//------------------------------// // A Series of Pinkie Related Events // Story: The Champion of Harmony // by Voxum //------------------------------// "You gotta be faster if you wanna catch me, Big Sis Trixie!" the small filly shouted out gleefully, crouching low in the tall grass in an effort to hide herself. Her larger counterpart smirked, "Faster, eh? Hope you don't regret it!" she called, accepting the little filly's challenge, before darting after the smaller pony, whose size allowed her to slip underneath the taller's legs. Mere feet away from their playground, a silent stalker approached. It crept, low to the ground, allowing the grass to act as near perfect camouflage. These two ponies were completely oblivious to the predator's presence, too focused on their little game to pay it any mind. It crept closer, before freezing and crouching low, just as the younger filly dashed in front of it, followed immediately by the larger unicorn, both laughing gleefully. The predator narrowed its eyes, quickly slinking after its prey. "I've got you now, Wisp!" the bigger pony claimed, standing triumphantly over her smaller playmate, who had managed to corner herself between her pursuer and a tree. The mini mare looked around, desperately searching for a way out, but found none, "Aww..." she moaned, before her eyes locked onto a figure beside her elder sibling, and widened comically. "Look out!" "Wha- AGH!" The figure took its chance, pouncing atop the bigger pony, forcing her to the ground, "Gotcha, Trix!" Emerald shouted smugly, sitting atop his sister's slightly smaller frame, smirking victoriously down at her disgruntled form, "Yeah, yeah. Ya got me." "Don't worry Big Sis Trixie! I'll save you!" came a cute shout, before a small weight crashed into Emerald's side, not even causing him to flinch. He smirked, before letting himself fall to the side, Wisp's musical giggling rang throughout the grassy clearing they'd found behind the house. Located a little bit into the Whitetail Woods, the clearing he'd spotted during his patrol last night was perfect for them. With grass that reached just under his chest, Wisp had deemed it the perfect place to play Hide 'n' Seek Tag with Trixie, before he'd decided to join them. He might be a little late for work, but that was fine. "I win!" Wisp chirped, sitting proudly on her brother's side, who merely rolled his eyes at her cheery demeanor, "Alright, you win," he muttered, hearing Trixie laugh at his lame reply. "Yeah, now little miss winner has to go to school," Trixie added, smirking as Wisp's expression fell, "Aw, do I have-" ""Yes,"" her elder siblings replied, cutting off her question without issue, making her puff her cheeks out in a pout, "Fine..." she muttered, wandering back to the house, where her saddlebag and lunch sat on the front step. Emerald and Trixie shared a look, before they both chuckled and began following after their little sister. "So, you had any luck finding a job in town?" the stallion asked, the unicorn shook her head, before abruptly nodding, "Sort of," she said, frowning slightly, "There's some cafe, called The Shining Leaf, who are willing to give me an interview this afternoon," her frown deepened, "Though, I'm not too sure I'll go, considering the look the owner kept giving me," her frown turned into a sneer, "Bastard couldn't keep his eyes off my flank," she added, sending a glance back at the body part in question, "How do you deal with mares starin' after you all the time?" she asked, returning her attention to her brother. Emerald scoffed, his eyes idly glancing of the sign as they entered Ponyville, "Please, as if I'd care what a bunch of ignorant, shallow morons think of me," he said, before smirking, "Besides, I'm quite proud of the body I have. So what if others want to take a look?" he asked, "I'm not ashamed of what I've got," Trixie grinned, "What about Twilight, then?" she asked, Emerald frowned, "What about her?" Trixie snorted, "C'mon, I know you've seen the looks she sends you. Somebody's got a crush on you.~" she sang, Emerald snarled, "As if," he growled, "You know as well as I do that she's never had a male friend before. Not only that, but she's an awkward social dunce," he deadpanned, "She doesn't know how to act around me," he suddenly smirked, "Like with you and cinnamon rolls. No restraint," he added. The mare beside him sputtered, turning a bright red, "Wh-why you little-!" she snapped, before huffing and turning away, "Oh yeah?" she challenged, "What about you and your truffles?" "That's a family recipe, dammit!" Emerald defended hotly, "Of course I act that way!" he added when Trixie started laughing at him. He growled at her, though it contained no real heat, "Whatever," he added, "Just... go and try to find a job that doesn't make you feel like a prostitute... if you can," he said, adding that last part with a smirk, which caused Trixie's laughter to stop, instead being replaced by a heated glare. Trixie huffed, but smiled, "Whatever you say, Em," she said, before freezing, her gaze directed somewhere to Emerald's right, "Uhh... what's Pinkie doing?" she asked, pointing, "Being Pinkie," he replied automatically, before he turned to see where Trixie was pointing, only to freeze as well. The normally happy mare was nowhere in sight. Instead, a nervous looking Pinkie was spotted ducking underneath a table, wearing a rainbow umbrella hat, "Er... extra Pinkie, that is," he amended, confused. Just what was that mare doing? Emerald and Trixie watched on as Pinkie continued darting underneath just about anything. A table, another pony, a food cart, even a damn rock! "Uhh... yeah, I'm not dealing with that," Trixie stated, already beginning to walk away, "Have fun, Em!~" Emerald growled at his sister's retreating form, before sighing. Honestly, he couldn't really blame her for getting away. He'd've done the same if Pinkie wasn't his responsibility. Emerald, finally having enough, started waltzing over to the odd mare, who was busy patting her tail with a wary look on her face, when he spotted Sparky and the hatchling doing much the same, oddly enough. "Pinkie," Emerald began, startling the mare, who whirled to face him, as if expecting something to attack, "Dear stars, what are you doing?" "I'd like to know as well," Sparky interjected before she could speak, "All your darting around is distracting me and Spike!" "Well it's my tail!" Pinkie answered, spinning around and stuffing her tail into Sparky's face, "It's a twitch-a-twitchin'! And you know what that means!" the mare said. Sparky swat the candy coloured tail out of her face, looking confused, "Uh, actually Pinkie, I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about," "Same," Emerald replied. "Really?" Pinkie asked, looking surprised, causing her two friends to nod, "Huh... well, when my tail starts twitchin' it means my Pinkie Sense is acting up! It's telling me that stuffs gonna start falling real soon!" she explained, before throwing her two friends worried looks, "You two should find some cover, quickly!" she warned. Sparky scoffed in response, with Emerald being tempted to do the same, "Please, Pinkie," the studious mare replied, "It's not gonna rain today. There isn't a cloud in the sky!" she said, gesturing upwards to the spotless expanse of