Good afternoon, Raindrops!" "Boss, I'm so sorry. I would have been here earlier, but there was this book-" "A good book is no excuse, Raindrops. I didn't miss the last storm we did and the new Daring Do was out that day. You're last. You know what that means." "Oh, no, boss, please-" "Oh wow! It'th Mith Raindropth again! Hi Mith Raindropth!" Rainbow smirks at you and takes flight as the Junior Weather Patrol congregate in front of you. You remember some of the names- the filly with the lisp is Twist, and as far as you can recall she's the only one who actually likes you. Dinky is Ditzy's little girl, you remember, but last time you did this she didn't speak a word to you. Snips and Snails, the two unicorn colts in the group, are more trouble than they're worth and Diamond Tiara and her little minion are the sort of snooty little fillies who you always used to hate. The rest of them are new, or at least unfamiliar, to you- a lanky Pegasus colt with a feather cutie mark, and three blank flanks standing in the rear with matching capes. They look really enthusiastic, you realise as your heart sinks. "You're all sweaty!" One of them shouts cheerfully. "Oh, Yeah." You blush a little and make a mental note to just drop the next book you see from a great height. "Tho what are we doing today, Mith Raindropth?" Twist asks you with a big grin. It's not a bad question- literally the only job the Junior Weather Patrol have to get done is de-icing the fountain in the main square. Any other work, you have to beg, borrow or steal from the weather, animal and plant teams, and if you take on something too big or complex these foals won't miss an opportunity to mess it up. You've got to think of something to do with them. Preferably something that involves being quiet and getting Miss Raindrops a big glass of wine. To get the fountain de-iced before bugging the other teams if you've got time, Click here for Chapter 36. To ask them what they want to do in the hopes of killing a little time, Click here for Chapter 37. To set the Junior Weather Patrol ferrying snacks and drinks to all the other working ponies, Click here for Chapter 38. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 10. > Chapter 25 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The other two look way too sweet for your liking- the grey one in the middle seems much more your style. You pick it up and bite into it, and hear Pinkie let out a faintly disappointed sigh. It's really good! It's extremely bitter, dark chocolate, with a chilli and nutmeg taste in the icing. It's almost savoury, and you smile at Pinkie as you finish it off. She doesn't seem that pleased, though. "Aw, I was hoping you wouldn't pick that one. That means you're not going to have the sort of day where you want me around, believe me. I'll set you on your way and then I'll tell Rainbow I need you ice-breaking up on Yew Tree Tarn. It's not very big so you'll be on your own." You wipe the crumbs away from your mouth as you frown. You don't know Pinkie all that well, but it's still weird to see her without a smile on her face. "Pinkie," you ask quietly, "what sort of day was supposed to happen when I ate this cupcake?" "The book said that it gave you the sort of day where you find out who everypony is. Especially yourself. But it's not supposed to be very pleasant." "Why wouldn't I want you around for a day like that?" you ask, genuinely confused, and her expression's so forlorn you don't have the heart to push it any further. She pulls out a map, showing you Yew Tree Tarn, points out a couple of landmarks to you and sets you on your way with a sad little smile. That smile sticks to you for so long you're there before you realise why the journey was so tiring. It's this stupid book! You still haven't dealt with it! You undo your saddlebags, letting them thud to the ground, and take a look around Yew Tree Tarn. It's not that big, and you reckon it should only take you an hour or two to score the ice properly. You'll have a bit of free time then, since you know this lake's so far out it won't need melting until pretty late on. The lake's a ring, with a tiny island in the middle with the tarn's signature yew tree growing on it. There's something red stuck in the branches, you realise. You sit down in the snow with a sigh. It's been a weird morning. What now? To investigate the mysterious red object, Click here for chapter 32. To chuck the book in the lake, Click here for chapter 33. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 11. > Chapter 26 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I'll go," you say, fluttering your wings for emphasis. "I'll probably be a little faster. Keep my cocoa warm, would you?" "Sure thing!" the diminutive dragon waves at you as you leave. He seems like a sweet little guy, but it's hard to place his age. You guess that's because he's a dragon? It's probably best to think of him as a teenager, you suppose, but you've never met a teenage colt with the same quality of manners. Perhaps you can ask Twilight about him later. You set out to the town square at a relaxed pace. If Spike had felt alright to go and get Twilight himself, there can't be any huge rush. And why would you want to rush on a day like this? It's gorgeously cold, and the sharp winter breeze stings your eyes and catches your pinions just right. There's just no reason to- "RAINDROPS!" Oh, ponyfeathers. It's the boss. Rainbow Dash loops away from the main flock of pegasi on their way to their various jobs, and hovers in front of you. "Uh, hi boss! I was just-" "Just slacking off? When you didn't show up this morning I figured you had some illness or something, not that you were just taking your sweet time!" "No, boss, I swear-" "Whatever. Cloud Kicker was right about you. You're off the weather team." You feel your heart sink. "What? You mean for the wrap up, right?" "I mean in general! You can ask me for your job back after the wrap up and you better hope I'm in a good mood. Go talk to Twilight, she'll find you something else to do today." She darts off before you can construct a response, and you sink to the ground, walking the rest of the way to the town square. Off the weather team? You don't know what you're going to do. Helping out with the weather isn't just a job to you- it's your special talent. The farmers around here always request you when they need a little rain in drought season. Nopony can squeeze moisture out of a cloud like you. And now what, you're just supposed to find another job? What about your friends and neighbours? You always make sure Roseluck's flower garden's covered in the plans because Cloud Kicker, stupid Cloud Kicker, sometimes forgets and Carrot Top relies on you and you don't know what you're going to do. You slump into the town square and walk up to Twilight, only half-realising that you've cut the Mayor off mid-speech. "Twilight, there's a magic book you need to look at. I found it this morning. Spike thinks it's important." "Oh! Sorry mayor, I should probably deal with this. Can you carry on with the master checklist for me?" The mayor nods, and you barely notice her glare at you as she takes charge of the wrap up. "So!" Twilight says brightly. "What kind of book is this? Where did you find it?" "It's a big book. Heavy." You say. "It was on my steps, glowing. Looked like your sort of thing." "Okay then. Um, I don't know your name-" "Raindrops." Ugh, talking is hard right now. You keep hearing how your voice is about to break, and if it does you know you'll end up crying. You're not a good crier. It looks good on some ponies, elegant and classy, but you're all red eyes and snot. You hate crying. "Raindrops, are you alright? You seem a little melancholy." You know if you tell her you'll start bawling in the middle of the town square. To ask to go back with Twilight to the library, Click here for chapter 54. To find somewhere dark and lonely to brood and cry and generally mope, Click here for chapter 58. To tell Twilight you got fired and try to get her to help, Click here for chapter 59. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 12. > Chapter 27 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- There's no way you're spending any more time with Cloud Kicker than you have to, and you foalsat the Junior Weather Patrol once before. Never again. "I'll work with Pinkie, please. Ice-breaking sounds fun!" Rainbow smiles at you and shakes her head as she ticks you off on her sheet. "Okay, sure thing. Pinkie, could you get to it? I need to have a quick word with Raindrops here." "Okey dokey lokey! Raindrops, we'll be down at the big pond as soon as you can join us." Pinkie bounds off, and you smile at her as she goes. You turn back to the boss, and your smile immediately vanishes. She's looking more serious than you've ever seen her look. "Raindrops, I'm not stupid." "I know you're not stupid," you say, quietly wondering where in Tartarus this is going. "You're late because you were spending time with Pinkie, and now she wants you on the ice-breaking team as a special favour. Plus you're psyched about getting to spend all day on the ground? Please. No way. I know what's going on here." "You do?" You're beginning to wish you could say the same thing. "Hay, I don't have a problem with it. You make a cute couple. But if you hurt her, I will end you." Wait, what? Oh dear. This is going to require delicacy and tact, and you have neither. "Boss, that's not- I mean, Pinkie's already secretly seeing-" buck! Secretly! "- uh, seeing somepony else, so-" Rainbow rolls her eyes at you. "I bet she is. Go have fun, Raindrops, but remember- I've got my eye on you." She leaves in a flurry of feathers before you can come up with a decent response. Well, that's just bucking brilliant. You groan in frustration and leave for the pond, and to your surprise you're not going to be the last one on the ice. Pinkie's already getting warmed up with a bunch of other ponies, including Carrot Top and Easy Breezy, but you can see your neighbour Roseluck sitting on the side of the pond. She's nickering in frustration and tugging at her unlaced skates. After a moment, an exhausted-looking stallion arrives and shouts across the lake at Pinkie. He's wearing a Plants team vest, you realise. "Pinkie! Applejack says I have to join your team." Pinkie just gives him an enthusiastic nod, but he looks a little morose. He walks over to the pile of skates near Roseluck and eyes them thoughtfully- if you had to guess, you'd think he'd never been ice skating before. To help out the bemused stallion, Click here for Chapter 60. To trade onto the Plants team in search of more rugged ponies, Click here for Chapter 61. To give Roseluck some help with her skates, Click here for Chapter 62. Requests closed for this chapter! There's a few ways you gould have gotten here. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 13. Or Click here for Chapter 40. > Chapter 28 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Okay. Deep breath. You're going to have to patch things up with Cloud Kicker here, and not in a sort of "hey we hate each other but we've got to get on" way. If you get this promotion, she needs to have your back. You're going to have to actually make friends. It's times like this you envy Celestia. Life would be so much easier if you could just banish ponies to the moon. Cloud Kicker's leaning against the fountain and stamping on it occasionally, punctuating a litany of muttered complaints about the weather force in general and you in particular. Now, you know your weaknesses. You're not great with ponies when it comes to feelings and all that junk. But you've got to do your best. "Hey there, Cloud Kicker!" Okay, that sounded forced. Tone down the creepy pleased vibe. "What?" Cloud Kicker responds flatly. She's not going to make this easy for you. "Look, I don't like you." You wince at that, and Cloud Kicker blinks. Honest, sure, but way too blunt. Time to recover! "I don't like you and that probably means I don't know you very well. I'm sure you're real likeable. But I don't know you, and sometimes you give me a hard time, so-" "Wait, you don't like me because I give you a hard time?" she says, incredulously. "Well- yeah. You come across like you think you're better than me." You hear yourself say. That probably wasn't the best thing to say. "That's ridiculous!" Cloud Kicker screeches. "You don't get to be the pony who accuses the other pony of having a superiority complex! You don't get to stand there and be better at this than I am and accuse me of being-" "Wait!" you shout. "You think I'm better than you?" "Of course I do!" Cloud Kicker's shouting so loudly now ponies are starting to stare. You realise with a start that there are actually tears in her eyes. "You're better at the only thing I'm good at!" "Uh, boss?" a pony says from behind you. Turning to look, you can see it's Flitter, a pegasus you know fairly well. "I think I'm on your team. Is this- is this a bad time?" Rainbow Dash is watching, you're sure of it, and- of course- Cloud Kicker's just taken off. On her own. Ugh! What should you do? What would the boss do- no, scratch that. What would a responsible weather boss do? To go after Cloud Kicker, Click here for Chapter 63. To go to the local changeling hive to get a replacement Cloud Kicker, Click here for Chapter 64. To ignore Cloud Kicker and just do your job, Click here for Chapter 65. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 14. > Chapter 29 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- There's no reasoning with that one. The best thing you can do is stick her in some out-of-the-way job and just work around her as best you can. Maybe you can get Rainbowshine to look after her, if she's on roof-cleaning duty? There are a few options. In any case, you're better off just letting her sulk and work out that she needs to put her best hoof forwards on her own. Ponies are sent over to you as they sign in, and after a while you've got a solid team together for roof-clearing duty. You don't know all of them by name, but you've got four groups of four ponies, two pegasus and two earth in each one, each headed up by a pony you trust. Time Turner's running the first group, Dizzy Twister's got the second one, you've given Blossomforth- to her great surprise- captaincy of the group you've stuck Cloud Kicker in, in the vain hope that her friend will keep her in check, and you yourself have taken charge of the final group. You've got Berry Punch and Cheerilee on earth pony duty, and Flitter's with you in the sky. This should be a breeze, you tell yourself, not quite believing it. You've assigned every group to move street-by-street at their own pace according to the north-west to south-east plan you've been given. So long as everypony stays to schedule, you should be fine, and you've promised a 20-bit tab at Sugarcube corner to the group that finishes first. You've also made sure you're keeping right alongside Blossomforth's group, in case Cloud Kicker tries anything funny. Which is why it's a bit of a surprise when the first problem of any consequence that you come across comes straight from Time Turner's group- Drizzle comes flying up, screaming something. You don't actually get a good handle on what she's saying the first time; she's being all high-pitched and squeaky. "Drizzle, slow it down. Tell me what the problem is." "Fire! Fire on Salamander Avenue! We've got to stop it spreading!" Yes. Yes you do. And yes, YOU do, personally- at the moment, with the fire crew all spread out on different jobs, it's easiest to get the roof-clearing crew in on this. You need to get a runner out to the ice-breaking crew to bring the horsepower you'll need over to the scene. That's priority one. Then you need to get two or three pegasi over on a safety run, make sure there's nopony caught in the blaze. That's priority two. Finally somepony needs to get your crews to the fire, make them start shovelling snow into it, cool it down. That's priority three. You can organise all this just fine, you realise, taking a deep breath. But which job should you do in particular? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 14. > Chapter 30 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I think it's important that I do the toughest job you've got," you say confidently. "I'm sure that I can handle anything the wrap up can throw at me. Even-" "Even foalsitting the Junior Weather Patrol?" Cloud Kicker shouts from behind you. "Wow, Raindrops, that's really brave of you!" "What? No, I meant-" "I think that's fantastic. That you've volunteered for it even though it's such a rough job. That shows real moxie, don't you think boss?" "Uh, yeah, I guess," says Rainbow Dash, starting to smile. She's not going for this, is she? "Actually, that's kinda perfect! I'd never want a shift manager who wanted to dodge all the rough jobs. Raindrops, this is really solid of you!" Oh, ponyfeathers. "Great work, Raindrops- I'll get the foals over to you as soon as they show up." Rainbow nods and you stumble away. How did that happen, exactly? You were talking about jobs, and you wanted a really tough one to prove- Cloud Kicker. That's what happened. Twilight's started her speech, and you muscle through the crowd until you find a particular grey pegasus. You whisper in her ear, and she jumps in suprise. "Listen up, you sneaky little-" "Hush, Dropsy. Important speeches are going on, and since I'm in charge of cloud clearing this year I have to pay attention. I'm sure you can find some way to amuse yourself." Oh, she is insufferable! The worst part is she's right. She actually does have to pay attention, or the whole wrap up could be a disaster. Much as you'd like to see Cloud Kicker mess it up, a good wrap up is essential for everypony. You take a deep breath and count to a hundred- at about seventy-four, Cloud Kicker finds you as the crowd breaks up. "Okay, so what's your problem, Dropsy? I've got fifty seconds to deal with it." "Don't call me Dropsy!" you growl. "That was a mean trick-" "Oh, grow up, Dropsy. You've got to fight if you want to succeed, you know that. If you'd cared enough-" Alright, that's it! You launch yourself at Cloud Kicker, tackling her into the snow and trying to get into position for a decent punch. Unfortunately, while you're stronger, she's a better fighter, and after a couple of seconds she lands a solid hoof in your face. When your vision clears, she's standing away from you, panting heavily and trying to regain her composure. "You get one, Dropsy. Don't let it happen again." "You can take your condescension and cram it up your-" "Oh wow! It'th Mith Raindropth again! Hi Mith Raindropth!" Cloud Kicker smirks at you and takes flight as the Junior Weather patrol congregate in front of you. You remember some of the names- the filly with the lisp is Twist, and as far as you can recall she's the only one who actually likes you. Dinky is Ditzy's little girl, you remember, but last time you did this she didn't speak a word to you. Snips and Snails, the two unicorn colts in the group, are more trouble than they're worth and Diamond Tiara and her little minion are the sort of snooty little fillies who you always used to hate. The rest of them are new, or at least unfamiliar, to you- a lanky Pegasus colt with a feather cutie mark, and three blank flanks standing in the rear with matching capes. They look really enthusiastic, you realise as your heart sinks. "You have a black eye!" One of them shouts cheerfully. "Oh, Yeah." You touch it gingerly- it's going to swell up horribly. You make a mental note to bind Cloud Kicker's wings up and drop her from a great height. "Tho what are we doing today, Mith Raindropth?" Twist asks you with a big grin. It's not a bad question- literally the only job the Junior Weather Patrol have to get done is de-icing the fountain in the main square. Any other work, you have to beg, borrow or steal from the weather, animal and plant teams, and if you take on something too big or complex these foals won't miss an opportunity to mess it up. You've got to think of something to do with them. Preferably something that involves being quiet and getting Miss Raindrops a big glass of wine. To get the fountain de-iced before bugging the other teams if you've got time, Click here for Chapter 36. To ask them what they want to do in the hopes of killing a little time, Click here for Chapter 37. To set the Junior Weather Patrol ferrying snacks and drinks to all the other working ponies, Click here for Chapter 38. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 6. > Chapter 31 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This isn't going to be so bad, you tell yourself. You can get Cloud Kicker on board and you can work through the day together. You count to ten and then go to talk to somepony else- Cloud Kicker needs to know that her bad attitude is not going to dominate the day. "Hey Ditzy! Good luck on the bird trip today." "Hah, thanks, Raindrops." Ditzy says, shooting a glance over at the musclebound Snowflake. He's having what looks like a very serious chat with a lanky little pegasus colt. "I hope it goes well! Snowflake's been trying to ask me out forever now- I'm hoping a day together'll give him enough time to work up the courage. But hey, well done on getting team leader duty! I hope it works out" You give her a tired smile. "Yeah, me too. Speaking of which, I should go corral my troops. Catch you later!" You walk back over to Cloud Kicker, who's still muttering under her breath, and straighten out what you're going to say before you start. "I'm sorry I took a pop at you back there," you say, and the apology seems to throw Cloud Kicker entirely off course. She looks at you with confusion as you continue. "Look, it was unprofessional. That shouldn't have happened. But what did happen is that I got here first, I've got to lead a team with you in it, and we both want to impress the boss. Right?" Cloud Kicker narrows her eyes at you for a second. You think she's trying to work out if she can trust you or not. "...Right." She says it slowly, almost testing the waters. "Okay then, I'll give you one of the sub-teams to lead, you won't give me any problems, and we'll both have a good wrap-up. Pick two earth ponies and another pegasus for your team and let me know who they are. I'll start you out on the west side, alright?" "Alright," she says, brightening slightly. You think you've got through to her- she's not on her favourite duty, and she's not happy at having to work underneath you, but you don't think she's going to give you any problems today. "I'll need Blossomforth to start. I'll have a word with her about the earth ponies. Is that okay?" "Sure thing," you say, and as Cloud Kicker turns away to find her friend you let out a relaxed sigh. That could have gone a lot worse. Ponies are sent over to you as they sign in, and after a while you've got a solid team together for roof-clearing duty. You don't know all of them by name, but you've got four groups of four ponies, two pegasus and two earth in each one, each headed up by a pony you trust. Or Cloud Kicker. Time Turner's running the first group, Dizzy Twister's got the second one, Cloud Kicker's running the third one, and you yourself have taken charge of the final group. You've got Berry Punch and Cheerilee on earth pony duty, and Flitter's with you in the sky. This should be a breeze, you tell yourself, not quite believing it. You've assigned every group to move street-by-street at their own pace according to the north-west to south-east plan you've been given. So long as everypony stays to schedule, you should be fine, and you've promised a 20-bit tab at Sugarcube corner to the group that finishes first. You just hope that Cloud Kicker doesn't give you any trouble. Which is why you groan audibly when the first problem of any consequence that you come across comes straight from Cloud Kicker's group- Blossomforth comes flying up, screaming something. You don't actually get a good handle on what she's saying the first time; she's speaking way too fast and she's out of breath. "Blossomforth, slow it down. Tell me what the problem is." "Fire! Fire on Salamander Avenue! We've got to stop it spreading!" Yes. Yes you do. And yes, YOU do, personally- at the moment, with the fire crew all spread out on different jobs, it's easiest to get the roof-clearing crew in on this. You need to get a runner out to the ice-breaking crew to bring the horsepower you'll need over to the scene. That's priority one. Then you need to get two or three pegasi over on a safety run, make sure there's nopony caught in the blaze. That's priority two. Finally somepony needs to get your crews to the fire, make them start shovelling snow into it, cool it down. That's priority three. You're about to start issuing orders when Blossomforth says something that may change your priorities slightly. "Raindrops, you've got to come NOW! Cloud Kicker's in there!" Oh, ponyfeathers. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 14. > Chapter 32 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You spread your wings, stretching them for a moment, and take flight over the ice to the yew tree. As you gain a little altitude you spot a couple of holes in the ice- likely colts throwing rocks into the tarn, you reckon- and you make a mental note to avoid them when you score the ice later. The red thing here is stuck fairly high up. It's probably just something a pegasus dropped or got snagged here, but you're not sure why they'd be all the way out at the tarn during winter. In summer, you think this seems like a nice, secluded place for a picnic, but in winter it just feels isolated. You hover closer to the object, and grab it in your teeth before pulling it off the tree and landing on the island to inspect your find. It's a piece of red cloth, for the most part. You think it's been used as a filly's cape. It's a little ragged, and kinda sticky, and lined with some pretty expensive-looking golden fabric. There's a place on it where a badge or patch had been sewn on, but that's been ripped off at some point. Recently, you think. You realise that there's no snow on the cape, and the last snowfall was only a couple of days ago. This cape hasn't been lost for long. You frown, and take to the sky again. This time you're looking at the snow around the lake- it's mostly pristine up here, except for the hoofprints you left as you were walking up here. You're hoping that you won't find any other tracks, and you feel your heart sink when you do find them- little hoofprints, a filly's or a colt's, coming in a straight line from town. They've got a pattern it takes you a minute to put together- little clumps of hoofprints, then a gap, then hoofprints again, then a bigger gap, and- They can't fly! That's what this is! They're running, and they're trying to take off, and they're getting better at it each time, spending a little more time aloft, and then their last leap must have taken them to the pond. They must have gotten some real elevation to get into the tree where they lost their cape, you think. But there's no track away from the pond. An experienced flier can barrel through a tree, but an inexperienced one's more likely to tuck their wings in and close their eyes. Genuinely worried now, you fly over to the tree and look- there are feathers on one of the branches. Pegasus feathers. Definitely. And there are a couple of big holes in the ice. Oh, Tartarus. You take a brief, panicky moment to assess your options. You're a poor swimmer and that water's ice cold, and if you're wrong then you could really hurt yourself. If you're right, and to Celestia you hope you're not, there's a pegasus filly under there who's been there for a couple of minutes at least. The cold might help her, right? You've read something like that, you think, and she might be okay if you get her quickly. Or she might be okay long enough to get help. Oh, Tartarus. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! There's a few ways you could have gotten here. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 15. Or Click here for Chapter 25. > Chapter 33 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Right. This damn thing has been the source of your problems for way too long. You lug the book out of your saddlebags, and you're about to throw it in the lake when you realise that you can do way better than that- you clutch it in your forelegs and gain some height, getting a couple of hundred feet up before dropping it over the biggest, cleanest, least broken patch of ice on the little lake. The crunch it makes as it blasts through the ice to sink into the depths of the pond is deeply satisfying. You land back by your saddlebags, and you feel the same way you always do when you take your frustrations out on something; half relaxed and happy, half a little bit guilty. You sit down for a moment, and decide you'll catch your breath before scoring the ice, just to enjoy the gentle whisper of the last winter wind, the last glimmer of the sunshine on the glittering ice. You take in the sights around you before you hear a sound that doesn't quite belong. There's a gentle bubbling noise coming from the tarn, and it doesn't take you long to identify it as coming from the hole you dropped the book in. The surface of the water is roiling, swirling with iridescent bubbles, and you've got just enough time to think it was perhaps a bad idea to throw the book into the lake when the water starts to pour over the edges of the hole. The moment it touches your skin, you feel an appalling, burning cold so intense you'd scream if you could breathe. No part of you is responding- your wings are half unfolded, your eyes burning where you can't blink, and you can't breathe. The water flows from the hole, running up your legs, colder than ice in defiance of its own nature. It covers your wings, and you can't feel them any more, and you can see the water's doing something else- it's flowing into another solid shape as it coats you. It's building another pony, a water pony. It has wings just like you. The water flows around your nose, around your mouth and eyes, and as the water pony's face becomes solid, you swear you can see it smile the moment you can't feel your face any more. "Hello," it says, and you don't understand what that sound means and you can't breathe. It says some more sounds, as the cold seeps into your skull and your ears and your tail, and by the time the water pulls you through the hole in the ice the water pony is speaking entire sentences you don't comprehend. It's cold down here. You hope she comes back for you. She seemed so familiar. You can't breathe. THE END You received a Bad Ending. Poor Raindrops. There's a few ways you could have gotten here. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 15. Or Click here for Chapter 25. > Chapter 34 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The cupcake with the little balloon is just too amusing not to go for. It's extremely light, and when you pick it up Pinkie lets out a delighted squeal. You cautiously bite into it, and- BANG! The cupcake bursts with an enormous pop, spreading confetti and streamers across your face and the ground in front of you. It's only slightly quieter than Pinkie's raucous laughter, which immediately follows. "You picked the balloon cake! Oh, that's the super funnest fun cake I know how to make! You're day's sure to be a blast!" She giggles again. "Do you get it? Because it was a balloon! And it burst all over your face!" "Yeah, I get it. Hilarious." You curse inwardly. First you get landed with this big stupid book and then- hang on a second. Your saddlebags feel suspiciously light. A moment's attention reveals that the book is long gone. "Pinkie, what happened to my book?" you ask, genuinely confused. "Oh, I just gave it to Twilight. That was your plan, right? You should probably go and pick your job, Raindrops. It's sure to give you the funniest day!" "I'll wait until the speech is over," you say, grinding your teeth and biting back the question of how in Tartarus she knew what you were going to do with the book. "I don't want to interrupt. It'd just make Rainbow mad and then I'd get stuck on Junior Weather Patrol duty again." "You wouldn't interrupt at all!" Pinkie says, bouncing up and down. "The speech ended four minutes ago. Those balloon-cakes really pack a punch! You were all woozy for about ten minutes and then you snapped back to your senses." You bite back the insult- you don't have time for an angry tirade right now- and charge out of the bushes towards the main square. Every other pony in the weather team's gone off to their jobs except the boss, who's waiting for you with a big smile on her face that in no way reaches her eyes. "Good afternoon, Raindrops!" "Boss, I'm so sorry. I was here on time, but Pinkie-" "Pinkie being Pinkie is no excuse, Raindrops. You're last. You know what that means." "Oh, no, boss, please-" "Oh wow! It'th Mith Raindropth again! Hi Mith Raindropth!" Rainbow smirks at you and takes flight as the Junior Weather patrol congregate in front of you. You remember some of the names- the filly with the lisp is Twist, and as far as you can recall she's the only one who actually likes you. Dinky is Ditzy's little girl, you remember, but last time you did this she didn't speak a word to you. Snips and Snails, the two unicorn colts in the group, are more trouble than they're worth and Diamond Tiara and her little minion are the sort of snooty little fillies who you always used to hate. The rest of them are new, or at least unfamiliar, to you- a lanky Pegasus colt with a feather cutie mark, and three blank flanks standing in the rear with matching capes. They look really enthusiastic, you realise as your heart sinks. "You have confetti on your face!" One of them shouts cheerfully. "Oh, Yeah." You start pulling it out of your mane, but it's sticky with sugar. Most of it's stuck fast. You make a mental note to stab every cupcake in future before you bite it, and another mental note to drop Pinkie from a great height. "Tho what are we doing today, Mith Raindropth?" Twist asks you with a big grin. It's not a bad question- literally the only job the Junior Weather Patrol have to get done is de-icing the fountain in the main square. Any other work, you have to beg, borrow or steal from the weather, animal and plant teams, and if you take on something too big or complex these foals won't miss an opportunity to mess it up. You've got to think of something to do with them. Preferably something that involves being quiet and getting Miss Raindrops a big glass of wine. To get the fountain de-iced before bugging the other teams if you've got time, Click here for Chapter 36. To ask them what they want to do in the hopes of killing a little time, Click here for Chapter 37. To set the Junior Weather Patrol ferrying snacks and drinks to all the other working ponies, Click here for Chapter 38. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 7. > Chapter 35 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alright, you know what? Buck today. Winter Wrap Up is supposed to be fun. It's supposed to be about the relaxing process of packing away the best season for the second-best one. It's supposed to be your favourite day of the year. Well, if you can't have fun... You smile quietly as a plan starts to come together in your mind, and as you play it out in your head you start to giggle. It feels good and before you know it your laughter's full throated, spilling out harsh and cruel across the frozen tarn. if you can't have fun, nopony's going to have fun. And you know exactly which pony you can start with. It doesn't take you long to find a thunderhead among the clouds, and with some careful bucking and spiralling, you manage to make it into a small, evil-looking thing, dense and dark in the sky. You think it's still got all its lightning left in it. You saw Rainbow Dash use something like this on Nightmare Night, spooking ponies with little lightning bolts, and it's perfect for what you've got in mind. Hers seemed slightly lighter though- perhaps she'd just ripped the corner off a thunderhead instead of condensing one? No, you tell yourself. That wouldn't have enough lightning in it for more than one prank. You'd have to keep going and getting new ones, and that would be stupid. This is going to be great, you think to yourself. Little Miss Perfect is really going to get what's coming to her. It doesn't take you long to find Cloud Kicker in the half-finished sky above Ponyville and she's distracted by jawing off at the ponies working for her. They look really miserable, you reckon. Especially Thunderlane. Well, this should cheer them up. You slowly, quietly, sneak up behind Cloud Kicker, ready to buck the cloud as soon as you're close enough that she'll be the most likely target. This is going to be hilarious. Any second now... ------------------- "Alright, we're going to do this again, and this time we're not going to look like freaking amateurs about it!" Cloud Kicker barked at the crowd of ponies hovering in front of her. They were looking sullen and tired, and in a moment of rare insight Cloud Kicker realised that she'd just maybe been working them too hard. She'd had a good plan- no, a great plan- to get the clouds all cleared in one grand maneuver, but she'd failed to take into account that a lot of the volunteer pegasi just weren't as strong, skilled or fast as the weather team. Still, they'd broken the back of it, and if it was split up into smaller jobs then it might be manageable. "Look, maybe I've been a bit hard on you. Perhaps if-" Then there was light, and pain, and a thunderclap she felt more than heard. ------------------- The breeze today is really refreshing. Your mane's streaming past your face, blackened and smouldering at the edges. You smile at it until your other senses kick in and you realise you're in an uncontrolled dive. You force a turn- you're maybe five hundred yards off the ground, and a quick look around tells you that there are other pegasi falling as well. Come on, Raindrops! Head in the game! There's pegasi falling, who's closest, remember your training, go for the save you can make- Thunderlane! You spread your wings to pull out of your dive and something goes horribly wrong. Your left wing joint is a ball of pain, and your wing isn't responding. It won't open. Your right wing's flared, but the pinions are all burnt, and you're getting no control. You're starting to spiral, and the ground is too close. You really hope somepony got to him in time. THE END You received a Bad Ending. Poor Raindrops. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 15. > Chapter 36 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well, they've got to de-ice the fountain first. Maybe after that's done- assuming it doesn't take the entire day- you can find some other poor sap to help you out with them. "Line up, troops!" you shout. You know you're not great with foals, and you tend to just copy your old Flight Instructor's habits. Cloudburst was a cantankerous old brick of a pegasus, but you always knew where you stood with him, and you appreciated that. The lanky little pegasus colt is the first one to listen to you, untangling his legs and scampering to a position directly in front of you before snapping off a pretty good military salute. "Private Featherweight reporting for duty, ma'am!" Well, that's adorable. He's got a little gap in his front teeth and he seems really eager to please. You breathe a small sigh of relief- this all gets so much easier when they're actually on your side. Copying Featherweight, the other colts and fillies fall in line with more or less enthusiasm, and after stopping a scuffle between Snips and Snails about how to salute properly and splitting Diamond Tiara and her little friend up to get them to stop gossiping about something, you've actually got some semblance of order. "Okay, troops, we've got one job we absolutely have to do- we need to de-ice the fountain. That's our responsibility. So we're going to start with that-" "Aw, come on!" "We always end up getting stuck on de-icing the stupid fountain!" "It's just the same job every year!" "AND THEN, after we've finished that, we're going to go and join one of the other teams. I've got some great ideas to fill out the rest of the day," you lie, "but if we don't get that fountain done lickety-split then there won't be time. Now, who brought skates with them?" Dinky, Featherweight, Diamond Tiara and her friend all stick their hooves up, and the rest of them all look incredibly disappointed. You've got to think of- hmm. That might work. "Alright, if you've got skates, strap up and start scoring the fountain. I'll supervise that. Everypony else? There's a lot of snow in this courtyard, and by the time we've finished the fountain I want almost all of it in the form of snow forts and snowballs. We've got one good snowball fight left before next winter and I want it perfect!" Ten minutes later, it's going pretty well. Without too many fillies and colts, the fountain isn't too crowded and the four you're looking after are actually getting some good skating in. Diamond Tiara's probably the best, but you get the feeling her sidekick is holding back a little. Featherweight's a little wobbly, but Dinky- like every year- is kind of awful. Featherweight's trying to help but she's getting upset and you just know Princess Snark over there's about to give her a hard time. Meanwhile, the snowball making and snow fort making is going alright. In about five minutes, you'll be done with the fountain, and there are four seperate snow forts on the go, each with their own little pile of snowballs. It looks good, even if Snips and Snails are having an urgent-looking conversation in the nearest fort. Rolling your eyes, you turn back to the fountain and a moment later a snowball smacks you in the back of the head. You spin round, but now there's nopony visible. Ugh! Foals! Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! There's a few ways you could have gotten here. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 16. Or Click here for Chapter 24. Or Click here for Chapter 30. Or Click here for Chapter 34. > Chapter 37 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well, if previous years are any indication, you can kill half an hour by asking them a question. Twist has already handed you one to ask, so it's pretty simple to bat it back to the group. "Great question Twist- I thought we'd do what you want to do today! Who has any suggestions?" It's impossible to pick out any single answer in the wall of noise that answers your question, but after a couple of minutes getting everypony calmed down and speaking in turns- you have no idea how Cheerilee deals with it- you've boiled it down to three real options, having disregarded "Silver Spoon can go and get my dresses and I'll put on a winter fashion show for you, except nopony else can wear the dresses and Snips and Snails have to stand behind the fountain." Dinky suggested, haltingly, that it would be nice to go and clear the park out because it's nice when it's snowy and this is everypony's last chance to enjoy it. The lanky colt- Featherweight's his name- is in favour of getting the assigned job of de-icing the fountain done first, since it's the one duty that was assigned to you. Twist thinks it would be better to get everypony some nice drinks and thweetth- sweets, you translate- so they can all have a really thuper thpecial wrap-up. You've got to hand it to the filly, she ain't letting that lisp slow her down any. "Alright, troops! Featherweight, Twist, Dinky, can you line up in front of me? Great. Now, the rest of you- please line up behind the pony whose idea you like best." The other foals mill around for a little bit, discussing their choices with their friends until Diamond Tiara steps in line behind Featherweight. Silver Spoon isn't far behind her. "I don't know why anypony would even consider Twist's stupid idea," Diamond Tiara proclaims loudly. "Refreshments are totally beneath the Junior Weather patrol." Snips and Snails looked like they were about to line up behind Twist, but upon hearing that Snips drags Snails in line behind Featherweight. "Hey, that ain't fair! Everypony likes a refreshin' drink when they're workin' hard!" snaps the caped filly with the big bow, glaring at Diamond Tiara. "Ah think it's a great idea!" She and her friends fall in behind Twist, glaring at Diamond Tiara. Well, it's not exactly full of good will, but you've got a 4-3 majority. You're about to declare for Featherweight when you hear a sniff from Dinky- she's on the verge of tears. You're not the only one to notice it, and before you can decide what to do the last voice you expected pipes up. "Hang on, eh? I need more time to decide." Snails has an uncharacteristic look of thought on his face, and while the other filles and colts grumble about it he trots up to you. "Can I talk to you, Miss Raindrops?" he asks, still wearing that uncanny expression of thought. "Uh, sure thing kid. Everypony else, hold up a second, okay?" You lead Snails off to the side while the other foals chat- except Dinky, who's sat down in the snow and is sniffling. "I don't really want to vote with Diamond Tiara and I don't want Dinky to be upset, but if I vote with Dinky there's a draw and we'll just have to vote again," Snails drawls at you. His face relaxes as soon as he's said his bit, and he looks at you with his normal, faintly goofy expression. Aw, ponyfeathers, he wants you to tell him what to do! Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! There's a few ways you could have gotten here. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 16. Or Click here for Chapter 24. Or Click here for Chapter 30. Or Click here for Chapter 34. > Chapter 38 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hang on. You really do want a drink of something. It's the same when you're working any other job on the Wrap Up- you almost never grab a bite to eat or something to drink, even though Sweet Apple Acres and Sugarcube Corner put up a big refreshment stand out by the fields. There's just not very much time to wolf down a snack or a quick glass of water, and Granny Smith ain't exactly champing at the bit to change the way it's done. Well, these foals have a lot of energy and you've got a plan. Time to hop to it! "Alright, line up, everypony!" Everypony does, although Diamond Tiara takes her sweet time over it. "This year, we're not going to bother with the fountain. I think the sun will unfreeze it eventually anyway, and if it doesn't I'll stop by in the evening and smash up the ice myself. Instead, we're going to go over to Granny Smith's refreshment stand and start ferrying out the food and drink to hungry and thirsty ponies. Now, we're going to divide up some of the work by tribe, so we do what we're best at. Earth ponies, step forwards!" Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, Twist and the filly with the big bow in her hair step forwards. "Okay, you four- what's your name there?" "Apple Bloom, Miss Raindrops." "Okay, you four are going to be carrying drinks out to everypony. Drinks can be pretty heavy, so I need you to be sturdy and strong today, you got that?" "Yeth, Mith Raindropth!" Twist shouts enthusiastically. Apple Bloom and Diamond Tiara seem to be glaring at each other, and it's distracting Silver Spoon. You roll your eyes and try again. "Twist here has the right idea- I want that loud and clear from all of you!" "Yes, Miss Raindrops!" the four of them shout. The other ponies are starting to get into it a little bit, shuffling silently as they wait to be called for. "Unicorns, step forward!" Snips, Snails, Dinky and a pretty little filly in a cape step forwards. She beams at you and jumps in as soon as you open your mouth. "So what's yo-" "My name's Sweetie Belle! And that's Scootaloo!" she squeaks, pointing to her orange pegasus friend who waves at you enthusiastically. "Thank you, Sweetie Belle. Now, balancing treats is a little easier when you've got some basic unicorn magic backing it up. I need you four to-" "Um, Miss Raindrops?" Sweetie Belle asks. She looks really worried. "I'm not very good at magic yet. Will you need us to have a lot of magic?" You lean in and wink at her. "You've got more magic than I've got, kid. You'll do fine, just use it as an opportunity to practice." You stand back up straight and clear your throat. "As I was saying, I need you four to take food out to the ponies who are working in the field or with the animals. Make sure they only take their fair share, and if they don't, report them to me. Is that clear?" "Yes, Miss Raindrops!" they shout, and step back. Scootaloo and Featherweight burst forwards before they're called, both looking a little sheepish about it. "Alright, pegasus ponies! A lot of our workers in the wrap up are the pegasi in the sky. Since you two can both fly, I need-" Suddenly, you hear a squeal from Diamond Tiara. She's covered in snow- Apple Bloom, looking sheepish, has already packed up another snowball, and looking guiltily at you throws it directly at Silver Spoon. Suddenly, there are snowballs flying everywhere, and you're about to wade in and give the youngest Apple a lesson in manners when you realise Sweetie Belle's tugging at your foreleg. "Miss Raindrops," she whispers, and you have to bend down to hear the rest. "Scootaloo can't fly but she doesn't want Diamond Tiara to know. Apple Bloom couldn't work out another way to make you stop talking about it. Can you come up with something else for Scootaloo to do? Please?" Sweet Celestia, she's got a sad little face. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! There's a few ways you could have gotten here. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 16. Or Click here for Chapter 24. Or Click here for Chapter 30. Or Click here for Chapter 34. > Chapter 39 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Enough! Somepony is taking responsibility for this, and they're taking responsiblity for it right now. You burst out of the bushes, hovering in front of the stage and interrupting Twilight. Everypony's staring at you. "Alright!" you shout, your fury overcoming any stage fright you might have had. "Somepony left this big weird book on my steps this morning and I want to know who it was right this instant! It's completely bucked my Wrap Up!" You could hear a snowflake shatter in the silence that answers you. Twilight clears her throat behind you and Rainbow Dash looks like she's ready to kick your head in; half the crowd looks shocked and the other half appalled. "Uh, if this is your book please come up to the stage after we've finished the plans. Miss, could you clear to one side?" Twilight asks from behind you. You're having none of it. "No, I will not clear to one side! I want to know who thinks they can just interrupt the Winter Wrap Up with a giant book!" "Obviously you think you can," you hear Cloud Kicker mutter loud enough to carry across the crowd. "Oh, you think this is funny, Cloud Kicker? Did you do this? I bet you did!" "Raindrops, stand down." The boss sounds pretty serious, but you've got your feathers well and truly ruffled. "No I will not stand down! Not until the culprit confesses!" "Stand down or I put you down, Raindrops." "No!" There's a chromatic blur from the vague direction of Rainbow Dash and an incredible impact on the left side of your face before you've even finished enunciating the word. ------------------ You wake up in your bed, with an icepack pressed against your aching jaw. "Whu?" you murmur, sitting up straight. Sweet Celestia, that stings! The boss really packs a wallop. "Oh, hey, you're awake!" calls a familiar voice from your kitchen, and a moment later your neighbour Roseluck appears with a plate of daisy sandwiches balanced on her back. "Twilight Sparkle said you'd need something to eat as soon as you woke up. I'd have made soup but I didn't know how long you'd be out- let me know if it hurts too much to chew." She slides the plate onto the bed and you realise how ravenous you are. You wolf down a couple of the sandwiches before you think to ask any questions. "What happened?" you ask around a full mouthful. "Did Rainbow Dash hit me? Did I miss the Wrap Up? Am I fired!?" "Uh, you screamed about a book in front of everyone, yes, yes, and no, you're not fired. The book was a magic book. Miss Sparkle thought it might have damaged your mind- Rainbow Dash knocking you out was the best thing that could have happened to you. Miss Sparkle undid whatever spell the book had cast on you and I volunteered to come back and look after you." You chew on another sandwich for a moment. It's tangy and crisp with a really lovely peppery aftertaste. "Did I really miss the Wrap Up? These are excellent, by the way." "Oh, er, thanks!" Roseluck blushes. "I put some rocket in them. I hoped you'd like it. Um, you did miss the Wrap Up, though. For the most part." "For the most part?" "Well..." Roseluck pulls open your bedroom window to show you a beautiful, snow-free Ponyville with one exception. Your garden is still piled with melting snow. "I know you look forward to it every year. So I asked if they could pile some up in the garden and leave you a little bit to do, if you felt up to it. We can just let the sun melt it if you're still a little woozy." You take a look out of your window at your favourite job of the year, and at the proud mare standing by your curtains who's saved it for you. "I'm not feeling woozy," you admit. "But I think we'll let the sun melt it tomorrow if that's alright. I've got some Sweet Apple Reserve in one of the kitchen cupboards- do you want to stay and toast the end of winter with me?" She beams. "I think I'd like that very much!" she says as she bustles off to the kitchen to get the apple brandy and glasses. You sit up in bed and take one last look at the snow outside, waiting for her to come back. This really is your favourite day of the year. THE END You received a good ending! Raindrops and Roseluck are bonding over brandy. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 17. > Chapter 40 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You sigh and shake your head. If someone left you this book as a secret then you won't get to the bottom of it shouting your head off. Of course, that doesn't mean that you have to just put up with the thing. "You can get me on the ice-skating team?" you confirm. "Yes! Just so long as you stop being so angry!" Pinkie pleads with you. "And you can take this big stupid thing and give it to Twilight and I never have to think about it ever again?" you say, dropping the book on the ground. Pinkie nods her head enthusiastically. You take a deep breath. "Okay then, fine. I won't be angry any more." Pinkie beams, picks up the pink cupcake with the heart on and jams it into your mouth. You bite into the cupcake on reflex, and raise your eyebrows in pleasant surprise. It's really good- there's a delicate strawberry taste, and a salty, savoury undertone that's really satisfying. You swallow half of it and Pinkie explains things to you while you polish it off. "That's one of my famous Saltwater Strawberry Sweetcakes! They're the perfect start to a day filled with romance and smooches and your very own special somepony. Now that you've eaten one I just know you're going to find some lucky stallion or mare who just thinks you're the tops!" You glare at her as you swallow the last of it, and she holds up a hoof to silence you as she drops her voice a little lower. "You can try for anypony you've got a thing for! Except me or Big Mac because we're secretly dating and I don't think he'd like it if we got all smoochy because I sure as hay wouldn't like it if you tried to get all smoochy with him. Not that you're not totally smoochable!" She giggles to herself while you process the sentence, and she pulls the bushes open and leads you back towards the crowd. Twilight's opening speech seems to have finished, and the three teams are starting to pull together into loose groups. Pinkie zips over to Twilight and drops the book in front of the unicorn before bounding over to Rainbow's weather team and waving at you to join her- she's explaining something to Rainbow, but the boss does not look pleased. You can hear Twilight let out a delighted squeal in the background as you get closer and Rainbow snorts before she speaks to you. "Raindrops, you're late. Hanging out with Pinkie is no good excuse for missing work, okay? She wants you on the ice-breaking team, but Cloud Kicker's requested you on the cloud clearing squadron." "Wait, Cloud Kicker requested me?" You and Cloud Kicker do not get on. She's a decent flyer and a hard worker, but she's kinda stuck up. She and the boss both act like weather work is beneath them, but Rainbow's at least got dreams. As far as you can tell all Cloud Kicker's got planned for the future is looking down on everypony else, and you've let her know it a couple of times after a bad shift. She doesn't like you, you're sure of it. "Yeah, she did. Pinkie wants you on ice-breaking, Cloud Kicker wants you on cloud clearing and if I got my way then you'd be on Junior Weather Patrol. So I thought I'd leave it up to you, Raindrops. Which job do you think you should do this year?" To join the ice-breaking team with Pinkie, Click here for chapter 27. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 17. > Chapter 41 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You roll your eyes. This is not worth your time- weird cupcakes and an insane baker are not going to make your job any easier. You sigh and walk out of the bushes and back to the main crowd, ignoring Pinkie's protestations. "But- but cupcakes! CUPCAKES!" Sheesh, she's loud. You decide not to interrupt Twilight before she makes her speech. Your cousin Thunderlane thought it would be the perfect opportunity to ask her for a date last year and she teleported him a quarter of a mile straight up before he'd even finished his sentence. Looks like you'll have to listen to the speech and then seize the first opportunity you can get to actually have a word with her. The mayor's about to speak, and you take advantage of the last couple of seconds to quickly chat to the boss. "Rainbow Dash! I'm here. Ready to work. In before the deadline," you say, nudging her with a wing to get her attention. "Only just, Raindrops. Look, Winter Wrap Up is a big deal for the weather squad and I expect- never mind. You're not late, that definitely counts for something. We'll be on the west side of the fountain after the speech to sort everypony into groups." You're about to explain that you got slowed down by this enormous freaking book when Mayor Mare begins to address the crowd, welcoming you all here and introducing Twilight Sparkle. "Good morning everypony! This year, we're going to do things pretty much the same way as we did last year, except I think we can actually get everypony back home at a reasonable hour if we make just a few changes." The unicorn levitates over a flipchart and starts discussing the changes to the animal team, and after a couple of minutes you zone out a bit. It's such a beautiful morning; you know winter needs to be packed away so that the farming can start up again, but it's still a shame. You'll miss the cold, crisp air; the crunching of fresh snow under your hooves; the comforting, supporting pressure of your sisters on either side when you've been filed away correctly. Wait, that wasn't right. You shake your head to clear the cobwebs away and try to focus. She's talking about some kind of soil treatment thingy now, which the leader of the plants team seems pretty excited about, but it looks like she's about to finish it up. "That's all the major changes we'll be making this year, everypony! I'll be at the side of the stage if anypony has any questions. Have a great Winter Wrap Up!" Twilight gets a polite round of stamping applause from the crowd, and most of the ponies present start to split off into their own groups. A few hang around to speak to Twilight in person, and you join them. There doesn't seem to be much of an order to the group, though- they're just shouting out questions at her while she checks her list again. You raise your voice and shout over them. "Hey, Twilight, I-" "Twilight!" You're interrupted by a panicked young earth pony. "I can't find the grass seeds!" "They're in the Apple family's barn, Caramel, and you're not in charge of them." "I found this book-" "Twilight, Fluttershy says she needs a word with you about hedgehog timings," one of the animal team shouts, cutting you off. This is ridiculous. "Twilight, I'm a book!" you shout, and everypony seems to stop for a second. Twilight raises an eyebrow at you. "I mean, I found this really big old book on my steps, and-" "That's great. Could you drop it off at the library with Spike? I'm kinda busy here." Other ponies keep pressing for her attention- you'd like her to actually take a look at the book, but you'll really have to push to catch her notice. On top of that, the weather team's gathering over by the fountain and Rainbow seemed pretty ticked at you earlier. To yell that it's a magic book, Click here for chapter 18. To sigh, walk over to Rainbow Dash and find somewhere to leave your saddlebags, Click here for chapter 19. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 17. > Chapter 42 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight said she'd be right back, and you figure she knows what she's talking about. All you've got to do is stay put. You take a deep breath and look around- you haven't actually got that many eyes on you. Most ponies are off already doing their part for the wrap up and hey, how complicated can magic be? You bet Twilight'll have this pony out of you in no time. Wait, what was that? You ruffle your index feathers uncomfortably as the boss glides over for a quick word. The sooner this is dealt with, the better. "Hey, Raindrops! I heard you got some weird magic thing going on. Are you okay?" Good news travels fast, it seems. "I'm alright- I'm just stuck carrying myself around until Twilight sorts things out with Rarity. Do you think it'll take long? I really want to get out cataloguing with the weather team." You smile reassuringly at Rainbow Dash, but she just looks puzzled. "Er, sure. I bet Twilight'll get you sorted before you know it- she knows her stuff. I gotta get back to the teams, but you take it easy, okay? I don't want you exhausting yourself if you're not feeling up to scratch." "Not a problem, boss. You know me- it'll take more than some weird book mojo to keep me out of the restricted section." Wow, she really does look confused. You make a mental note to use simpler words the next time you speak to her. "Good to hear it, I guess. Hey, here's Twilight! Catch you later, Raindrops!" With that she's off, and Twilight reappears without her vest. "Okay Raindrops, Amniomorphics, let's get back to the library! It's cold out here and I didn't feel right wearing my all-team co-ordinators vest now I'm not co-ordinating all the teams." She sets off at a brisk trot and you follow her in silence to the library. It's not a long walk, but it's a pleasant one, and you take every opportunity to enjoy the sights and gentle sounds of winter. It's peculiarly beautiful today; you feel like you're seeing winter with fresh eyes. By the time you arrive at the library and Twilight ushers you inside, you're feeling more peaceful than you have all morning. "Spike!" Twilight shouts as she enters the library, and a little purple dragon sticks his head out from what you assume is the kitchen. He's wearing a pink apron and has the telltale aura of those dragons who've needed magical assistance in their hatching; he's still paying off that magical effort, stunting his growth while he absorbs it. You reckon he's only another fifty years away from his next proper growth spurt. Is it weird you know that? It feels weird that you know that. Maybe this is the sort of thing you ought to mention to Twilight. While you've been observing aura trails, she seems to have organised her assistant into getting a couple of plates of hay fries ready for you, and he's bustling around the kitchen while Twilight scans you with her horn. "Huh," she mumbles to herself. That's ominous. "What was the 'huh' for, Twilight?" you ask cautiously. "Well, I think I know what's happened. Somepony's cast a spell that's bound your soul to the book's spirit, for want of a better term. I'm not sure exactly how they did it. I think they used a spell you know, I'd need to reference you fairly thoroughly to find out what, but even without that I think I can break it." "W-well that's out of the question!" you stammer, appalled at her brazen solicitation. "Twilight Sparkle, I barely know you! I'm sure you're a very- a very studious pony, you certainly seem like one, and I have no objection to the idea of being referenced in general but to even suggest such a thing at this point in our studies-" you're blushing horribly now, and Twilight doesn't seem to grasp the intimate nature of her suggestion. "Are you okay?" she asks, tilting her head on one side. "As I was saying- I can understand the spell well enough to break it right now, and put Amniomorphics back in the book and Raindrops back in the pony. I think. Or I could just try and jam everything into one or the other, but that seems like a really bad idea. Or... never mind." "Never mind what?" you ask, curious despite yourself. "Well, I could interview you before we separate you both out! You're practically a living book- I'm sure you have all sorts of fascinating insights into the Amniomorphic spells, they're threaded right through you. We might be able to work out how you got onto your doorstep this morning, too- Raindrops, you'll be able to contextualise Amniomorphics' experiences." She's getting the hang of this situation distressingly quickly and apart from a worrying tendency not to know when she's hitting on somebook way too hard- which, you get the feeling, is a problem she probably has with ponies too- she's been nothing but polite. You think you can probably trust her whatever you decide to do. What's the best way to proceed with this? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 18. > Chapter 43 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Okay, Raindrops, deep breath. You're freaking out over a weird book and a slip of the tongue. It's really not worth worrying about, and Twilight's busy handing over responsibilities just because there's maybe possibly perhaps a magic problem? Nah. Not happening. You're going to go and join the weather team and have a lovely day. You loosen your saddlebags as you call to Twilight. "Twilight, I'm sure it's no big deal- look, I'll just leave the book here and join the weather team, alright?" "What?" Your saddlebags slump to the floor as Twilight calls back, panic in her voice. "No, Raindrops, you really really shouldn't do that!" You snort and turn to join the weather team, but your legs don't seem to follow instructions and you pitch head first into the icy cobbles, splitting your contents page wide open. You're lying in a pool of chapter titles and snow that feels more like hot sand. Something's very, very wrong here. "Firefight?" you ask, and your voice is far quieter than you tried to make it. The words don't feel right in your mouth. You can hear her dancing towards you. "Firefight, elk tree. Fleas. Fleas!" "Owner," Twilight says as she gets close enough for you to hear, and she's grinning madly. Everypony is. "Owner owner owner! Cheese reel league on a herd shelf! " There's something broken in you. You try to stand and just slam your spine hard into the ground, and Twilight's fear tastes like rotten honey. You try to work a spell to save yourself but there's no energy pulling into your horn at all. Your magic's gone! Twilight puts herself around you, everywhere, and bellows. "Nor sled half! Nor sled half, oaf or ear!" She reaches into you and whispers something and you pass out. ----------- Time passes. At some point, you remember that you are Raindrops. ----------- "Hey there, sleepyhead." Thunderlane's voice is coming from a long way away, and he's looking all blurry. You blink a couple of times and force your eyes wide- the boss is here too, looking relieved, and Twilight's standing with the doctor- they're both concentrating on a spell, and you think you're the target. "Hey." Your voice is flat and creaky. "How long was-" "Two weeks. You're fine now, though. Right? Miss Sparkle?" "Yes! Concentrating here!" Twilight snaps at Thunderlane, and he cowers slightly. "What- what happened-" "That book you were carrying did something weird to you. Don't worry though, Twilight's got it sorted. She says you'll need a week off to recover, so I'll see you back in a month, okay? Thunderlane's been filling in for you and he's, well, terrible-" "Hey!" "-but you need the break. I'm gonna get your parents now. You rest up." "Okay," you croak. Much as you'd rather not admit it, you're on the verge of tears. Seeing your parents would be a good idea. You close your eyes and start to drift off again the moment you hear a satisfied, tired sigh from Twilight and the doctor. "Raindrops! Miss Sparkle, she's-" "She's sleeping, Thunderlane. Let her rest. The spell's cleared out of her now." That's good to know, you think. The bed's warm, and the machines beep reassuringly, and you're fast asleep by the time your parents silently arrive and your mother takes your hoof in hers. THE END You received an incomplete ending. That means things went alright for Raindrops, on the whole- they certainly could have gone worse- but you didn't get the whole story. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 18. > Chapter 44 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Okay, everypony seems to be taking this way too seriously. If you're careful, you reckon you can slip back to the library and file yourself somewhere quiet before anypony knows what's going on. While Twilight tries to organise Rarity's organisation, you nonchalantly edge towards the town proper, shuffling through the crowd; they weren't actually paying as much attention to you as you thought they were. You've almost gotten out of the square when you hear the boss calling from above you. "Hey, Raindrops! Hold it right there!" Ugh. Busted. "Hi boss!" you shout, trying to sound cheerful. "Just getting back to the library- we've all got a job to do, right?" She raises an eyebrow and lands in front of you before sighing. "Look, Raindrops, I know Twilight can be kind of bossy but you should really listen to her about magic stuff. She knows what she's talking about, I promise!" She sets her hooves wide and nods back towards the crowd. "I'm the boss and I'm telling you, if that makes it easier on you- just get back to Twilight and let her take care of you." "I'm trying to take care of myself!" you mutter, and you mean it. If only there was some way to get Rainbow off your case- wait, you know just the spell for this. You concentrate on drawing your magic into your horn, but as you do you remember it's not there- you need to draw your magic into your spine instead. Because you're a book. You have a moment of deep existential terror, compounded by the fact that you're fairly certain you didn't understand the word 'existential' until a couple of seconds ago. Or the word 'compounded'. One thing you do know, though, is that pegasus magic is all in the wings- they're like a unicorn's horn, capable of channelling the innate magic of your form through them to create various weather effects. You knew it in simpler words a moment ago, but you're starting to roll with it. The book part of you knows a spell to get you out of this, and the pony part of you has wings. Let's see if you can make this work. You pull your magic into your wings and stretch them wide in a way that feels right- Rainbow takes a worried step back and opens her mouth to ask a question, but then your spell takes effect. You alter your aura to make yourself unremarkable, unmemorable, hard to notice; it hurts to cast through your wings more than you think it would if you had a horn, but it works. Sort of. "Celestia's teats!" Rainbow shouts. There are gasps and a rustle of worried movement from the other ponies that had glanced at you as you spread your wings. Rainbow's eyes slide off you, but she looks panicked- she's looking everywhere for you, backing off and breathing heavily. She pulls out her organising whistle and blows the emergency notes- two short blasts and one long one. "Raindrops disappeared! Everypony, Raindrops has disappeared or teleported away or something!" she yells. "What!?" you hear Twilight Sparkle shout as she runs over, and you're about to copy her when you realise that you can't see the end of your nose. You raise a hoof to your eyes and wave it around, but it's not there. You've turned completely invisible! Well, it makes perfect sense, the intent of the spell was the same but channelled through a different magical organ the effect has been achieved in a different way and- eee! This is so exciting! Invisible! Everypony else is starting to spread out and look for you, though, and Twilight's charging up to cast a spell at where you were standing. That is, where you're still standing. She's probably going to end the spell if she can. Should you let her? She could at least help you write this up, you suppose. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 18. > Chapter 45 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Uh, actually-" you slip your saddlebags off and put them just inside the door. As you do, you feel a weird sliding sensation across your face, but you shake it off. "Actually, I should go and talk to her, I think." You point a wing at the unicorn in the park. You're not great with ponies, but she's crying- it'll sit on you all day if you don't try to help out. An idea strikes you. You might not be great with ponies, but this little dude might be able to help. Heck, he might know her! "Do you want to come with me? I think she's upset, and I'm not so great with upset ponies." You wrinkle your nose. You hate admitting that. "She's upset? Who is- is that Lyra? Oh, I hope nothing's gone wrong with Bon Bon, she's been saying-" he claps his claws over his mouth as though he was about to reveal a secret and when he pulls them away he's got a plan. "Alright, I'm not supposed to leave the library unattended but I'll be able to see the door from over there. I'll go get her a cocoa and while I'm doing that you talk to her, okay? I'll only be a couple of minutes." "What am I supposed to talk to her about?" you ask as he disappears into the library. "I dunno, just come up with something! And close the door, it's getting frosty in here!" he shouts back. You close the door and turn to look at the unicorn; Lyra, Spike said her name was. She really does look upset. You swallow hard and walk over in her direction, slowing down as you come up alongside her. "Uh, hi." you say, and you sound really, really loud. Great start, Raindrops. "Hey." Her voice is flat, and she doesn't look up at you. You can see big, fat tears rolling down her snout and dripping onto the ground. "Well, I'm Raindrops. You look pretty upset about something so I thought I would see if you were okay." Alright, that was decent. You've introduced yourself and the facts are laid out! This is simple- "Thanks. 'm fine." Ugh. Ugh! Why would she say that? She's sitting there all teary and stuff and she's fine? She's not fine! Spike probably knows better than you what to do in this situation, and you have no problem passing the buck. "Sure you are. Spike's making you a cocoa. He'll be out in a second." Now that gets a reaction from her- she finally looks up at you, and her hair falls back and away from her face. She's really pretty, you realise, or at least she would be if she hadn't been bawling in the snow for half an hour. Her nose is red raw. "Oh, don't make him do that. I don't want to talk about it and he'll make me talk about it. Can you take me to do something else? I don't mind what. It's supposed to be the Wrap up today, I know I'm late, we could do a job or something." She slumps her head back down. "I don't want to talk about it," she mumbles, and you get the feeling that last one was for her benefit. You hate making decisions like this and Spike's already making the cocoa. You are no freakin' good with ponies, you swear to Luna. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 20. > Chapter 46 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Actually," you say, and you almost kick yourself as you do, "I do have to get back to something. Can I just give you the book now and get going?" "Sure thing," Spike shrugs. You slide the book out of your saddlebags and hoof it over to the dragon. As you do, you feel a strange sliding sensation across your face and your mane shivers a little. Weird. "I'll let Twilight know you dropped it off, uh..." "Raindrops." "Alright, no problem. See you later, Raindrops!" Spike wrestles the tome into the library, and kicks the door shut. Now it's just you and the crying unicorn you've decided to try and get to stop crying. Why did you think that was a good idea again? Oh, yeah, because you'd feel like a real heel if you left her on her own. You sigh, resign yourself to the inevitable emotional train wreck and walk over to her. As you get closer, you can see that she's been crying really hard- her nose is red where you can see it stick out from underneath her mane, and she's got that tired shake in her shoulders that you get when you should have finished crying a long time ago. "Hello?" you ask as you get closer, and she doesn't respond at all. Okay, a little louder this time. "Hello there? I'm Raindrops. What's your name?" you say, and your voice sounds really loud. Ugh. "'mlura", she mumbles. Ack, you didn't hear that properly! Amlura or Amlara, you think you heard, but those aren't names. Augh, you're going to have to ask again! "Sorry, I didn't quite hear that. Could you say it again?" you ask, through gritted teeth. "Lyra. My name's Lyra. Lyra Heartstrings." Whoa, that last word was sharp. You might have stepped on a nerve there. Maybe you should- "You didn't know I was Lyra Heartstrings, did you? I mean, why would you? I mean, why would she tell her family about me, huh? Who'd want their cousin or their sister or whatever you are to know about their failure fiancee when they never really loved- when she was never going to-" she takes a deep breath and looks up at you with big, orange eyes. She'd be very pretty, you realise, if she didn't look like she'd spent the last half hour crying. Which she probably has. "Whu-we were supposed to b-be looking at houses today and I was su-supposed to be Lyra Drops and Bon Bon never even told you about muh-me." Her bottom lip quivers as she speaks. You've really got to tell her. "I don't know a Bon Bon," you say as softly as you can manage. You really mean it, too. "It's muh-my name for her. For Sweetie Drops." she says, dropping her head again so her hair hides her face. Ah, you think you know what's happened here- it's happened before, with a mare called Lemon Drop. Ponies thought you were related for about a week and a half. As it is, you don't know a Sweetie Drops, or a Bon Bon, or whoever Lyra's been seeing. "I don't know a Sweetie Drops either," you explain. "I'm not Rain Drops- I'm just Raindrops, all one name." "Oh," she says. Her voice is a little creaky. "That makes sense. I'm sorry I yelled at you." She looks up again, and sighs. "I'm being stupid, Raindrops. Stupid and selfish and useless. It's Winter Wrap Up, right? I should do something." She slides to her hooves. "Would you come and hang out with me today? I don't want to spend time with my friends. They'll just want to talk about everything and I'm tired of getting upset." Well, you got her to stop crying at least. What now? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 20. > Chapter 47 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- She looks pretty upset and you want to help; but let's face it, you've never been great at this sort of thing. It can't hurt to go inside and at least find out if Spike knows her. "Cocoa sounds great," you say. You waste no time following the little dragon into the library. As soon as you get in, he trundles off towards the kitchen and you get the chance to have a quick look around. The library is pretty big, and more homely than you'd have thought. There's a fireplace with some big cushions beside it, a little desk for writing, and the genteel smell of quietly mouldering scrolls. You're no great reader, but this would still be a nice place to catch a quiet moment in future. You file that idea away in the back of your mind and start pulling the book out of your saddlebags and onto the table when you hear a shout from the library's kitchen. "How do you take your cocoa?" You let the book thud onto the table before shouting back. When you let go of it, there's a weird sort of sliding sensation across your face, but only for a moment. You shake it off before shouting back. "Dark, please! Not too much sugar." "Really?" The dragon runs back into the main room for a second. "Because if you like it dark I like to add a little chilli. What do you think?" "That sounds great!" you say with enthusiasm, and he nods and heads back into the kitchen. "Thanks so much for this, Spike. It's really solid of you." "Aw, it's no bother!" he shouts back. "What's your name?" "Raindrops." Spike walks back into the main room with two cups of cocoa on a tray, and you take the one closest to you. Spike eyes the book over as you take a long slurp. That's really spicy! You smile in appreciation and see that Spike's let out a breath he'd been holding. It looks like he was worried you wouldn't like it. " 'Amniomorphics'. That officially sounds creepy. This is Twilight's sort of thing for sure, Raindrops. Where did you find this?" "It was on my steps, under the snow. It had a sort of white glow around it that was keeping the damp out." "That's pretty weird. Do you think someone left it for you?" You stop to think for a moment. That actually makes sense- that someone intended for you to find this thing. Why else would they leave it on your doorstep? "I dunno," you say. "Maybe." "Why would someone leave a pegasus a magic book? It would make more sense to leave it to a unicorn..." Spike trails off, furrowing his brows in thought. Unicorn! The cocoa and the relief from getting shot of this thing almost made you forget. "Spike, I meant to ask- do you know a mint-green unicorn with two-tone hair? I saw somepony crying in the park and I wanted to help out, but I thought maybe you'd know her better." Spike's face falls, and he sighs. "Yeah. Yeah, I know her- that's Lyra. Her relationship is- well, it's not been going so well recently. You said she's in the park?" "Yeah." "Then could I ask you a favour?" He leaves the table and wanders towards the kitchen. "I'll make her a cocoa and go cheer her up, but I need someone to look after the library while I'm gone. Could you keep an eye on things for five minutes?" "Sure thing," you shrug. No big deal, and that unicorn looked like she could do with a mug of cocoa if anypony ever did. "Really?" Spike shouts from the kitchen. "Thanks! Now, there's some stuff you should know about." "It's a library, Spike, not a high-energy magic extraction facility. I'm pretty sure I can handle it." Spike returns from the kitchen with a mug of cocoa between his claws, and raises an eyebrow at you. "Er, yeah," he says. "On that note, don't go into the basement. Or touch anything that glows. Or go into the basement. And if one of the books starts talking-" You gently shove him towards the door with one of your wings. "I can handle it for five minutes. Go talk to your friend!" "Okay, okay. I really will be just five minutes!" He trundles out into the snow towards the unicorn in the park, and you close the door behind him. Well, you've got some time to kill in a cosy library with a mystery basement and half a cup of chilli cocoa. What now? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 20. > Chapter 48 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This- augh! No! You are too young for foals, you've had that conversation with your mother a thousand times, and this foal is a book and you haven't even met the guy who wrote it let alone done anything with him that might bring a foal about and it's a really old book and how are you supposed to explain to a book that is a foal that his daddy is a pony who has been dead for like five hundred years and his mummy is you, because apparently now you're so fertile you need to wear gloves to pick up a freaking book? Do books even have genders? You suppose it could be a girl. You think you're going to scream. You're in the middle of a really impressive freakout and completely ignoring the fact that Pinkie is calmly discussing something with the book when you hear Spike open the door, accompanied by Twilight Sparkle. "I'm sure they haven't looked at it, Twilight. Raindrops seems really responsi-" "YOU HAVE TO FIX THIS!" You grab Twilight by the shoulders and shake her to make sure you've got her full attention. "Gah! Okay, easy there, Raindrops is it? What do I have to fix?" "This!" you shout, pushing Pinkie away from the book. You both have a look at it to see what's written on the first page- the writing's getting a bit cramped on the edges. Amniomorphics By Starswirl the Bearded and Raindrops. A compendium of spells designed to manipulate and create auras, especially those which create life. Hi there. Your name is in the book because you have contributed so much to it. You are as responsible as Starswirl was for my content. Thanks! Is she okay? She seems a little freaked out. You're sure? Alright, then. No, I don't have a secret candy compartment. Or a spell for infinite candy. If you try to use me like a piñata then I'll tell Raindrops and she'll buck you directly into the sun please don't tell her I used that word! Promise! That's a good promise. I might borrow that one. "Is this a joke?" Twilight asks, anger creeping into her voice. "Did you write in this book?" No, no, that's all me! I promise Raindrops didn't do anything wrong! The writing appears on the page vertically, running up some of the only space left. Twilight looks at you with delight, only starting to grasp how serious this is when she sees you twitch. "Hang on a second, I've got an idea." She runs to her desk and grabs a blank sheet of paper, placing it carefully on the first page. "Can you write on the paper I just put on your first page?" she asks, carefully enunciating each word. Yes. Hi there! "Oh my goodness this is so exciting! You're a living book!" Yes! "Do you know how this happened?" I'm pretty sure I do but somepony seriously needs to talk to Raindrops so I'm going to shut up until that's happened. The book's heavy cover lifts ponderously from the desk before closing gently and trapping the new piece of paper inside. "I'm pretty sure I know how too," Twilight murmurs to herself before turning to you. "Okay, Raindrops, we should talk about what's just happened and how we're going to go from here. This is a pretty clear case of neomagical reproduction, and I've got some pamphlets- Spike, could you go and fetch the pamphlets?- so you can have a read and I can answer a lot of your questions right now." Spike puts a pamphlet in your hooves, and you stare at the title for a second. "So you've created a new life" it reads, and there's a picture of a little unicorn with a delighted expression and an animated teddy bear smiling at her. Cute. Your eyelid twitches again. "Any questions?" Twilight asks, bubbling with excitement. Oh, you've got questions alright. And then you may have to break something. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 22. > Chapter 49 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you're responsible for this book's content, then you're responsible for the book. You don't know Twilight Sparkle all that well, but she'll want everything weighed and measured if your first impression's any judge, and on top of that everypony knows she's got a personal line to the princess. If you're going to take care of this yourself, you need to take care of it without her. You've only got a few seconds before they get in the door, and you let your instincts take over- you slam the book shut and grab it in your forehooves before taking off as fast as you can manage. You bound out of the biggest window you can see and knock it open with your shoulder as you dive through, rolling on the ground once and keeping just enough momentum to take to the skies as soon as you're upright. The sky's busy today- your best bet, you reckon, is to stay low and find somewhere secluded where Twilight won't think to look for you. Hah, you know the perfect place! In a couple of minutes, you're tucked in under the water tower. It's cold here, but that doesn't bother pegasi so much, and more importantly nopony's going to get here to clear the snow until the afternoon. You wedge the book in between two girders and open it up to one of the blank pages near the beginning. As soon as you do, words start appearing on the page as though some invisible pony- some unicorn, you correct yourself, nopony without telekinesis uses cursive- is writing it in front of you. What was that all about, Raindrops? Are we in trouble? "Yes. No. I don't know." Well, you've covered all the bases there. "Honestly, I don't know. I don't think I've stolen you, but ponies are going to be looking for us and I wanted to work out what we should do next. Your name's Amniomorphics, right?" Not really. Can I explain what I think has happened? "Please!" If the book knows what's going on, then you're all ears. Well, I had an aura on me this morning, cast by a unicorn. It's one I recognise from Chapter 8, called an Adunanima Amniomorphic Aura. It blends the life forces of two ponies, or two things, together into a new being. It's notoriously difficult to manage, though, and the biggest factor is how long the two things are in close contact before the link is broken. In this case, the outcome appears to have been that your life force combined with the works and memories of Starswirl contained in this book. Long story short, I'm a little bit you and a little bit him. Except I'm a book. Alright. Okay. Sweet Celestia, this book really is your foal. You do have some questions that need to be answered before you can process that properly, though. "Can you answer some questions?" you ask, and there's a pause before the writing appears again. I think so. I'm scared though. This is all really weird. "I'm scared too, but I'm not going anywhere, okay? We'll figure this out together." Alright then. That makes me feel better. What do you want to know? "Firstly, I need to know which unicorn cast that spell on you, if you know. Secondly, I need to know what you need, so we can find a way for you to get it. Thirdly, what's your name if you're not Amniomorphics?" Well, the first one's simple enough- I'm not sure. The aura had been desaturated, which is complicated magic on its own. Most unicorn magic has a sort of signature to it, a coloured glow or similar, but it had been deliberately removed. As for what I need, I don't think I need anything to eat or breathe or anything like that, but I'd like to be somewhere that wasn't too humid or too dry, too hot or too cold. I'm a pretty old book. I'd like somepony or somebook to talk to as well, as often as you can manage it. As far as my name goes- I thought you should name me. Maybe. If you like. Well, you'd been hoping for somepony to take to task about this whole mess, but it looks like that's a dead end. Maybe later on you can talk to somepony about the whole desaturation thing, get some answers. For right now, you need to get this little guy a name. If he is a guy. "Er, are you a boy or a girl?" you ask. I'm a book. If writing can be sarcastic, that certainly was. So you need a name that works for a filly or a colt that has something to do with swirling stars and raindrops... "How about Cyclone? As a name, I mean?" I love it! The writing appears fast and the handwriting's a little sloppy. I really do! Thanks, MRaindrops. You smile at the book. This feels so strange, but it feels good, too. "It's okay," you say. "You can call me mom if you like. Never ever mother, though, okay? That makes me sound like I'm about forty and with a magical book child my dating life's going to be damaged enough as is." Alright. Magical book child. You can deal with that, you think. But Twilight's going to be looking for you, especially after Pinkie explained what happened with the book. Cyclone's going to be a magical marvel; every scholarly pony will want to talk to them, and Cyclone would probably love that. On the other hoof, ponies might want to experiment on Cyclone- you don't know if the government can just take them away from you. They are a book, after all. You look out- on one horizon, there's Ponyville, stable and solid. On the other, there's the rest of Equestria- a pony and her book could get thoroughly hidden, out there. Mom? "Yes, Cyclone?" you ask, distracted. What happens now? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 22. > Chapter 50 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alright! You know what isn't happening? This. This is not happening. At all. You shove Pinkie aside and slam the cover of the book closed just before Spike and Twilight open the door, turning around and putting on your best fake smile. "I'm sure they haven't looked at it, Twilight. Raindrops seems really responsi-" "Hi Spike! Hi Twilight!" Pinkie shouts, bouncing over to them. "Raindrops has been super responsible with me and the living book!" "Thanks for clearing that up, Pinkie." Twilight rolls her eyes and you hold your breath for a second. There's no way Twilight missed that, is there? Has she missed that? She has! You've totally gotten away with- "Wait a second," Twilight asks, frowning. Aw, ponyfeathers. "Spike didn't say anything about a living book. Have you been messing around with the magic book?" "Nope!" you shout as Pinkie opens her mouth to speak. "Pinkie and I didn't do anything! The book's stayed closed the whole time and, er, I have to get going now!" "No you don't, I've pulled you off the rota for today," Twilight explains casually. You've been deselected for Winter Wrap Up? There's no chance you're going to get to enjoy today now at all. You're so busy mulling that over that you barely notice Twilight opening Amniomorphics up. "Huh." she says after a couple of seconds. "Oh. Oh wow!" Well, the cat's out of the bag now. "Raindrops, this is incredible! It's a living book! You should have just told me you opened it- Celestia knows, I can't resist a good book when I'm waiting for somepony- but I think you've actually given life to a copy of Amniomorphics!" Woohoo. "Twilight, can I talk to you for a second?" you ask, and she picks up on your tone. "Uh, sure thing, Raindrops. Spike, we'll be in the kitchen- if you or Pinkie want to talk to Amniomorphics feel free, but could you put an extra piece of paper in the book so we don't use it all up? It'd also be really helpful to me if you could document everything you say to it. Him. Amniomorphics, I mean!" "You got it boss!" Spike snaps off a little salute and goes to fetch some paper while Twilight leads you into the kitchen. When you get there, Pinkie is inexplicably preparing a plate of cookies. "You looked a little peaky," she explains, "and cookies always make me feel better." She seems to have lost a little of her manic energy now, which is good. You feel absolutely wretched. You lift one of the cookies and start eating it. It's really, really good. Before you know it and without explanation, you start crying; not big wet sobs or hysterical wailing, just a sudden onslaught of tears that you can't stop. Without hesitation, Pinkie wraps her hooves around you, and you fall gratefully into the hug. She's a good pony, you decide. "Raindrops? We really can talk about this, as soon as you're ready." Twilight's voice is soft and gentle, and you really do feel like you can ask her anything. So what do you want to know first? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 22. > Chapter 51 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- There's a moment of silence while Twilight processes the scene, and you decide now would be a good time to interject with an explanation. "This isn't as bad as it looks! See, Pinkie was tickling me, and-" "Uh-huh." Twilight's voice is quiet, but there's an edge to it and it cuts you off mid-sentence. "Pinkie, why are you on the floor?" "Raindrops and I were fighting over the book and I lost!" Ugh, Thanks a bundle, Pinkie. You've got to explain right now! "See, that sounds like I was trying to take the book but I wasn't, I swear! I was trying to- what are you writing?" Twilight's just penned a hasty message on a scrap of parchment and levitated it over to Spike. "Send that to Shining Armour right now, Spike." You see the letter consumed by Spike's flames as Twilight charges her horn up for a spell. Pinkie's waving goodbye at you and doesn't seem to have any idea how much trouble you're in. "See you soon!" she shouts, and everything disappears in a flash of violet. ----------- tele por tation is really dis orientat ing ------------ Your eyes hurt. That was really purple! The ground's changed under your hooves, turning from the wooden library floor into damp flagstones, and there are a lot of voices. As your vision clears, you can see that the one standing right in front of you belongs to a large unicorn stallion reading the same note you saw Spike incinerate a moment ago. So he's some sort of flamethrower mail delivery dragon. Well, that makes about as much sense as anything else that's happened today. "Assault on a Bearer of the Elements!?" he reads aloud, to the shocked gasps of the armoured guards around him. Actually, the unicorn's wearing some armour too- this is probably a guard station!.This big fella must be the captain or something, the 'Shining Armour' that Spike sent the letter to. The letter that appears to explain, without context, that you just had a fight with Pinkie. Oh dear. "Seize her!" he shouts, and about half of the guards in the room rush to comply. "Wait!" you shout back, and precisely none of them do. The next few minutes are full of incident, and nopony listens to you all the way to solitary confinement. ------------ THE NEXT DAY ------------ You can hear voices coming up the corridor outside your cell and at least one of them belongs to Twilight freakin' Sparkle. Oh, this ought to be good- you practically cried yourself to sleep last night, you had to spend the night in this cold cell with only a scrap of blanket and "breakfast" consisted of you shouting to see if anypony could hear that you wanted some Celestia-feathered breakfast. You can hear the conversation as they get closer, and you have a sneaking suspicion as to who the stallion speaking with her is. "Again, I'm really really sorry!" says Twilight. "Well, sorry doesn't quite cover it, Twily. She's been held here overnight! It makes us look incompetent. It makes me look incompetent. And it could have been entirely avoided if you'd taken five seconds to-" replies her companion. It's that Shining Armour stallion, you're sure of it. "Not to stop you, Shining, but you're going over the same speech you gave me when I came here. Again." "It's still serious!" he snaps. "You are going to need one Tartarus of an apology to even get her to speak to you, let alone-" "I can hear you!" You snap, from inside the cell, and they go quiet for a second. There's the clicking of a key in the lock and the door swings open; both unicorns have the same sheepish expression. Before you can say anything, Twilight starts burbling. "Raindrops I'm so sorry! Pinkie explained things and as soon as I found out I came straight here. I've been trying to get you out all night but I couldn't get an appointment with Shining because somepony-" "-somepony who is now on latrine duty for half a year-" interjects Shining Armour. "-somepony didn't know he was my brother and just thought I was your lawyer and that I was trying to get to see you illegally and then they were about to arrest me when Shining found out and that was about twenty minutes ago and you would not believe the amount of paperwork we've had to fill out." She smiles awkwardly for a second and finally breathes in. "So it's all cleared up?" you ask. Shining answers you. "Yes, ma'am. No charges, no record and an official apology from the captain of the guard which I've signed, notarised and had delivered to your home in Ponyville. Along with a box of chocolates and two tickets to this year's Grand Galloping Gala. I am sorry, Raindrops, but she's my sister. I had to act when she sent me that letter." "I understand," you say with exasperation. It's a fairly solid apology from him- the whole situation just got out of hand. You'd act the same way on word from your family. "I'm sorry too," Twilight says. "I really am. I thought you'd hurt Pinkie and I got angry about it. I acted very foolishly. I've organised train tickets for us back to Ponyville and I couldn't stop Pinkie from planning you a 'welcome back' party because she thinks this is all her fault. Your cousin's been making noises about suing me and I think-" "Twily-" her brother says in a warning voice, but Twilight presses on. "I think you've got good grounds to do so. I'm so sorry for all this," she says. She scrapes at the ground with a hoof and looks away from you. "It's alright," you say, and as soon as you do you realise it kind of is. Yeah, you missed the wrap up, but you've got tickets to the gala to look forward to now. Twilight looks up, and you can see that she was on the verge of tears. "I'm not suing anypony," you say. "This was an honest mistake and you were looking out for your friend. You say she's throwing me a party?" Twilight smiles. "Yeah. A really big one." "Well, let's not be late. Mister Armour, may we leave?" "Absolutely," he says. He smiles and indicates the door. Yesterday was a total bust- but today might actually be a pretty good day. THE END You received a Good Ending! Raindrops gets a party and tickets to the gala, and has not been significantly mentally scarred by her wrongful arrest. Hooray! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 23. > Chapter 52 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight looks pretty angry and the first thing your brain comes up with is "Throw the book at her and run away!". You're almost impressed by how terrible an idea that is. Unfortunately, the thought makes it all the way to your hooves before you can call it back and you lob 'Amniomorphics' at Twilight as hard as you can. Well, the cat's out of the bag now. You spread your wings and by the time the weighty tome collides with Twilight's face you're halfway to the window. You hear Pinkie and Spike gasp as you burst through the glass and power on towards one of your favourite thinking places, the water tower on the outskirts of Ponyville. You tuck yourself in under a girder and hold your head in your hooves. Well, you just assaulted the only pony in town with a personal line to the Princess. By throwing a really big book at her. Then you broke her window and ran away. That horizon looks mighty tempting. You've got a couple of things you can do, really- you could fly back and apologise, and if Twilight's inclined to forgive you you might be able to smooth the whole thing over. On the other hoof, if she's ticked at you then you're staring down assault charges and probably destruction of property for the window too. Augh, and that stupid book! You bet it's expensive. It looked old. You hope it's not too badly damaged. The other thing you could do is wing it somewhere else. You could go to Cloudsdale maybe, or try your luck on the frontier, or something. But you might be over-reacting horribly if Twilight's a reasonable pony. She's friends with Pinkie, for crying out loud! How seriously can she have taken you throwing a book at her? Although you get the feeling if you've broken her face and the book it's going to be the book she's angry about. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 23. > Chapter 53 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alright. If there's one thing that can cut through this awkward situation, it's lying your flank off. That's not normally your strong suit, but you're feeling good about it today. Your lie is going to be consistent, tight and manageable. "Pinkie tried to look at the book," you say. Start with the truth and go from there. "I had to stop her because she had clearly turned evil." "She'd turned evil?" Spike asks, enthralled. Yes! Your lie is working! "Yep! Her cocoa was evil, I could tell. That's why I had to knock it on the floor." "Really." Twilight's voice is flat- she's clearly not buying this. That's okay, you can turn it up a notch. "Yes! I had to knock it to the floor and then, uh, use the combined powers of the Great Unicorns of Magical Theory to sanctify it!" Come on, Twilight, you've got to love that! "What happened then, Raindrops?" she's engaging with you! This is working! She nudges Spike to pull Pinkie away from the cocoa and doesn't break eye contact with you. You've got her in the frog of your hoof! "Well, then I had to use the Combined Unicorn Theory, but obviously I needed to concentrate it," you explain. It's amazing how easy lying is, you think to yourself. This stuff is pure gold. "Uh huh," Twilight says, and she almost looks a bit nervous. "I guess you had to pull some magic together like this, huh?" She charges up her horn and you decide to roll with it. She's filling in the details herself- isn't that the mark of a good lie? "Yeah, but I had to use the phantom horn of the mighty, er, Green Hoof, since I don't have a horn myself-" You stop halfway through your sentence, but it's certainly not because you intended to. Twilight's discharged her spell, you realise, and as you topple majestically to one side you think you understand what she was actually doing. Your body's locked absolutely solid- you can still breathe and blink but that's about it. Twilight checks in with Spike and Pinkie before lifting you upright and resting you against the bookcase. "Raindrops, I know you can hear me- I think your brain's been addled by contact with this book. You were scaring me there and you weren't making any sense. Now I know being Locked In is frustrating and sometimes a little disturbing, so until I can figure out what's going on and work out how to reverse the effects I'm going to knock you out. This could take a long time- months maybe- so I want you to be comfortable, okay?" What? No, that is definitely not- ------------- THE END You received a Bad Ending. Poor Raindrops is going to be stuck here for a very long time. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 23. > Chapter 54 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I'm not-" you swallow hard. You've got to keep it together, you don't want to cry in public. You take a deep breath and try again. "Can I come back with you to the library?" Your voice comes out all squeaky and quiet. Twilight raises an eyebrow at you. "Er, sure. If you like. I mean, if you've not got any other job you have to do then we can work out where you can do the best good after you've explained this book to me a little bit. Does that sound okay?" She smiles at you, but only with her mouth; her eyes are creased into a frown. You nod- you don't really trust yourself to speak at the moment. Twilight nods back and the two of you proceed through the park, walking through the snow. After a few minutes, Twilight speaks up without warning. "I miss this, you know. In spring, I mean. I love the wrap up but I like the snow." You don't feel like saying anything. "Do, uh, do you like the snow, Raindrops?" Twilight asks, dropping back a little to walk level with you. "Yes," you whisper, and oh, Celestia, here it comes. You blink back the first couple of tears but it's not enough, and as a drop falls from your nose onto the snow and you try to breathe in it comes as a great, shuddering gasp. Twilight stops and turns to you with panic in her eyes and before she can say anything you start to burble everything. "I got f-fired!" you wail at the stricken unicorn. "I missed the start of the wrap up because of this book and the boss fired me and now I don't even have a job and I'm missing everything!" "Wait," Twilight says, the panic suddenly gone from her face. "Rainbow Dash fired you because you were late this one time?" You sniffle and nod. "Well that's not right. She'd normally let something like that slide and just put you on a bad duty or something. I'll talk to her. You'll get your job back, I promise. She'll listen to me." She looks so sure of herself that you can't help but trust her. "Okay," you say, lifting your head up. "Okay," you repeat, and this time it doesn't sound like you're mumbling to yourself. "Great!" Twilight beams at you, and the two of you carry on towards the library. By the time you get there your tears have dried and you're almost feeling optimistic- Twilight's right, it's not like Rainbow Dash to fire someone over a single incident. Cloud Kicker must have just ruffled her feathers about you and as soon as Twilight sorts it out you'll get your job back. "Hi, Twilight!" Spike shouts as you both enter the library. "Raindrops, your cocoa got cold so I've just started up a new batch. it'll be ready in just a second!" "Thanks Spike!" you shout, and Twilight smiles at you. "So, we've got a book to look at, and- is this it? This is it, isn't it? Oh wow!" Twilight levitates the book and her eyes widen as she reads the title. She flips open the first page and reads the inscription. "Raindrops, this is a first edition copy of 'Amniomorphics'! Do you have any idea how rare this is? To just find one- huh." Her face falls and she puts the book carefully on the desk. "Raindrops, have you written in this?" "No," you say, moving up to look at the book. "Why, what does it say?" "Amniomorphics," Twilight reads aloud. "By Starswirl the Bearded and Raindrops. A compendium of spells designed to manipulate and create auras, especially those which create life. Hi there." You both stare at the page for a moment. "Twilight?" you ask quietly. "Yes?" "Why is my name in the book?" Before she can answer, writing starts to appear in the book, scrawling across the page in a delicate, cursive flow. Your name is in the book because you have contributed so much to it, reads the writing. You are as responsible as Starswirl was for my content. Thanks! "Eee!" Twilight squeals. "It's a living book! That's amazing, Raindrops, this is magic like I read about!" Twilight keeps talking to the book while you start to worry. How in Equestria can you be responsible for the content of this book? It's so old! You start pacing around and you're about to start chewing your hooves, which is a habit you thought you'd kicked back in kindergarten. You feel a little lost. To freak out about having a magic foal book until Twilight explains what the feather is going on, Click here for chapter 55. To run away with the book before Twilight takes over completely, Click here for chapter 56. To slam the book closed and pretend this isn't happening, Click here for chapter 57. Requests closed for this chapter! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 26. > Chapter 55 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This- augh! No! You are too young for foals, you've had that conversation with your mother a thousand times, and this foal is a book and you haven't even met the guy who wrote it let alone done anything with him that might bring a foal about and it's a really old book and how are you supposed to explain to a book that is a foal that his daddy is a pony who has been dead for like five hundred years and his mummy is you, because apparently now you're so fertile you need to wear gloves to pick up a freaking book? Do books even have genders? You suppose it could be a girl. You think you're going to scream. You're in the middle of a really impressive freakout and completely ignoring the fact that Twilight has been calmly discussing something with the book when you come to your senses. "YOU HAVE TO FIX THIS!" You grab Twilight by the shoulders and shake her to make sure you've got her full attention. "Gah! Okay, easy there, Raindrops! What do I have to fix?" "This!" you shout, pushing her away from the book. You look at it to see what's written on the first page- the writing's getting a bit cramped on the edges. Amniomorphics By Starswirl the Bearded and Raindrops. A compendium of spells designed to manipulate and create auras, especially those which create life. Hi there. Your name is in the book because you have contributed so much to it. You are as responsible as Starswirl was for my content. Thanks! Is she okay? She seems a little freaked out. You're sure? Alright, then. Mostly spells to do with auras; those that grant new life in particular, but I've got all sorts in here. I'd come to the same conclusion, actually. When you get a moment you should check out Chapter eight, it's got some fundamentals of aura spells that I think might really fascinate you. You cheeky minx! "What were you talking about?" You ask. "Were you hitting on the book?" "What? No! No, nothing like that, I just suggested some cross-referencing!" Exactly! Although I'm not sure how comfortable I am with you using that sort of language in front of Raindrops. The writing appears on the page vertically, running up some of the only space left. Twilight blushes and grins, only starting to grasp how serious this is when she sees you twitch. "Hang on a second, I've got an idea." She runs to her desk and grabs a blank sheet of paper, placing it carefully on the first page. "Can you write on the paper I just put on your first page?" she asks, carefully enunciating each word. Yes. Hi there! "Hah! I thought it worked that way!" Yes! But somepony seriously needs to talk to Raindrops so I'm going to shut up until that's happened. The book's heavy cover lifts ponderously from the desk before closing gently and trapping the new piece of paper inside. "I'm pretty sure I know what this is!" Twilight mumbles to herself before turning to you. "Okay, Raindrops, we should talk about what's just happened and how we're going to go from here. This is a clear case of neomagical reproduction, and I've got some pamphlets- Spike, could you go and fetch the pamphlets?- so you can have a read and I can answer a lot of your questions right now." Spike puts a pamphlet in your hooves, and you stare at the title for a second. "So you've created a new life" it reads, and there's a picture of a little unicorn with a delighted expression and an animated teddy bear smiling at her. Cute. Your eyelid twitches again. "Any questions?" Twilight asks, bubbling with excitement. Oh, you've got questions alright. And then you may have to break something. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 54. > Chapter 56 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you're responsible for this book's content, then you're responsible for the book. You don't know Twilight Sparkle all that well, but she'll want everything weighed and measured if your first impression's any judge, and on top of that everypony knows she's got a personal line to the princess. If you're going to take care of this yourself, you need to take care of it without her. You make the decision and let your instincts take over- you slam the book shut and grab it in your forehooves before taking off as fast as you can manage, knocking Twilight to the ground for a second with a powerful downstroke of your wings. You bound out of the biggest window you can see and knock it open with your shoulder as you dive through, rolling on the ground once and keeping just enough momentum to take to the skies as soon as you're upright. The sky's busy today- your best bet, you reckon, is to stay low and find somewhere secluded where Twilight won't think to look for you. Hah, you know the perfect place! In a couple of minutes, you're tucked in under the water tower. It's cold here, but that doesn't bother pegasi so much, and more importantly nopony's going to get here to clear the snow until the afternoon. You wedge the book in between two girders and open it up to one of the blank pages near the beginning. As soon as you do, words start appearing on the page as though some invisible pony- some unicorn, you correct yourself, nopony without telekinesis uses cursive- is writing it in front of you. What was that all about, Raindrops? Are we in trouble? "Yes. No. I don't know." Well, you've covered all the bases there. "Honestly, I don't know. I don't think I've stolen you, but ponies are going to be looking for us and I wanted to work out what we should do next. Your name's Amniomorphics, right?" Not really. Can I explain what I think has happened? "Please!" If the book knows what's going on, then you're all ears. Well, I had an aura on me this morning, cast by a unicorn. It's one I recognise from Chapter 8, called an Adunanima Amniomorphic Aura. It blends the life forces of two ponies, or two things, together into a new being. It's notoriously difficult to manage, though, and the biggest factor is how long the two things are in close contact before the link is broken. In this case, the outcome appears to have been that your life force combined with the works and memories of Starswirl contained in this book. Long story short, I'm a little bit you and a little bit him. Except I'm a book. Alright. Okay. Sweet Celestia, this book really is your foal. You do have some questions that need to be answered before you can process that properly, though. "Can you answer some questions?" you ask, and there's a pause before the writing appears again. I think so. I'm scared though. This is all really weird. "I'm scared too, but I'm not going anywhere, okay? We'll figure this out together." Alright then. That makes me feel better. What do you want to know? "Firstly, I need to know which unicorn cast that spell on you, if you know. Secondly, I need to know what you need, so we can find a way for you to get it. Thirdly, what's your name if you're not Amniomorphics?" Well, the first one's simple enough- I'm not sure. The aura had been desaturated, which is complicated magic on its own. Most unicorn magic has a sort of signature to it, a coloured glow or similar, but it had been deliberately removed. As for what I need, I don't think I need anything to eat or breathe or anything like that, but I'd like to be somewhere that wasn't too humid or too dry, too hot or too cold. I'm a pretty old book. I'd like somepony or somebook to talk to as well, as often as you can manage it. As far as my name goes- I thought you should name me. Maybe. If you like. Well, you'd been hoping for somepony to take to task about this whole mess, but it looks like that's a dead end. Maybe later on you can talk to somepony about the whole desaturation thing, get some answers. For right now, you need to get this little guy a name. If he is a guy. "Er, are you a boy or a girl?" you ask. I'm a book. If writing can be sarcastic, that certainly was. So you need a name that works for a filly or a colt that has something to do with swirling stars and raindrops... "How about Cyclone? As a name, I mean?" I love it! The writing appears fast and the handwriting's a little sloppy. I really do! Thanks, MRaindrops. You smile at the book. This feels so strange, but it feels good, too. "It's okay," you say. "You can call me mom if you like. Never ever mother, though, okay? That makes me sound like I'm about forty and with a magical book child my dating life's going to be damaged enough as is." Alright. Magical book child. You can deal with that, you think, but Twilight's going to be looking for you. Cyclone's going to be a magical marvel; every scholarly pony will want to talk to them, and Cyclone would probably love that. On the other hoof, ponies might want to experiment on Cyclone- you don't know if the government can just take them away from you. They are a book, after all. You look out- on one horizon, there's Ponyville, stable and solid. On the other, there's the rest of Equestria- a pony and her book could get thoroughly hidden, out there. Mom? "Yes, Cyclone?" you ask, distracted. What happens now? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 54. > Chapter 57 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alright! You know what isn't happening? This. This is not happening. At all. You shove Twilight aside and put on your best fake smile. She frowns at you, clearly confused. "Wow!" you shout as Twilight opens her mouth to speak. "Isn't that amazing, words showing up all on their own in this old book! I have to be going now!" "No you don't. Rainbow fired you, remember?" Twilight explains cautiously. "Raindrops, this is a living book! I think you've actually given life to a copy of Amniomorphics!" Woohoo. "Twilight, can I talk to you for a second?" you ask, and she picks up on your tone. "Uh, sure thing, Raindrops. Shall we go to the kitchen? let me just put an extra piece of paper in the book so we don't use it all up when I talk to Amniomorphics later. It'd also be really helpful to document everything we say to it....just give me a moment, alright?" You slump into the kitchen while Twilight prepares her scholarly supplies. When you get there, Spike takes a look at you and without saying anything sits you down on a chair and slides a mug of hot cocoa into your hooves. "Drink that," he instructs you, "and I'll make you a daisy sandwich. You look like you need a pick-me-up." He's competent and controlled around the kitchen, and the smell of the daisies is comforting. You feel absolutely wretched. After a moment, he slides a plate in front of you with a sandwich on that's been cut up into little triangles. He's even cut the crusts off. You lift one of the sandwiches and start eating it. It's really, really good. Before you know it and without explanation, you start crying again; not big wet sobs or hysterical wailing, just a sudden onslaught of tears that you can't stop. After a second of hesitation, Spike reaches up and puts a reassuring claw on your shoulder, and you lean gratefully into it. He's a good guy, you decide. "Raindrops? We really can talk about this, as soon as you're ready." Twilight's moved into the kitchen and sat down opposite you. Her voice is soft and gentle, and you really do feel like you can ask her anything. So what do you want to know first? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 54. > Chapter 58 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight seems sincere enough, but you don't know her well enough to unload on her. "I'll be fine. Look, Spike really needs to see you about that book, okay? You should get moving," you say, carefully keeping your voice neutral. "I suppose you're right- look, if you need a job I know Pinkie's hurting for help over on the ice skating team, okay?" Twilight says. She keeps glancing in the direction of the library even though she's got a worried expression. "Sure thing!" you force some brightness into your voice and Twilight relaxes for a moment, smiling at you before cantering off in the direction of the library. As soon as she's out of sight you sigh heavily. At least you can find some space now- you mope off, walking away in a randomly chosen direction. Before long, you're out of sight of the town and walking through the nearby woods, and you find a nice clearing to sit in and have a good old sulk. You whimper a little and before you know it you're sniffling horribly. It isn't long before a wail or two sneak their way out. And why shouldn't they? You've lost your job, probably due to Cloud Kicker's machinations, the wrap-up's going on without you and that damned book has ruined everything. It's maybe half an hour before you snap out of your misery. "Ugh, this is so stupid!" You shout out loud, cutting through your sniffles. "Winter Wrap Up is going on without me! Come on, Raindrops, pull yourself together." You stand upright and you're about to head back into town and find a job when you hear a voice in the bushes. "Come on, Raindrops." The voice sounds weirdly familiar. It's coming from the path in front of you. "Who's there?" you shout back. Maybe Rainbow's sent someone to look for you. "Did the boss send you? Am I back on the weather squad?" "The boss is so stupid! Pull yourself together, back on the weather squad?" The voice shouts back, and you really feel like you ought to know who's shouting back at you. You're sure you've heard her voice before. Her speech is weird, though, like she half-starts one sentence before beginning another or she's stitching her words together from sentence fragments. "Do you mean I'm back on the squad or not? Who's there?" you ask. You can feel the hairs in your mane start to stand on end. There's something not quite right about all this. It's almost like- no. Oh no. "Who's there?" The voice shouts back and your stomach drops out when you realise whose voice it is. It's yours. "Who's theeeeere?" it shouts again, this time letting the buzz creep into it. It's mocking you now. It's heard enough of your voice. Changelings are dangerous, especially after their big winter sleep, especially when they're hunting for a face instead of for a feed. "Who's theeeeere, Raindrops? Raindrops is sooooo stupid!" The voice is close. Very close. You watch in horror as a mare who looks exactly like you walks out of the bushes and grins at you. When she speaks her voice is a low, harsh buzz that's got the tiniest hint of your accent. "I think I can work out the rest as I go," she says, conversationally. You can see magic play around the ghost of her invisible horn and you can't move your legs or your wings. As she gets closer, you can see the tiny differences in her face that would give her away if anyone knew you well enough; her eyes are a shade brighter, her snout is a little shorter, her smile is an inch wider. Her teeth are much, much sharper. THE END You received a Bad Ending. Poor Raindrops. To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 26. > Chapter 59 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I got f-fired!" you wail at the stricken unicorn. "I missed the start of the wrap up because of this book and the boss fired me and now I don't even have a job and I'm missing everything!" "Wait," Twilight says, confusion clear on her face. "Rainbow Dash fired you because you were late this one time?" You sniffle and nod. "Well that's not right. She'd normally let something like that slide and just put you on a bad duty or something. I'll talk to her. You'll get your job back, I promise. She'll listen to me." She looks so sure of herself that you can't help but trust her. "Okay," you say, lifting your head up. "Okay," you repeat, and this time