//------------------------------// // Friendship is Puppies, episode 2 Part 3 // Story: Twilight gets a Puppy // by TDR //------------------------------// Twilight Gets a Puppy By TDR Friendship is Puppies, episode 2 Part 3 [ Everfree forest] “So how much further is it? We've been walking for a few hours now.” Twilight asked Applejack who sighed, tilting her hat a little. “Everfree's a big place Twilight. We ain't come to tha river yet, and tha castles on a cliff on a rise on the other side of tha river. Ah seen a bridge that crossed to tha place spanning tha gorge on that east side of it. There's a main bridge too, but that's a draw bridge and that's been up fer who knows how long.” "And we haven't been going around in circles?” Rainbow Dash demanded. “Nah, ah check ever time we get a clearing tah see tha stars, and even if Nightmare's somehow moving um around, the moonlight is bright enough tah show tha Manterhorn. We just keep moving away from that and we'll hit tha river. Tha river runs around tha rise tha castles on too. So if tha rivers on tha same level as us, we follow it down river, if it's chewed intah tha ground like it's flowing down into a canyon, then we go up river.” “I'm impressed you know your way around this place so well.” Twilight admitted. “Don't really. Most landmarks tend not to last too long out here, but something like a castle and tha river, well, they don't change much with time. Rest of it's jus good horse sense tah know directions.”Applejack explained. “Why would you ever come into this ghastly place willingly any way?” Rarity asked. “Zap apples.” Applejack stated flatly. “What now?” Twilight questioned. “Onea tha specialties of tha farm is a super rare breed of apple called a Zap Apple. They only grow under certain conditions and only with certain rituals can they be properly harvested. When we was younger me and Mac tried tah rush a harvest fer tha bits, skipped out on some things we shouldn't have. Nearly lost the entire orchard of them because of it. And we never had many zap apple trees tah begin with.” Applejack explained. “So despite Granny's complaints, me and Mac started coming into tah woods tah find some of tha wild Zap Apple trees like Granny first found when tha family first settled here. Took us about four five years but we got tha orchard back up to snuff with all that saplings we dug up and brought back. In a year or two we might just have a full harvest of them again when all tha trees git old enough.” “ I can't wait for that. Most ponies only ever get a little taste of Zap Apple jam each year, having enough for every pony to have some would be super awesome.” Pinkie Pie chimed in. “Yeah well ah ain't getting ahead of myself just yet. Still to much that could go wrong with that harvest.” Applejack smirked.” But it's looking better than it has for a few years now.” “I just can't wait until you put some of those into cider.” Rainbow Dash practically drooled. “Um has any pony else noticed that it's gotten a lot darker.....” Fluttershy pointed out. “ I know I was tired of looking at all the muck and damp , but I didn't mean to stop looking at it like this....” Rarity grumbled as the path got even darker. “Clouds?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Ah think just thicker tree cover.” Applejack responded jerking back as Twilight yelped.” Sorry bout that Twilight didn't see yah there.” Rahs was the next to yelp as he walked into a low hanging branch, his nose had taken far too much abuse today. Brooms, the ground, and now tree branches what next? It was making it harder to sniff out that scent of magic he had caught a wiff of before. “Gahh!!” Applejack grumbled. “WHAT!?” Rainbow Dash shouted. “Ah think I stepped in something.” Applejack admitted. “Oh my stars..” Rarity hissed prancing in place. “AHHHHHHHHHHH!!” Fluttershy screamed. “It's just mud.” Applejack chided before turning around to keep walking and coming face to face with the 'why' of the scream, a glowing horrific face. Applejack screamed and jumped back as numerous other leering and fearsome faces appeared around them. Rahs tried to move to protect Twilight only to be completely over whelmed as Fluttershy shot up under his coat again with Rarity and Rainbow Dash both latching onto his leg and arm throwing him off balance even before Twilight plowed into him knocking him over onto Applejack into one big pile of screaming pastel colored panic. He could taste the spell in the air, the effect the same as the one in town hall. Knowing what it was really didn't help him, or the mares with him fight it off. Not like he was being given a chance with all the shrieking and running about. At least until someone giggled. There was a brief pause in the screaming while Applejack wiggled out from under Rahs as the giggling continued. “Wut!?” Applejack managed to question. Looking over they all saw, except for Rahs whose head was buried in the mud as Rainbow Dash moved from his arm to stepped on it, Pinkie Pie standing next to one of the leering faces , giggling and making faces right back at it. “Pinkie , what are you doing!?!?” Twilight shouted prancing in place atop Rahs' head the Moon Dog starting to flail as his head was trampled into the mud. “ RUN!” “Oh girls don't you see?” Pinkie Pie stated as music started to play from somewhere.“When I was a little filly and the sun was going down...” “She's not....”Twilight deadpanned. “The darkness and the shadows, they would always make me frown...” Pinkie Pie sang on. “She is...” Rarity concluded. “I'd hide under my pillow. From what I thought I saw.” Pinkie bounded around them.”But Granny Pie said that wasn't the way. To deal with fears at all.............” “ Then what is ? Rainbow Dash demanded. “She said, 'Pinkie, you gotta stand up tall. Learn to face your fears. You'll see that they can't hurt you. Just laugh to make them disappear." Pinkie Pie chimed hopping over to a monstrosity.”Ha! Ha! Ha!” The other ponies gasp as the face in the air faded out , the light returning a bit showing it was little more than a oddly shaped tree. “So, giggle at the ghostly. Guffaw at the grossly. Crack up at the creepy. Whoop it up with the weepy. Chortle at the kooky. Snortle at the spooky” Pinkie Pie continued to sing. Now that the others had calmed down some Rahs managed to shove his sister off his head and pull it out of the mud to gasp for air. “Where is that music even coming from?” The group moved around with even Fluttershy giggling at some of the faces with the others after she crawled out from underneath Rahs' coat. Pinkie pie somehow managed to hop into one of the leering faces mouths going off on a rant. Oddly even the forest was lighting up again as if the darkness was part of the spell. “And tell that big dumb scary face to take a hike and leave you alone and if he thinks he can scare you then he's got another thing coming and the very idea of such a thing just makes you wanna... hahahaha... heh...” Pinkie breathed in. ”Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaauuuugh! Rahs sat up as everyone else was laughing noting the fear spell was gone, he didn't catch the scent of the source, but he expected it had been there somewhere. Of course given the others had been using him like a welcome mat he was thoroughly coated in dirt and mud. “AHHH! MUD MONSTER!!” Pinkie Pie screamed out, hiding behind Fluttershy with Rarity doing the same thing. “Seriously?” Twilight asked looking at Rahs.” At a time like this you're playing in the dirt?” Rahs just simply growled at them as he tried to clean the mud out of his nose.