blue, "I don't know what this whole 'Pinkie Sense' is, but-" *RIBBIT* Sparky was abruptly cut off as a frog of all things suddenly landed on her face, simultaneously shutting her up, as well as getting Emerald to snicker. "Nice catch!" Pinkie said cheerfully, hardly even reacting to the sudden frog. Emerald couldn't help but laugh. "Oh my, I'm so sorry, Twilight," a familiar voice suddenly spoke up from above. Emerald ceased his laughter, and glanced upwards, finding Fluttershy laden with numerous frogs, just like the one that introduced itself to Sparky's face, "I just couldn't stand to see the pond getting so overcrowded, so I thought I could move some of the frogs to Froggy Bottom Bog," the mare explained, looking apologetic. "Of course you did," Sparky muttered sarcastically, glaring at the frog still latched onto her cheek, "Well, I guess I'll see you all later... bye bye!" Fluttershy called, flying off towards the forest. "Hey, Twilight?" Pinkie asked, catching their attention, "You got a little something on your face," she pointed out, causing Emerald to snort. Sparky, however, remained unamused, "Oh really?" she asked sarcastically, "What, did your 'Pinkie Sense' tell you that, too?" she asked, smirking. Pinkie shook her head, "Nah, I can just see it," the mare answered obliviously, before bouncing away, humming to herself. "Well, that was interesting," Emerald said, snickering as the frog finally decided to hop away, "Yeah, interesting," Sparky muttered, wiping her cheek, "C'mon Spike, let's head somewhere where we won't be bothered," she said, walking off, with the little drake hobbling after her. Finding nothing else to do and figuring that if Pinkie wasn't at the store then he didn't need to be either, Emerald shrugged and followed after her. "Any idea what all that was about?" he asked once he caught up with the mare. She shook her head, "Just Pinkie being Pinkie, I suppose," she said, before glancing at him, "Well... extra Pinkie, at least," Emerald nodded at the words, "Yeah, but it was amazing, wasn't it?!" Spike asked excitedly, sitting atop Sparky's back, "I mean, she predicted something would fall, and it did!" Emerald nodded at the drake's words. He'd seen some weird stuff in his life, so Pinkie being a little clairvoyant wouldn't be too big a pill to swallow. Sparky, however, disagreed, "Oh please, Spike. It was nothing but an honest coincidence," Sparky argued firmly. Emerald shrugged, "Who knows," he began, smirking when Sparky's eye twitch, "There are just some things in this world that refuse to be explained. Pinkie just might be one of 'em," As if summoned by those words, Pinkie suddenly zoomed in front of them, jumping up and down, screaming in a panicked voice, "My tail! It'sa twitch'a'twitchin' again! Something else is gonna fall!" she warned, looking up fearfully. "... Pinkie," Sparky sighed, "Nothing else is gonn- agh!" she said, only to get cut off as she fell into a nearby ditch, landing face-first into the dirt. Emerald snorted, wondering how the hay she missed that. "Have a nice trip there, Sparky?" he asked, peering down the two foot drop, only for Sparky to press her nose against his, "Ha ha. Very funny, Emerald," she deadpanned, leaning up against the side of the ditch, he merely smirked, "You 'fell' into a ditch," Emerald began, pushing against her slightly, "It's like Pinkie predicted it, eh?" he asked. "Is anything else gonna fall?" the drake asked from behind, only for Pinkie to giggle in response, "Nah, my tail stopped twitchin'. Everything's fine now," she replied, trotting away, once again singing to herself. Sparky growled, her nose still pressed against Emerald's, though her cheeks were a bit red, "Two coincidences in a row might be unlikely," she stressed the word, "but it's possible," she defended. "Uh, Twilight?" came a familiar accented voice from behind, causing Emerald to finally lean away, "Why are ya hangin' out in a ditch?" "Pinkie predicted it," Emerald answered, smirking down at the lavender mare, who was currently struggling to climb out, "Said her tail was twitchin'," "Twitchy tail?!" Applejack asked, her voice taking on a noticeable quiver, "Pinkie Sense?!" she added, before darting underneath the nearby veggie cart, looking up fearfully. Emerald raised an eyebrow at her behavior. For the lone words, 'tail' and 'twitching' to elicit that response, it had to be a relatively common occurrence, which only led credit to Pinkie's unusual claim. Not that it wasn't already credible. Emerald knew Pinkie wasn't the kind of pony to outright lie like that. Besides, her acting was shit. She was too hyper to be consistently pretending like that. "Her tail stopped twitching," Emerald replied, causing Applejack to look at him, relieved, "The only thing that fell, was Sparky," "Oh no," Sparky said, finally climbing out, "Don't tell me you believe that nonsense too?" she asked, exasperated. Applejack shook her head, crawling out from under the cart, "Look sugarcube, I know it don't make much sense, but everypony in town knows when Pinkie's tail starts twitchin', ya better find cover," Once more, as if called by some unforeseen source, Pinkie reappeared, looking worried once more, "My ears are floppy! My nose is wiggly too!" Spike lurched away, looking afraid, "Wh-what do those mean?!" Pinkie just smiled and looked at Emerald, "Nice save!" she said, confusing the ponies and thestral present. "What is that supposed to mean?" he asked. His ear twitched, and he immediately pulled Sparky away from a nearby puddle, just as some donkey pulling a cart ran by, splashing mud right where Sparky had been standing. Emerald narrowed his eyes at the puddle, before turning back to Pinkie, "Once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, and thrice is confirmation," he said, raising an eyebrow at her, "By the sun, how'd you get that power?" he asked, tilted his head curiously. Pinkie just shrugged, "I dunno. I've just been able to do it since... well ever," she said simply. "Really, Emerald?" Sparky asked, gently pulling away from him, "You believe this... special power nonsense too?" she asked, before frowning, "What's it even supposed to be anyways?" she asked, looking back at Pinkie with a raised brow. "Well..." the party mare began, tapping her chin, "It's really just a bunch if itty bitty feelings I get that tell me something," she said, "Like when my back gets itchy, that means it's my lucky day! Or when my knee gets pinchy, something scary's about to happen!" Sparky frowned, "Sounds like just a load of mumbo-jumbo to me," Pinkie sneered slightly, "Oh yeah? Well, you do magic. What's the difference?" she challenged, "Uh, very!" Sparky replied hotly, "Magic is something you study, and practice! It only happens when you decide to do it! And it's meant to make something specific, that you choose to happen, happen! With you... it makes no sense!" she cried. "That is SOO not true, Twilight!" Pinkie defended, narrowing her eyes, before suddenly smiling, "Sometimes it's a bunch of little things happening to my body at the same time that supposedly predict the future!" she said happily, "I call 'em combos!" "Combos?" Sparky asked, already walking away, "Yep!" Pinkie answered, following after the studious mare. Emerald and Applejack shared a glance, "Well, uh... you