//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Lunaverse: Galaxy Rangers - Secret Agent Dinky // by Rixizu //------------------------------// Secret Agent Dinky Chapter 3 by Rixizu “So, what will be my first lesson?” Dinky asked her new mentor with eager anticipation. “Are we going to track down some ninjas? Learn to defuse a bomb? Run an obstacle course on top of a moving train?” She wanted to continue, but Bon-Bon held up a hoof to stop her. “Heavens no," she replied much to Dinky's disappointment, "you read far too many spy novels. Today, we’re studying.” Bon-Bon put down several textbooks in front of Dinky. They covered History, Math, Science, and Politics. There didn’t seem to be a single book with vamponies or aliens in it in the bunch. What the heck? she thought. “Really?” cried Dinky, her face screwed up in disgust. "Yes, as an agent, your greatest weapon is not your skill in battle or your physical fitness, but your mind," Bon-Bon said, "an agent should be prepared for any situation or problem. Knowledge is power and not knowing something or misinterpreting the situation might cost you in the field maybe even your life. Nopony ever said being a spy was all fun and games," Bons concluded. "I see," Dinky replied glumly. Oh well, I guess the cool parts come later. "We will get to physical training later, but first I want you to get in the habit of learning," Bon-Bon said, "I want you to read the first two chapters of each book. And yes, there will be a test of all you’ve learned at the end of the week.” Dinky put her face into her hooves. Not more homework. She and school had never had a great relationship. Her ears still burned from the scolding she got from her mother for getting a C in History and Miss Cheerilee wasn’t too happy about it either. From the mischievous grin on Bon-Bon’s face, she knew the older mare’s game. Her teacher was pushing her hard with really boring stuff so she would give up her goal of becoming a spy. She suspected that the entire trial month would be just this. Well, she would not let all this boring studying stop her. Full of determination and resolve, Dinky picked up the first book, ugh, Politics and opened it up to start reading. --- “Yo Dinks!” Sweetie Belle called as Dinky exited school for today. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were with her. “Do you want to go to Sugarcube Corner? Scootaloo has come up with a great plan how we might end up getting our cutie marks!” Dinky rubbed the back of her neck. “Sorry I can’t, Bon-Bon is tutoring me in fifteen minutes and she’ll get mad if I skip our lesson.” Sweetie Belle pouted. “Really? Is your mom punishing you for getting that C?” “Ugh, that sucks!” Scootaloo said. “No, this is so I don’t get a scolding again.” Dinky was only partly lying about this. Nopony could scold like her mother. Over the years, she'd even had several nightmares about it. The soon she improved her grades, the better. “Isn’t Bon-Bon a candy maker?” Scootaloo asked. “How’d she end up tutoring you?” Dinky shrugged. “She’s a mare of multiple talents. She’s actually a pretty good teacher.” “Well, okay.” Sweetie Belle sighed. “When I get my cutie mark today, I promise we’ll help get yours too!” Dinky broke out into a grin and nodded. Wouldn’t that be nice? It was frustrating not having her mark yet. She’d been told many times that it would come in time, but it never did. At this rate, she may never get her mark. She wasn’t sure what to do with her life if that happened. Hey wait, she might get her cutie mark in spying! No, wait. That’s stupid. What kind of spy has a mark marking them as a spy? It would defeat the purpose of even being a spy in the first place. No, better to have a candy making cutie mark like her mentor. Still, she wished her cutie mark would come already. “You too Bloom!” Sweetie Belle said to Apple Bloom the only other black flank in their class. “What, uh sure!” Apple Bloom said. “That, er, sound great!” “Are you okay?” Dinky asked. “You’ve been quiet all day. Not like you at all.” Dinky didn't know Bloom all that well personally, but usually, the filly was full of energy and vigor. Today she’d been more interested in their lesson than socializing. Not like her at all and it wasn't like Cheerilee had given them an interesting lesson or anything. Scootaloo gasped. “Did something happen to Granny Smith?!” “No, nothing like that.” Apple Bloom replied. “Just been a long day, that’s ‘ll” "Well okay," Dinky replied. “Come with us. We’ll help you get your mark for sure!” Scootaloo said bouncing as she walked. “Ah dunno.” "You should go, it will sure to cheer you up!" Dinky said. The other fillies gave Bloom an encouraging smile. “I guess I could.” Apple Bloom said with some hesitation. “Yes!” Scootaloo exclaimed