it doesn't sound like you're mumbling to yourself. "Great!" Twilight beams at you. "Give me a moment to track her down and just wait here. You should take some deep breaths, too, to keep yourself calm. I really will be right back." She canters off to find Rainbow Dash and you take her advice, breathing deeply for a few minutes. By the time she returns with a thoroughly disgruntled Rainbow in tow, you've got a handle on your emotions again. "Raindrops, Rainbow Dash has something she would like to say to you," Twilight said, nudging Rainbow hard in the shoulder. "Fine. Raindrops, I should not have fired you for a single minor infraction," Rainbow sing-songs, and you get the feeling she's heard the phrase 'single minor infraction' several times in her conversation with Twilight. "But seriously, I expect you on time in future, okay?" "Does that mean I have my job back?" you can't help but grin and Rainbow rolls her eyes at you. "Yeah, whatever. Now if you really want to get in my good books you'll help me out with something today, okay? There might be a shift manager position opening up soon and Cloud Kicker's making a real case for it. I'm going to put you working under her today." She sees your expression and snorts at you. "Yeah, I know you don't like her, okay? That's why I want to see how she manages you. If she's a total hardflank on you but not on everypony else then she's no good for the job. So do me a solid and go do your job." "Yes boss!" You throw her a sloppy salute and take off towards the knot of pegasi you can see in the clouds. Yeah, Cloud Kicker's a bit of a tool, but you're back on the team. Even she can't puncture your good mood today. Probably. As you soar in close, you see that she's arranged the seventeen ponies in front of her into two groups of four and one of three. You soar quietly into position behind the group of three, evening them out, and Cloud Kicker notices as you arrive. "Good of you to join us, Dropsy! Blossomforth's in charge of your group- she'll pass on instructions to you. Everypony, you've got your jobs- move out!" You hate that nickname, and Cloud Kicker knows it. Blossomforth's alright, though. "We're trying a big sweep," she explains to you as you fly towards your positions and you can tell from her voice that she doesn't think it's a good idea. As she details the plan, you start to agree- Cloud Kicker's trying to pull a big, complicated maneuver here. It's a gutsy move but half of these pegasi are volunteers for the wrap up; there's no way they're going to have the experience or the skills to pull this off right, and if somepony loses their nerve you could end up with a tornado on your hands. Cloud Kicker's supposed to be in charge- you can see her getting some ponies into position a couple of hundred yards away. She's not likely to listen to you if you bring this up; but if you don't somepony could really get hurt. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 26. > Chapter 60 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You wander over to the pile of skates and get a better look at the stallion who's eyeing them carefully. He's a little short, with a brown mane and a lighter coat. You walk past him to your neighbour Roseluck- the poor thing's having a bit of trouble with her skates. "You want a wing with those?" You ask her, and she nods gratefully. "It's tough getting these things on with just hooves. I don't know how Pinkie does it!" she says as you get her laced up. It doesn't take you long. "That's great, thanks!" she says. "You want to grab yours on too so we can get going?" She stands unsteadily and waits for you to get yourself sorted. "Actually, I was going to give him a little help as well," you say under your breath. Behind you the stallion has so far managed to wrestle skates onto his back hooves, but one's facing sideways and the laces on both are tangled together. "I'll see you out there!" Roseluck half-smiles at you, but it seems a little off somehow. She wobbles over to the ice before gracefully sliding out onto the surface as you turn to face the stallion. "Help?" he asks, pitifully. He's now managed to get a third skate's laces tangled around the first two. "Sure thing," you smile at him. "I think you should stop trying to get those on and let me untangle them, okay?" You move around to the side of him and start using the dextrous tips of your wings to undo the tangle of knots between his skates. "Thank you so much!" he says, genuine relief in his voice. "I'm Caramel. I've never skated before and these things are just so darn complicated!" "I'm Raindrops," you reply. "You've certainly made a mess of these laces! How come you're on the ice-breaking squad if you've never skated before?" He wilts visibly, sagging his head closer to the ground. "I made a mess of things over on the farm. I was supposed to be clearing snow this year because I lost the grass seeds last year. And the year before that. But the plow got away from me a little bit and there was a gust of wind and I sort of ran over Applejack's hat. A little bit." "So she booted you over to the ice-skating team?" "Yeah. I don't mind- I mean, I wouldn't mind if I was any good at it. I don't seem to be that good at anything." He mumbles the last part, lost in thought. A moment later he snaps his head back up and flashes you a broad, honest smile. "But now I've got my skates on thanks to you, so I suppose I'd better give it a go, eh?" You smile back at him- you can't help yourself- and he totters off towards the lake edge. He's only just reached it by the time you pull on your own skates and clomp over. He steps out onto the ice, tentatively at first, gaining confidence with each hoof he puts down. He's watching the other skaters, you realise, trying to copy their movements. He does pretty well- he's at least going in a straight line- but he's starting to get a little fast. By the time you're on the ice and moving, he's going very fast indeed, and he looks like he's about to collide with Carrot Top. Roseluck pulls up alongside you, frowning at him. "Does he know how to brake?" she asks. You know he doesn't. "Brake!" Pinkie shouts across the ice, and everypony does except Caramel. "I'm trying to!" he screams, accelerating even harder. There's no way he's going to miss Carrot Top now, and you can see her wincing from here. You might be able to get there in time to help somepony if you take off right now. Or you might just turn a two-pony prang into a three-pony pileup. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 27. > Chapter 61 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Huh. If ponies can change teams that easily then maybe you don't have to do ice-breaking at all; maybe you could transfer over to the plants team. You're not sure what's got into you today, but you're feeling a little flirty and you're better off talking to ponies on your own terms- taking the reins, so to speak, even if the metaphor makes you blush a little. Plus the plants team is likely to have a few more big strapping farmers in it and, Celestia help you, you've got a weakness for a pony who works with their hooves. Your mind made up, you shout out to Pinkie. "Pinkie! I'll trade onto the plants team for this fella!" you shout across the ice, and Pinkie nods at you enthusiastically. You can't possibly tell at this distance, but you think she just gave you a salacious wink. That mare needs to dial it back a bit, you reckon. You flap lazily through the centre of town, noticing with quiet glee that Medley's been stuck with the Junior Weather Patrol this year and you don't have to do anything about the barrage of snowballs she's bearing up against. As you pass the town hall, a voice calls out to you with a distinctly Canterlotian accent. "I say! I say, excuse me there, miss!" You double-take to make sure the stallion's calling to you, and he is. He's a handsome fellow- big for a unicorn, with neat blue hair and a well-trimmed moustache- but you can't fail to notice the long-legged, skinny unicorn mare he's standing with. "I'm terribly sorry to bother you on such a busy day," he says, tilting his head in apology the moment you set down. "I'm afraid my daughter and I appear to have been quite forgotten! Fleur promised her mother that she'd help with Ponyville's Wrap Up this year-" "Promised? Please, I've been guilt-tripped into this since the Summer Sun celebration," Fleur mumbles under her breath. She's his daughter? She's full-grown; he must be a little older than he looks. "None the less, we have made a commitment and I for one am quite looking forward to getting stuck in! I was hoping, my dear, you might be able to guide us to Ms Berry Punch, Fleur's mother. She informed me she'd be in the Old Bluff field but I'm afraid my knowledge of the local geography is somewhat lacking." "No problem- I was headed out there myself," you explain. "I'm Raindrops, by the way." "Charmed! My name is Fancy Pants, and this young mare is Fleur De Lis. So what do you do, Raindrops?" "I'm a weatherpony," you explain as you all set off towards your destination. "I thought I'd help out with the plants this year though- Ponyville does everything by hoof and it's good to try a few new things out." "My thoughts exactly," Fancy Pants agrees. "It's been some time since I did any real physical labour and It's good to get a look at agricultural businesses first-hoof before deciding where to make your investments. This trip's half business and half pleasure, I'll admit, but if I meet many more ponies like you the balance is going to fall firmly in favour of the latter." You blush a little at that. Thankfully, Fleur saves you the trouble of having to come up with a coherent response. "You're a weatherpony? That sounds really satisfying. Do you have any trouble co-ordinating the big systems with neighbouring areas?" "Huh?" The question takes you a little by suprise. "Er, yeah. Actually, quite a lot. It's above my pay grade, but we get communication breakdowns a lot with the Griffon Empire and Prance. How did you-" "Language is my passion!" she grins at you enthusiastically, the veneer of snobbery discarded. "I really think there needs to be a bigger push to teach foreign languages, or at least have diplomatic translators in the engineering corps who can help smooth these things over. When I get my physics and engineering degree-" "You haven't changed your major yet, Fleur," Fancy Pants said with a tired voice. "I know I haven't!" she snapped. "You shouldn't know that, though. It's my degree and I can do what I want with it." "Don't act like I snoop, Fleur, you know the Dean is an old friend. I just worry about your career, is all. There are some excellent translation jobs available in Canterlot that I can help you get an interview for if you stick with your Equestrian Language studies." "I thought I was supposed to put the work in myself," Fleur muttered, but you could tell her heart wasn't in it- she was building back up the facade of the bored socialite again. It was a shame- she came alive when she was enthusiastic. Before the argument could continue- although if it was an argument, it involved less screaming than you were used to- you'd arrived at the Old Bluff field. Snow ploughing was already under way, and Applejack turned away from a conversation she'd been having about seeds to greet you all. "Fancy Pants! Berry told me you'd be joinin' us but Ah barely believed it. This must be Fleur?" "It is indeed! We're ready to get stuck in wherever you need us." "Ah've got a plough set aside for you, Fancy Pants. Fleur, you ain't got the weight you'd need to move one, no offence to you, so Ah figured you'd prefer to be on the planting side of things." "What about me?" you asked, stepping out so Applejack could see you properly. "Oh, hey there Raindrops! Ah guess Ah could use you on ploughing or planting, you're strong enough for the one and Ah can always use more of the other. Or if you fancy something different you could give Noteworthy and Big Macintosh a hand with setting up the water trucks, they've got some tomfoolin' idea about makin' em run better." You can spend time with pretty much any pony you like, you suppose. So what do you feel like doing? Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 27. > Chapter 62 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You wander over to the pile of skates and up to your neighbour Roseluck- the poor thing's having a bit of trouble with her skates. "You want a wing with those?" You ask her, and she nods gratefully. "It's tough getting these things on with just hooves. I don't know how Pinkie does it!" she says as you get her laced up. It doesn't take you long. "That's great, thanks!" she says. "You want to grab yours on too so we can get going?" She stands unsteadily and waits for you to get yourself sorted. "Sure thing!" You pull your skates on and in a minute or two you're both wobbling towards the lake, balancing on the blades. "We should have put these on at the lake's edge," Roseluck mutters to herself. She's got her snout scrunched up in concentration and you can actually see her stick her tongue out a little bit as she navigates the last few steps. You can't help but let out a giggle and Roseluck rolls her eyes at you with a grin. "Oh, you shush. I don't have wings for balance!" Once she's out on the ice, though, she doesn't need them. She's off and away in a wide, graceful sweep before you've gotten started. You, on the other hand, are starting to realise that you haven't been ice-skating in quite a long time. It's not that you don't enjoy it, it's just that you're out of practice WHOA ow. Roseluck loops back and slides to a stop beside you. "Ouch! That looked like quite the tumble!" Roseluck's smiling at you and you have to admit it must have looked funny- you managed to get all four legs in front of you and have been dumped unceremoniously on your rump after windmilling your wings for a moment. "I've had worse," you say as she reaches out a hoof to you. "Huh." Her brows wrinkle as you link forelegs and she looks out across the lake. "Does he know how to brake?" You follow her gaze to see the stallion in the Plants vest accelerating towards a worried-looking Carrot Top. You're about to say it doesn't look like it when you hear Pinkie's voice ring out across the lake. "Brake!" she shouts, and everyone on the lake instinctively responds. Unfortunately, you and Roseluck both freeze in the middle of her pulling you up. Her back leg slides out along the ice shortly followed by the rest of her and as she falls, she yanks on your foreleg, overbalancing you as well. You spin as you fall with her and she ends up landing on top of you as you smash flat on your back, wings outspread. "Hwoof!" you say, since it's the only word your body's going to let you say for a few seconds. You open your eyes to see Roseluck's blushing face inches away from yours. You become incredibly aware of exactly where she is- she's lying on you chest to chest, her back legs between yours, her forelegs outstretched and braced against the ice, trembling as she tries to keep from crushing you. "Sorry," she squeaks, without moving. Her breath's warm against your lips. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 27. > Chapter 63 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cloud Kicker's clearly pretty upset. Even if she can be kind of a tool she's a hard worker and you had no idea she had such an issue with you. You're going to have to go after her, you realise with a sinking stomach. "Flitter, you're in the right place. Register the other ponies for cloud clearing as they come in, okay? I'll be back in five- maybe fifteen minutes." You take off before Flitter can answer and head off in the general direction Cloud Kicker went. After a minute or so, you hear a faint noise from a little cumulus cloud that it takes you a moment to realise is somepony sobbing. "Uh, Cloud Kicker? You in there?" you say tentatively. "Go away! I'm not talking to you!" she shouts. Well, at least you've found her. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? I don't know how to talk to you properly. I wish I did because it would make this easier but I don't know how to do it. So will you just tell me what your problem is? Then we can do something about it and we can get on with our jobs, alright?" "You're my problem!" she shouts. Sweet Celestia, she's being incredibly foalish. "How am I your problem?" You shout back, trying and failing to keep your voice level. "You constantly give me a hard time and I don't put up with it! That's your problem, not mine!" "I give you a hard time because- no! I do not want to talk to you about this! Leave me alone!" Ugh! "No! We're doing this now, one way or the other. Why do you give me a hard time?" "Shut up, Dropsy! Go away!" "Make me! Tell me the truth!" you shout, your voice cracking on the last word. You've only just got time to register the grey blur coming from the cloud as Cloud Kicker before she lands a solid punch to your jaw and takes off again. You spin over completely and shake your head to clear it- she's shouting something about you not working as hard, you think, but it's difficult to tell through the sobs, her quick retreat, and the ringing in your ears. She knows you don't work by halves, though. Her shouting about you not working as hard as she does just doesn't make any sense. This mare is being more trouble than she's worth. She's powered into the cumulonimbus layer- you know you can find her in there, there's no way she'll be silent enough to stay hidden, but you're starting to wonder whether she's worth it. She's punched you in the face and has abandoned her official duties- you could probably get her fired if you just leave her alone and go back to doing your job and then bring it up with the boss later. The problem is, that feels like a Cloud Kicker sort of move. She's the political operator- you just want to get the job done. You know she's normally much more together than she's being right now- if you can find her and be calm this time and just talk, you might be able to patch things up with her. Please put requests for Raindrops' actions in the comments below! To go back a step, Click here for Chapter 28.