all have fun. I gotta head back ta the farm. We got a new cellar we gotta fill up," Applejack said, walking off, "I get combos like... oh! Ear flop, knee twitch, eye flutter!" she said, "That usually means the sky's going to be graced with a beautiful rainbow!" she claimed. He'd have to remember that one. "Pinkie, you can't predict the future," Sparky argued again, "It's unscientific. Besides, anypony can predict when a rainbow's going to happen. The weather station tells everypony," she added. Emerald smirked, and made his way to the bookworm's side, "I dunno, Sparky," he said, causing her to look at him with a raised brow, "Just because it's not explainable, doesn't mean it's not possible. Some things just aren't meant to be understood," Sparky shook her head in disbelief as they approached the library, "Yeah right," she said, frowning, "There isn't a single thing in the whole world that can't be explained through science or some other method that can be proved," she said. "Uh oh," Pinkie suddenly muttered, freezing in place, "I feel a combo coming on!... Ear flop, eye flutter, knee twitch!" Emerald frowned, looking up. A rainbow? Now? It hasn't rained for three- *SLAM* Emerald darted his gaze back to Sparky. Except, she wasn't there anymore. Instead, Spike was backing out of the library, holding a stack of books in claw. Emerald frowned, but it quickly turned into a smirk when the door swung back around, revealing a squished looking Sparky stuck to the back of the door. "I though you said that meant a rainbow was gonna appear?" she asked, her voice strained, before she popped off the door and fell. "Oh no, you're thinking of an ear flop, then knee twitch, then an eye flutter! This one was ear flop, then eye flutter, then knee twitch!" Pinkie explained happily, oblivious to the growl the unicorn gave, "That means 'look out for opening doors'. You okay?" Sparky groaned and stood up, rubbing her head, "I... I don't believe this," she muttered, only for Pinkie to get in her face, "You only don't believe because you don't understand!" she argued. Rather than argue back, Sparky instead gained an interesting glint in her eye. One that Emerald knew was going to lead to trouble. "Isn't this a bit much?" the disguised thestral asked his purple companion, leaning against the wall as he did so. Sparky had asked Pinkie to accompany her down to the library basement, where she planned to do some tests on Pinkie and her 'Pinkie Sense'. As it was, the naive mare had agreed and followed the obsessive mare downstairs, where she was now being strapped to an unusual machine. Emerald almost laughed at the suddenly scared look on the pink pony's face once Sparky locked Pinkie's hooves into place. "Alright, now, once we get another twitch, we'll have all kinds of scientific information!" Sparky exclaimed happily, trotting over to the machine, seemingly ignoring Emerald's inquiry. "Okie dokie lokie!" Emerald rolled his eyes at the mare's response, but otherwise didn't move. The three of them sat in silence, the only sounds being made coming from the machine Pinkie had been strapped too. About ten minutes had passed, with Sparky looking anxious, before she finally broke the silence, "Any twitches yet?" "Nopie dopie!" came the happy mare's reply, causing Sparky to frown. She looked down at the bin, which was slowly filling with graphs from the machine, "How about now? Anything?" she asked. Pinkie was silent for a moment, before shaking her head, "Nope!" she said, before freezing, "Wait!..... Nope," she finished a moment later, smiling. "Oh you've gotta be kidding me," Sparky sighed, exasperated, "A whole hour of nonstop twitches, but now that I've got you hooked up, you're getting nothing!?" Pinkie shrugged, "I don't control it. They just come and go." "That makes no sense!" Sparky countered hotly. "Well, sometimes you've just gotta believe in something, even if you don't understand it," Emerald interjected sagely. Sparky rounded om him, "I will not believe in anything that I can't explain!" she snapped. Emerald sneered, "That's rather narrow-minded of you, don't you think?" Sparky narrowed her eyes at him, but before she could respond, Pinkie interrupted, "Wait! I'm feeling something coming!" she cried. Sparky turned back to her, the argument forgotten, "Really?! What is it?! What's happening?!" she questioned excitedly, eagerly looking back and forth between Pinkie and the machine. A moment passed, before Pinkie's stomach suddenly growled. "Oh! It's my tummy, that usually means I'm hungry!" she said. Emerald laughed at her exclamation, falling onto his side, even as Sparky just growled angrily, "Agh! You know what?!" she yelled, before tearing away the wires connecting Pinkie to the machine, "I don't need to understand it! I don't need to know if this is real! I don't even care!" she snapped, beginning to stomp up the stairs. Emerald, having calmed his own laughter, merely followed after, occasionally snickering, even as Pinkie bounced past him and Sparky. Not even a minute later, Pinkie suddenly froze in front of the door, "Uh oh. Ear flop, eye flutter, knee twitch!" she gasped. It took him a second, but Emerald recognized the sequence, and jumped back from the door. Sparky, however, seemed to have either forgotten, or was too busy moping to realize Pinkie's twitch, just in time for the door to suddenly slam back open, crushing her between it and the wall. "Hey Pinkie, Emerald," Spike greeted, before looking around, "Have either of you guys seen Twilight?" Emerald just laughed as he passed the drake, not even bothering to answer him. "Please tell me you didn't plan that," he told the bouncing mare beside him, "Plan what?" she asked, pausing her bouncing to open the door. He just grinned at her, "Oh nothing," he answered, walking out, grinning all the while, "Nothing at all.~" Emerald and Pinkie had ended up going their separate ways a few minutes after leaving Sparky's abode. At least, that had been the plan, had he not spotted Sparky, now wearing a pith helmet and binoculars, sneak outside, following after Pinkie. Instead, he rolled his eyes and followed along as well. ... He found the two of them at the Ponyville Park, with Pinkie happily bouncing around the fountain, occasionally stopping to smell a flower or two. Sparky, however, was hiding in a nearby bush, peeking out now and again to peer at Pinkie with her binoculars. Emerald decided to approach. "Whatcha doin', Sparky?" he asked, appearing behind the sneaky mare, who was too busy writing in a notepad to notice his purposefully obvious approach. She yelped and jumped a good three feet into the air, before grabbing onto him and pulling him behind the bush with her. "Honestly, Emerald!" she whisper scolded him, "Don't you know not to sneak up on ponies?!" she demanded. He smirked, "The only one sneaking here, is you," he replied, peering up over the bush at Pinkie. Sparky gasped, before pushing him to the ground. She landed atop him, her hooves out to the side. Emerald inwardly smirked, taking full notice of the position she unwittingly put them in. "I am not!" she whispered hotly, before getting off of him and all but hopping into the bush, "I am doing scientific research!" she claimed. Emerald rolled his eyes, and joined her in the leafy cocoon. "On Pinkie?" he