and Apple Bloom gave her a shy smile. Dinky had no idea Bloom was so shy around other ponies. It frustrated her she couldn’t go with them on this Cutie Mark searching quest, but she had her training and she would not skip out after only a few days. "Later," Dinky said going towards Bon-Bon's house, “maybe I’ll get out early and hang out with you guys." “Bye!” The other fillies said and trotted towards Sugarcube Corner. A sudden pang of loneliness hit her. Was this what it is like for Bon-Bon? Always being apart from everypony? This secret had more weight than Dinky had expected. She pushed that thought from her mind and entered Bon-Bon’s house. As usual, it smelled of sweets and taffy. Dinky could hear Bon-Bon candy making machines working in the distance. The whole building doubled as both Bon-Bon’s home and workplace. Lyra and Bon-Bon lived on the second floor. It was a nice and easy arrangement for both of them. "Dinky!" Lyra said pulled her into a big hug. “Bonny is such a dear to promise to help tutor you. With her help, those Cs will be A+s in no time!” "Hi, Lyra," Dinky replied, "you seem happy today." “Well, yes.” Lyra set Dinky down and beamed at her. “Hold on to your seat. Cause I’m about to blow you off your hooves! I have just been asked to play at the Grand Galloping Gala!” She let out a high-pitched squeal that hurt Dinky’s ears. She danced around in a circle lost in her joy. “That’s great!” Dinky replied. “Finally! After years of little concert jobs and playing on the street, I have gotten the recognition I deserve! Though, some of it is by luck. One of the performers got sick, and they asked me to fill in for him.” This time Dinky was prepared and covered her ears when Lyra let out another high-pitched squeal of excitement. It was surprising that the nearby window’s glass didn’t shatter from that one. “Isn’t the Gala only a month away?” Dinky asked. "Yeah, but I can handle it." Lyra waved a dismissive hoof. "I am going up to Canterlot today so I can practice with the other performers. Oh, I hope my old mentor Octavia is there. I haven't seen her in ages!" “I will be gone for a bit, so look out for Bon-Bon for me okay?” Lyra used her magic to pull a suitcase from a counter and sat it next to her. “I know she’s a big girl, but I worry about her sometimes. She’s good at getting herself in trouble.” “Uh, sure.” Dinky was glad for the other mare. Lyra’s dream had always been to be a famous musician, and this was her big chance. It amazed her how Lyra wasn’t even a bit nervous about taking on such a gigantic job like the Gala. In fact, Dinky suspected Lyra thrived on it. “Are you leaving?” Bon-Bon asked walking out of the dining room. “Without even having dinner first?” "Yeah, sorry," Lyra said, "my train is due in about 20 minutes. Practice is only a few hours away and I want to leave a good impression by coming early." "Well, have fun," Bon-Bon said sad to see Lyra leaving, but glad to see her marefriend so happy. "Don't worry, I will come back to visit on the weekends," Lyra said pulling her marefriend into a hug, "they don't need me every minute of every day. If you need to contact me, I'm staying at the Red Roof Inn." “Good luck.” Bon-Bon gave Lyra a kiss on the lips. “Ha! With skills like mine, I don’t need it!” She kissed her marefriend back. With that, she left them alone running out of the house with suitcase behind her. Bon-Bon shook her head amused by her marefriend’s antics. “Are you ready to begin?” “The Gala, huh?” Dinky gave the older mare a sly grin. “I suppose your marefriend got really lucky?” “Are you implying I had something to do with it?” Bon-Bon put a hoof over her heart in mock hurt. “I would never use my connections in such a way.” The two shared a smile. “So what are we covering today?” Dinky asked. “I hope it's something more physical.” Three days cramped in a small room doing nothing but studying was madding. Her head hurt from all the knowledge Bon-Bon had crammed into it. How Twilight did this on a daily basis, she didn’t know. "Yes, actually," Bon-Bon said. Dinky brightened at this. She was a pony of action, not books. Some fresh air would do her good. “Sweet!” Dinky beamed. “Are you going to teach me Kung-Fu?!” Bons laughed and shook her head. “No, today we are doing simple running exercises. We need to build up your physical strength before anything like that. You’re still only on the very basics.” “I see.” Dinky had a bad feeling about this. "We will run 3 miles today," Bon-Bon said, "then back to studying. You need to get into the habit of both. Agents need to be strong in both mind and body." “Great.” Dinky wondered if she could even walk home tonight. "If you don't like it, you can always give up trying to be an agent," Bon-Bon said. “Never!” Dinky