asked. Sparky backed away from the hole she'd made in the bush. The small space they'd made inside the bush was too small for their size, meaning that when she turned to face him, their noses, once again, were pressed against each other. "Yes, on Pinkie," she huffed. Her breath smelled like tea for some reason, "Scientific name, 'Pinkius Pieucus'," she stated, narrowing her eyes at him. "Really?" he asked, smirking at her, "Yes!" she said, glancing outside the bush, before turning back to him, the friction against his nose making him twitch, "There's something fishy going on with this whole 'twitchin' tail' business," she said, pushing him back as she leaned forward, unaware that their lips were only inches apart, "And I am going to get to the bottom of it!" she proclaimed, before finally backing off. She stuck her head out of the bush and gasped, "Come on!" she said, standing up, unwittingly pressing her tail against his face, causing the smell of blueberries to pass over his face, likely her shampoo, "Pinkius Pieucus is on the move!" she called, marching off towards the mare, leaving Emerald just sitting there, now exposed to the world. He laughed at her antics, but stood up and followed dutifully after her. He'd have so much teasing material once this was over. If he bothered to remember, of course. ... "Is this really a good idea?" Emerald couldn't help but ask, even as he jotted down some notes for Sparky, who had foisted that job upon him. The two of them, three if Pinkie was counted, had migrated over to the Ponyville Schoolhouse, where Pinkie was gleefully rolling around in the grass, for some reason or another. As it was, he and Sparky remained 'hidden' behind the very same bush from before, with Sparky leaning out, peering at Pinkie with her binoculars, occasionally muttering. His question went ignored as Sparky suddenly stiffened, "Itchy nose," she called, with Emerald moving to write down her observation, "Hold on... ha!" she exclaimed, lowering her binoculars and looking back at him, smugly, "That doesn't make sense! She's hiding like something's about to fall from the sky, but that's what twitchy tail means, not an itchy nose!" she said, smugly grinning. Emerald, curious, poked his own head out to check. Indeed, Pinkie had taken cover underneath a large horseshoe, and was fearfully looking up at the sky. ... Wait... no. She wasn't looking at the sky. Her gaze was focused on one particular spot in the sky, which was steadily getting bigger. In fact, the little spot looked like... "Shit. Bees," Emerald muttered, diving into the bush. "What are you doing?" Sparky asked, peering at him curiously, unaware of the incoming swarm. "I'd hide if I was you," he muttered. "What?" she asked, before standing back up to check. Her pupils dilated at the sight of the swarm, "AAHH!" she screeched, before bolting away, with the swarm eagerly following after. Emerald sighed from within the bush, inwardly praying she wasn't allergic to bee stings. "Now what's she doing?" Emerald asked idly, laying on his back as he doodled on the notepad. It had been about an hour since Sparky had been swarmed, and, after a quick break for some medical attention, courtesy of Emerald, they were back to 'Pinkie Watch', as he dubbed it, only now they were by the barn at Sweet Apple Acres. "Smelling a flower," Sparky answered, Emerald scoffed, "Wonder what that means," he muttered sarcastically, "Probably that the flower smells good," she replied, before leaning forward, "Wait... I'm getting something. Ear flop... eye flutter... knee twitch!... Wait, that sounds familiar..." Emerald perked up, eyeing the barn door warily, "That's the one that means 'look out for opening doors', right?" he asked, gently rolling away from the barn door. Sparky scoff when she noticed this, "Wow, you really believe that, don't you?" she asked, before smugly leaning against the very door he scooted away from, "Look. See? Nothing is happening," she said, before hopping back down, and walking around the hay stack they'd hidden behind, "C'mon, Pinkie's leav-IIIINNNNG!" Emerald watched on, torn between amusement and worry as Sparky, who was, yet again, not paying attention, ended up walking straight into an open doorway that led downward, likely the cellar Applejack had mentioned earlier. Emerald winced slightly with every loud thud, each accompanied by a pained 'OW!', as she unwillingly descended. Finally, she stopped, but it wasn't over. "Oh, howdy Twilight!" came Applejack's voice from down below, "Didja come by ta see the new cellar?" Emerald smirked as he gently pushed Sparky into a sitting position. Thankfully the damage was limited to some minor soreness, but at the moment it was enough to limit her movement. Sparky sighed angrily, grunting as she lifted her binoculars back into position, "Ugh, take this down," she ordered tiredly, "... Twitchy tail," she muttered, before leaning forward a bit, "And wiggly nose," Emerald paused, before looking up, noticing a moving chariot above them. "Twitchy tail meant something was gonna fall, right?" she asked, "But... what was wiggly nose again?" she asked, before she felt Emerald grab her by the shoulder and pull her away from her hiding spot roughly. She hit the ground rather hard, but just before she could scold him for interrupting her, a small crash alerted her to the potted plant that had nearly collided with her skull. An anvil followed after, landing directly atop the plant. Suddenly a wagon filled with hay fell and crashed into the same spot, followed almost immediately by a piano of all things. Twilight winced with every resounding crash, adding a note to thank Emerald profusely with each one. On the bright side. She remembered that wiggly nose meant that Emerald saved her. "... Thank you," she muttered, falling onto her back, closing her eyes as she debated just going to sleep. She heard Emerald chuckle above her, which prompted one eye to open, finding him grinning down at her. "Had enough, Sparky?" he asked cheekily, his breath washing over her downed form, even as his, admittedly long, mane spilled over him, lightly tickling her face. His breath smelled like apples. She narrowed her eyes at him, something that seemed to make his grin wider if anything. She huffed slightly, watching as her breath pushed around some of his fur. She didn't understand. All of these... things Pinkie was 'predicting'. Every single time her 'Pinkie Sense' acted up, something happened. And it seemed consistent too. Every twitch and combo did exactly what she said it would, and always around the same time. Was she wrong? Was this... Pinkie Sense of hers actually real? Emerald certainly seemed to think so, and, from her reaction, Applejack did too. So... maybe they were right? Maybe Pinkie was just... unexplainable? Her head hurt just thinking about it. "You alright, Twilight?" Emerald asked. The sudden use of her name stunned Twilight, and she redirected her focus back onto him instantly. His eyebrows were furrowed, and his eyes were roaming her face quickly, taking in every single detail he could. It made her blush, a little. She'd never had anypony paying this much attention to her before. Sure she had teachers and tutors who kept their focus on her, but they tended to divert their focus to something else before too long. But it seemed Emerald wasn't. He was still looking at her, waiting for a response. Why? she asked herself, Why is he paying so much attention to me? All day he'd followed along with her. And she remembered during the whole ticket fiasco as well. He never left her side, back then or right now. A strange warmth blossomed in her chest at the thought. He really hadn't left her side all day. He was always there. Her mind wandered back to earlier today. When she first started stal-researching Pinkie, he had been there. Her nose twitched slightly at the memory of the two of them in the bush. It hadn't occurred to her then, or even before, that their noses had been touching almost the whole time. Her lips even tingled slightly when she remembered how close she had gotten to him during her fervorous ranting in the bush. "Twilight? Seriously, is everything alright?" she heard him ask once more, his tone now carrying a very worried tint, "I didn't pull you down too hard, did I?" It took a moment, but she finally found her voice, "Oh, uh... n-no, I'm fine," she said, trying to sit up. Her back ached fiercely, still sore from her impromptu trip into Applejack's cellar. A gentle hoof found its way to her back, pushing her onto her hind legs. "You sure about that, Sparky?" Emerald asked, his worried tone vanishing slightly with the return of the nickname. She nodded quickly, perhaps a bit too quickly though, since her neck started aching as well. Emerald frowned slightly at Sparky's behavior. She seemed... tense. More so than before. Even as she stood back onto her legs, she kept sending him glances from the corner of her eye, though she tried playing it off as just looking for Pinkie. Speaking of Pinkie... "Oh, hey Applejack!" he heard the mare call from behind them, bidding him to turn, "Well howdy Pinkie!" the mare replied, walking up to her with a single basket of apples resting atop her back, "Whatcha doin'?" Pinkie asked, Applejack just shrugged, "Nothin' much. Jus' haulin' these apple ta our new cellar. How 'bout you?" "Oh, I'm letting Twilight and Emerald secretly follow me without me knowing!" "WHAT?!" Sparky snapped loudly, her aches and pains forgotten as she stomped towards the not-as-oblivious-as-she-thought mare, "You KNEW?!" she demanded, pointing an angry hoof at her, "You knew I was following you the whole time?! Why didn't you say something?!" she asked. Pinkie just giggled at her, "Because that would have ruined the surprise, silly!" she answer, smiling cheerfully. Emerald watched as Sparky's face went through numerous different expressions, each one not particularly happy. "Uh... tail still twitching?" Emerald asked nervously, glancing at the livid mare from the corner of his eye, "Nope! Clear skies from here on out, as far as I can tell!" she said. Her smile disappeared suddenly when she started spasming, her body shaking violently in place. "WoOoAAaahhH!" she stuttered, before the shivers suddenly stopped, "Huh... that was weird," "Woah nelly! What was that?" Applejack asked, eyeing Pinkie like a dangerous animal, "I dunno!" she answered, apparently just as surprised, "But whatever it was, it's gonna be a doozy!" she said, "Something I never expected to happen is gonna happen!" she cried, looking worried. "Huh, well isn't that specific?" Emerald muttered sarcastically. Pinkie started shuddering once again, only this time, she let out a gasp, "It's gonna happen at Froggy Bottom Bog!" she shouted. "Wasn't that where Fluttershy was headin'?" Applejack asked, looking worried, "Is it 'bout her?!" "I don't know!" Pinkie cried, her hooves flying to her head, "Well, we better go an' check on 'er, c'mon!" Applejack said, before bolting down the path, Pinkie following close behind. Emerald frowned for a moment, before nodding and running after them, ignoring Sparky sputter behind him. Emerald easily caught up with the two mares, hearing Sparky following close behind, "Oh, and here I was thinking you didn't believe in this stuff!" Emerald called, keeping his attention forward, "I don't!" Sparky yelled, pulling up beside Pinkie with a smug grin, "I just want to be there to see your faces when NOTHING HAPPENS!" Emerald just rolled his eyes at the delusional mare. Honestly, even with all of those little predictions Pinkie's been making all day, she still refuses to believe that not everything has an honest explanation? Emerald knew from real-world experience, that there are just some things better left unsolved. The four of them wove through the trees of the Everfree Forest, with Emerald in the back. He didn't dare lead the mares in this particular forest, simply because he was worried they'd lose him pretty quickly thanks to his colouration. Not that it mattered, as Applejack seemed more than aware of the location of Froggy Bottom Bog, as evidenced when they slid into a wide open area devoid of trees. Emerald looked around for a moment. Froggy Bottom Bog was, indeed... a bog. He could hear the faint buzzing of various insects around the area, accompanied by the persistent bubbling of the murky water. Fluttershy wasn't hard to spot. Her butter yellow coat and bubblegum pink hair stood out almost comically against the murky browns and grays of the forest, especially since she was parked on a rock in the middle of the water. ""Fluttershy!"" Applejack and Pinkie shouted, catching the attention of the shy pegasus, "You're okay!" Pinkie added, leaping over the water and landing happily on the pegasus' back, "Of course?" she said confused, before turning to face them, "What are you all doing here?" "Nevermind that!" Applejack said, smiling in relief, "I'm jus' glad nothin's wrong with ya," Fluttershy blinked, then tilted her head in confusion, "Um... why would anything be wrong?" she asked. Sparky, however, chose that moment to speak up, "You know, I know it's not nice to gloat, but..." she trailed, off, before pointing a hoof at Pinkie victoriously, "AHA!" she cheered, startling the pink mare. "I told you nothing would happen!" Sparky continued, even as an unusual fog started rolling in, causing her to cough, "Pinkie Pie said that-*cough* -whatever she was shuddering about was-*cough cough* -gonna be a dooz-*cough* -y, and the only-*cough* -doozy here is how right I- *cough* am!" Emerald scrunched up his nose at the vile scent that pervaded it. He gave a light cough as he inhaled by mistake, but it was enough for him to recognize the scent. Sulfur. But why would there be a sulfur fog around here? The only reason he could think of was... No. Emerald tensed up immediately whirling around to find the source of the fog, hoping he was incorrect. There was no way he could take care of a fucking hydra with these ponies around! He spotted it quickly, as it had given up hiding, instead choosing to surface. A dull golden head breached the surface of the water, followed quickly by, not one, not two, but three more. Up and up they rose, their long necks reaching on endlessly through the water, scales glistening with un-shed droplets of water. Thankfully, Applejack had already begun backing away from the beast once she noticed it, but Pinkie and Fluttershy stayed rooted in place, frozen from fear. Sparky, however, remained completely oblivious to the sudden rise in danger behind her. "Pinkie's made a lot of predictions today, but-*cough cough cough* -what is that smell?" she asked herself, before shaking her head, "Anyway, but what we've shown here is that-*cough* -seeing is be-*cough* -believing!" she finished. Emerald snarled, looking up at the four sets of piercing green eyes that peered down at them, "Well, you won't believe what's behind you," he muttered, just loud enough for her to hear. Sparky frowned, but turned, only to come face first with a wall of yellow scales. Slowly, almost agonizingly so, her gaze traveled upwards, not stopping until she, too, reached the top of the very dangerous creature in front of her. "... Oh sweet Celestia." she breathed, her ears going flat. "I-is that a HYDRA?!?!" Pinkie screeched, "Who cares?! RUUUNN!!!" Applejack yelled, bolting away. Fluttershy burst after her immediately, followed closely by Emerald and Sparky. It took him a moment, but he realized that they were missing a certain party pony, and he looked back, finding the same mare staring, absolutely petrified up at the hydra. Seeing its opportunity, one of the four heads decided she'd make a lovely snack, and lunged down. "PINKIE!!" Emerald shouted, pivoting on one hoof, before shooting back towards the frozen mare. Sparky heard his shout, and glanced back, "Oh no!" Emerald dug his hooves into the mud, coming to a stop a few feet in front of Pinkie. Immediately he pushed himself onto his hind legs just as the hydra came down at him. He caught the massive jaws with his front legs, feeling the momentum behind its lunge push him back, his hindlegs digging trenches into the mud. Emerald growled, but glanced behind him, finding Pinkie just fucking standing there, staring at him in awe, "Well... FUCKING RUN, STARDAMMIT!!" he yelled furiously. He'd be having a serious talk with this mare about FREEZING UP IN THE MIDDLE OF DANGER, LATER!! The fury in his voice seemed to snap the mare out of her trance, as she finally did the only sensible thing possible, and ran away. Seeing his friend getting away from the danger, Emerald returned his attention back to the hydra he was keeping at bay. The other three heads roared furiously at seeing their other part stopped so easily, but none were angrier than the one in question. It tried desperately to bite down on the nuisance keeping its maw open, but, for all its strength, it seemed the small, insignificant little morsel it was trying to consume, was stronger. Finally having enough, Emerald pushed it to the side, leaping away as he did so, causing the hydra head to crash violently into the ground, dazing it for a moment. It would be so easy to just kill the thing! Hydra it might be, it was a lesser hydra, as evident by the dull colouration of its scales. Unlike its better, more powerful brethren, this particular hydra could not regrow its heads, nor was one of them immortal. But still, no ordinary pony could hope to challenge the beast. It took only Veteran level guards and their equivalents to successfully slay one, and even then it might take four to five. As a Champion, his skill was far beyond even that, but he couldn't use it here. It was times like these, that he really hated his job. He bolted towards the fleeing mares, closing up the distance in a matter of seconds. Of course, the danger hadn't passed. The four of them had to constantly dodge and weave through the various branches and brambles that littered the bog, each maneuver eating away precious seconds they could've used to extend the distance between them and certain death. It seemed the world was out to get them when Emerald spotted a cliff side ahead of them, but, thankfully, he spotted a slope that they could climb up, "Everyone, up that hill!" he called behind him, coming to a sliding stop at the base of said hill. He kept his eyes on the fleeing mares as they ran past him, making sure that no one ended up left behind. When Sparky, the one taking up the rear, finally passed by, he too ran up the hill, only to notice something rather troubling. "Are you still shuddering?!" he yelled at the pink mare ahead of him, "I c-c-c-aAnN't heElLp iIiiIt!" she stuttered. Emerald groaned, picking up the shuddering mare as he ran by, not bothering to pause for even a moment. "Woah!" Applejack yelled ahead of them, coming to a halt. He growled at the stop, but he didn't say anything once he arrived at the head of the hill, finding a massive canyon spanning out in front of them. "Dammit!" Emerald snapped, scanning the canyon floor below, before glancing back at the hydra, which was slowly closing the distance. He growled, but didn't bother saying anything else. It wouldn't be difficult to just carry everyone over the- "Agh!" he cried, having just spread his wing. Sparing a glance at his right wing, he noticed a steady stream of red dripping from the bottom of his wing. It took a moment, but he understood what must've happened. He cursed at the feeling of a long tear along the membrane in his wing. Must've gotten torn by a branch as he was running. Given the adrenaline running through him, he wasn't too surprised to realize he hadn't noticed at the time. Regardless, he couldn't fly like this, meaning they no other choice than to cross the canyon along those conveniently places platform-like spires that spanned the gorge. "Everyone jump across, quickly!" he ordered, taking a stance as faced the hydra, who was beginning to ascend the hill, "Can't you just fly us across?!" Sparky yelled. He spread his injured wing, earning a gasp from the mares behind him, "You're injured?! Wait- how are you-?!" she tried to ask, but he cut her off violently, "Not the time to be asking questions!" he snapped at her, "Quickly, everyone jump across one by one, I'll see if I can't distract the hydra long enough!" he called. He turned back to the hydra, ignoring the argument the lavender mare no doubt threw at him. He couldn't let the hydra get close enough to lunge at the mares, which meant he needed to charge at the damn thing. ... Oh-hoh-hohooo... this was gonna be fun. He charged at the hydra, his hooves pounding against the rock beneath him with purpose. He could hear his heart beating in his ears, even as he watched in restrained glee as one of the heads decided to lunge at him as he ran. He slowed down, before leaping upward, dodging the hydra's maw as it crashed into the rock. He came to a rest, landing atop its dazed skull, before bolting up its scaled neck. Another of its heads spotted him running up its neck, and it too, lunged at him. Emerald stopped running, letting it rush through the air in front of him, the force of its sudden lunge enough to cause it to lose its balance as it swung around. Emerald jumped off of its neck, just as the hydra's body came careening down on the first head, causing it to screech in pain as it was crushed beneath its own weight. Emerald gave it a cheeky smirk, and glanced back at the mares, finding Sparky finishing up the last jump. He nodded to himself, and ran by the downed hydra. He expected it to be dazed for a minute or so, so it was just a bit of a surprise when his ear twitched, letting him know one of the heads had decided to rush at him. He jumped once more, letting the head crash into, and even through, the rock beneath his hooves. He landed once more onto its neck, before hopping off back onto the rocky ledge. However, the hydra, having finally realized that its current prey was injured, lunged a second head at it, not caring that it might crash into its own, already injured, head. Emerald landed heavily on his hooves, causing his wing to ruffle painfully against his body. The sudden shock of the pain was enough to distract him long enough for the next hydra head to crash down on top of him, maw wide open. And then everything went black. ----- Twilight watched in fearful anticipation as Emerald, her friend, ran from the angry hydra. A moment ago, Twilight was busy wondering just how Emerald was bleeding if there wasn't a visible wound, even more so because it was coming from his feathers, which shouldn't be possible, but now? Now, all thoughts of his impossible injury, and all thoughts regarding Pinkie's oddities, had been flushed out of her head. Now, all she could possibly think of was 'WHY THE FUCK ISN'T HE ALREADY RUNNING ACROSS THE GAP!?!?!'! Twlight's heart suddenly lurched when the hydra lunged a head at the pony's back, but, somehow, he knew to jump just in time to avoid the hydra's head. She ignored Pinkie start shuddering beside her. She bit her lip, her heart pounding loudly in her ears as she watched the hydra suddenly lunge a second head after him. She watched as the hydra ate him whole. Her blood turned to ice. "No," The hydra, looking satisfied that it had finally caught its prey, slowly rose back to its full height, its cheeks bulging lightly. "No!" The hydra swallowed its catch, and Twilight watched in horror as the bulge traveled down its throat, before disappearing at the base of its neck. "NOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Twilight's legs gave out underneath her as she desperately tried to jump back, but a set of strong orange hooves caught her before she could, "Twilight, no! Ya can't!" "No! We can't just let him die! Let me go Applejack! We need to save him!" the distraught mare shrieked, fighting desperately against the hooves, trying in vain to claw her way out. A second set of hooves, butter yellow this time, gently wrapped around her, causing Twilight to freeze in place. Fluttershy held the panicking mare close, her body shaking with unrestrained sobs. Twilight didn't bother looking down at the crying mare, too focused on the smug looking hydra who had JUST EATEN HER FRIEND!! Tears fell down her cheeks, but she didn't care. Emerald was gone. Dead. Six feet under. Dissolving in a hydra's stomach! "No... Emerald..." she cried weakly, falling to her plot in defeat. She had to admit... This was completely unexpected. Twilight pressed her hooves against her face in agony. Why? WHY?! Why was this the doozy?! Why didn't she just listen?! If she had just listened and accepted everything Pinkie did as normal, as FACT even, then Emerald wouldn't be dead!! He... he wouldn't... he... He was dead. And it was all. Her. Fault. Twilight cried. She cried, and cried, and cried. Fluttershy's gentle hooves squeezed against her, the mare's own tears coming that much harder. She didn't see it, but Applejack stared blankly out towards the hydra, which was busy glaring after them, likely trying to find a way to eat them, too, and a single tear fell down her cheek. Silently, the farm mare took her hat off and placed it against her heart. "He saved us," were the only words she said. Applejack shook her head, and replaced her hat, "Well... come on girls. He wouldn'ta wanted us ta-", "Look!" Pinkie suddenly shouted, pointing at the hydra. Her sudden shout caught the attention of both crying mares, who looked up, before following where her hoof was pointing. The hydra, whom had yet to leave, was looking... uncomfortable. Very much so, in fact. Twilight watched on in confusion as one of the heads started coughing up smoke, followed closely after by another, then the third, until finally all four of them were desperately hacking up smoke. But... that made no sense... hydras couldn't... A bulge suddenly appeared in the throat of one of the necks, and it started traveling up. The head whose neck was blocked was having a difficult time breathing from the looks of it, the smoke and blockage working to slowly choke the large creature. Twilight's eyes, as well as the eyes of the other three mares stayed locked onto the bulge as it made its way up and up and up the hydra's throat, before it finally arrived in the mouth of the very hydra that had eaten Emerald moments before. Slowly, almost agonizingly so, its jaw was pried open from the inside, revealing the back of a very pissed off stallion. "Emerald?" Twilight muttered breathlessly, watching in awe as the familiar stallion wrenched open the jaw of the monster that had failed to kill him with nothing but his own strength. "Shoulda chewed first, fucker!" he snapped, before taking a deep breath in confusing Twilight, as well as Pinkie and Applejack. Fluttershy, on the other hoof, watched on in slow recognition. Finally, once his lungs had been filled with air, Emerald blew down into the throat of the hydra. Only, instead of air, a stream of beautiful sapphire flames spewed forth, searing the inside of the monster's mouth and throat. Twilight mentally filed her questions away for later. Right now she was too busy cheering for the fact that EMERALD WAS ALIVE!! Eyes widening in pain, the hydra began thrashing about wildly, before it threw its head back, and flung it forward, sending the pony(?) careening through the sky towards them. "-aaaaaAAGH!" he shouted, before crashing into the side of the mountain they were on, the impact leaving a sizeable crater where he hit. "Ow..." they heard him mutter, before he fell from the wall, landing face-first on the rock with a lame 'splat'. ----- Emerald groaned as he stood back up. He could feel the cool air rushing against his saliva covered body, sending VERY unpleasant shivers down his spine. He managed to get back on all fours, before he abruptly cracked his back, "Ohohoho..." he groaned, "I am never doing that again..." he muttered, gazing upwards into the sky, before he finally brought his attention back to the three mares. "EMERALD!!" came a happy shout, before a soft body crashed into him. He honestly expected Pinkie to be the one to rush at him first, so it was a bit of a surprise to find that Sparky was currently the one trying to squeeze the life out of him, not even caring about the saliva coating him, "Hey, Sparky," he replied, gently patting the mare's head, before wincing in pain, "Agh... you lot miss me?" he asked. A strong hoof roughly patted him on the back, but it didn't faze him much, and he turned to find the farmer sending him a relieved smile, "It's good ta see ya safe'n'sound, sugarcube," she replied honestly. "You were right Pinkie," Sparky suddenly spoke up, gazing directly at the mare in question, though she didn't let go of Emerald, "You said we'd find a doozy out here, and boy did we ever!" she gushed, "I mean, that hydra and Emerald almos-" Sparky was cut off as Pinkie suddenly began shivering once more, drawing stunned looks from the three non-unicorns, while the lone magic-user just watched in growing rage. "The hydra wasn't the doozy!" Pinkie exclaimed, sounding just as surprised as the others felt, "It hasn't happened yet!" "Wh-wh-... WHAT?!" Sparky shrieked, finally letting go of Emerald so she could march at Pinkie, her horn sparking uncontrollably, "The hydra wasn't the doozy?! Emerald almost dying wasn't the doozy?! What could possibly be doozier than either of those things?!" "I dunno, but whatever it was, it hasn't happened," Pinkie answered simply, looking worried. Sparky's face contorted slightly, her horn's flickering coming more frequently. Her whole body was beginning to convulse, even as she began grinding her teeth together. Her horn suddenly lit up like a star, nearly blinding Emerald in the process. The sheer magical build-up in her horn turned her coat white, and even set her mane and tail aflame, before it abruptly went out. "Forget it," the exhausted unicorn muttered, "I give up," she added, walking lazily back over to Emerald, who had backed away earlier. "Uh... give what up?" Applejack asked, eyeing Sparky as she wrapped her hooves back around Emerald, "The fight," she answered, "I just... I can't do it," she sighed, "I don't know how or why, but her Pinkie Sense... makes... sense," she muttered, before laying her head against Emerald's shoulder, "Emerald almost died because I was too absorbed trying to explain something I didn't understand. So... I'm done," "You mean... you believe her?" Emerald asked, sending Pinkie, who's shuddering was beginning to worsen, a worried glance, "Yep," Sparky replied lamely, "Guess I do," Pinkie's shuddering turned to spasms almost the moment after Sparky finished speaking. Her body practically began contorting every which way. Even Emerald was beginning to feel uncomfortable watching, until, suddenly, she stopped. "Uhh...." "Oh! That was it!" Pinkie said, smiling brightly, "That's the doozy!" "Come again?" Emerald deadpanned, "What is?" Sparky asked, letting go of him once more, peering at Pinkie, confused. Pinkie gently poked Sparky in the chest, "You believing! I NEVER expected that to happen! That was the doozy!" Emerald blinked. Then blinked again. And then sighed. It... it was a little sad that even Pinkie knew how narrow-minded the unicorn could be, enough so that this whole fiasco was the result of her just not believing in something. "And what a DOOZY of a doozy it was!" Pinkie added cheerfully, before, once again, obliviously bouncing away. Wait a minute... If Sparky believing in Pinkie Sense was the doozy... did that mean...? "Does it say something about me if Pinkie partially expected me to get eaten by a hydra?" Emerald sighed slightly, idly following behind the little drake. Apparently, Sparky wanted him to hear the letter she was sending to the princess about 'what she learned about friendship'. Honestly, if Sunbutt ever made him write one of those... He... probably would just go along with it, now that he thought about it... Damn. He and Spike didn't take long to arrive at the library. Though, the not-quite-as-secret-anymore thestral couldn't help the twinge of anxiety in his chest. He really hated having to reveal himself to those mares. But really, the moment he injured the membrane on his wing, was the same moment he practically gave his species away. Oh well, not like it played a part in his role as their bodyguard, anyways. His species and job weren't interconnected, so it wasn't the end of the world or anything. Spike gently opened the door and peered inside, although Emerald, who refused to wait any longer than necessary, merely gave the hatchling a quick shove inside. "Uh, Twilight? We're here?" Spike called, nervously glancing back at the disguised-stallion, "Oh! Spike! You're here, and you've brought Emerald? Great!" came Sparky's voice from another room, "Take a letter," Spike nodded and rushed over to a nearby stand, where some parchment and a quill sat, ready to be used. Pinkie came hopping through the door Sparky's voice had come from, wearing the umbrella hat from earlier in the day, and Sparky followed not too far behind. Also wearing an umbrella hat. Spike just stared at the odd development, and Emerald couldn't blame him, since he was as well. "What's wrong with you two?" she asked, before rolling her eyes and readjusting the hat, "Never thought you'd see me wearing an umbrella hat, huh?" she asked, smiling gently, ""Not in the slightest,"" the two males chorused, causing the two mares to giggle. "Pinkie's tail was twitchin', what else could I do?" she asked, causing Emerald to snicker, "Well, anyways..." she cleared her throat, before standing up straight, "'Dear Princess Celestia. I'm happy to report that today I realized that there are wonderful things in this world that you just can't explain. But that doesn't necessarily make them any less true. It just means you have to choose to believe in them, and sometimes it takes a friend to show you the way.'," she said, smiling, before frowning, and gazing back at Emerald, "'I also learned today what it means to almost lose a dear friend. I can't even begin to describe how awful it felt, but now I realize that I won't have my friends forever. So it's best that I make my time with them count. Always, your Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle.'," Spike nodded as he finished writing, before rolling it up and sealing the letter. "Those are some interesting lessons there, Sparky," Emerald noted, watching as Spike raced up the stairs. She just shrugged at him, "Most usually are," she noted, before leveling a stare at him, "Now... about your wing... and that fire," she began. Emerald frowned, but stood up straighter, prepared to deliver some half-assed explanation about thestrals and his reason for being in Ponyville, only for Sparky to unwittingly cut him off, "We can talk about that some other time," that caught him off guard, "Eh?" Sparky just gave him a sad smile, "You've had a pretty rough day. I made you follow me around, trying to prove Pinkie Sense wasn't real, you had to keep bandaging me up every time I got hurt, you kept me FROM getting hurt, you ran circles around a hydra, got eaten by the same hydra, somehow climbed your way out of its stomach, then got thrown into a cliff side hard enough that I'm surprised you don't have any broken bones," she listed, before giving a sheepish chuckle, "Yeah, my questions can wait for some other day," "Ooh! Twitchy tail!" Pinkie suddenly exclaimed, causing Sparky to laugh, "Wonder what's gonna fall now," she muttered, "You never know..." Pinkie said, trailing off as a loud crash echoed from upstairs. Emerald frowned. That sounded suspiciously like a pegasus, and a big one at that, just landed on the balcony. Curious, Emerald headed outside and peered up, only to blanch at the sight of Spike staring blankly at the solar co-ruler of Equestria, standing almost casually on the balcony. She gently took the letter from Spike's claws and turned to leave, only to spot him from the corner of her eye. "It's nice to see you again, Emerald," the co-ruler said pleasantly, "Wh... what are you...?" he tried to ask, only to trail off, not certain how to finish that question. She just smiled, "Oh I was just out for a little flight is all when I saw Spike here about to send a letter, so, I thought I'd drop by," she said, before taking off with a single flap of her large wings, the distance between her and Ponyville growing rapidly. ... "I-I.... I don't even... I need to take a nap."