wasn’t a quitter! Bon-Bon got out a whistle and blew into it. “Let’s hop to it!” --- Bon-Bon is a sadistic monster! Dinky concluded after an entire week of Bon-Bon’s lessons. Each day the mare pushed her harder and harder always giving her more difficult tasks or exercises to complete. Both her head and body ached after being pounded into submission. When she got to bed at night, she collapsed into it falling to sleep when her head hit the pillow. And still, Bon-Bon had yet to teach her anything cool. She hadn’t even learned to throw a punch yet! She wasn’t looking forward to getting out of bed this morning. “Dinky!” Her mom yelled from outside her room. “School is in a half an hour. No dawdling. Your breakfast is already getting cold!” "Yes, mom!" Dinky yelled in a grumble back. She got out of bed and took a quick bath. After getting herself presentable, she trotted into her dining room. "Honestly, muffin," Ditzy said, "it's like I have to throw you out of bed these days. Dinky rolled her eyes at the ridiculous nickname and grabbed a piece of toast from the kitchen table. It was cold but still edible. Her mom poured her a glass of milk and Dinky chugged it down in a single gulp. “Slower!” Ditzy chided. “You’ll drown yourself.” "Bye, mom!" Dinky grabbed her school bag and ran out her front door. She calculated that if she hurried, she'd have more than enough time until the bell rung. A scolding for being late from Miss Cheerilee was an experience she’d rather not experience. “Ya stupid fool!” A voice shouted catching Dinky’s attention, and she slowed down to discover where the voice was coming from. “Look what ya done idiot!” A scowling Applejack said. “Look at this mess ya made!” “Sorry, uh, sis.” Apple Bloom folded her ears. Both stood in front of a cart of apples that had tilted over on its side spilling its contents everywhere on the ground. “Now ah have ta pick it up by hoof!” Applejack glare intensified, and it looked her sister wanted to crawl out of her skin. “Whatever, get to school and ah better not see ya cause any more trouble.” “Yes, sis.” Apple Bloom crawled away ashamed. Dinky gapped at the scene. She’d never know Applejack to be so mean. The apple farmer always appeared a kind honest hardworking sort. Was this what the mare was really like behind closed doors? Well, one thing for sure she would help comfort Apple Bloom. Nopony should be treated like that. “Are you okay?” Dinky asked making Apple Bloom jump. “Oh hi, uh, uh, Dinky.” Apple Bloom replied. Dinky stomped her hoof on the ground in irritation. “I saw what happened back there. What a jerk. I had no clue your sister could be so mean!” “No, no!” Apple Bloom said in a stammer. “She’s just under a lot of stress. She’s unusually nicer.” “Still, that wasn’t right.” Dinky wasn’t sure she could ever forgive Applejack for treating Apple Bloom like that. She felt certain it wasn’t something caused by just stress and swore to be nicer to Apple Bloom from now on. “We, uh, better get da school!” Apple Bloom blurted pointing at a nearby clock. “Righto!” Dinky said. “I’ll walk with you. Keep you company.” “That’s nice of you.” Apple Bloom said touched, and she gave Dinky a shy smile. Dinky beamed back, and they ran towards school. "Okay, class," Cheerilee said to the room at large, "I have a special announcement." Once again, she was wearing one of her strange outfits. She wore what could be called in an aquarium suit. She wore a giant tube around her body and real fish swam around her. Dinky could only stare in bewilderment. How did their teacher even get this outfit? Ever since their field trip to the moon, Miss Cheerilee has had it in her head to wear ever more bizarre outfits in class always matching the theme of their study. “We’re having another special field trip!” Cheerilee paused for effect. “This time we’re going to the bottom the sea!” Everypony in the room chittered with excitement. That sound like the coolest, even better than the moon! Already Dinky dreamed of all the cool fish she might see. She might even see a shark or a whale! Or how about a giant octopus! All sorts of monsters lived in the sea. “What?” Apple Bloom asked confused. “How the hay do ya plan to do that?" “With her Zord obviously, blank flank.” Diamond Tiara said. “Pay attention! Did you forget we went the freaking moon a while ago?” The rest of the class, except Dinky, laughed and Apple Bloom blushed at her mistake. Cheerilee glared at Tiara before addressing the class again. “I will hoof out a sign-up sheet at the end of the class. Make sure your parent or guardian has it signed by the end of the week. The trip is next weekend.” Dear Luna, having a superhero teacher was the best! "Is Miss Trixie coming on this trip too?" Snails asked on the edge of his seat. Miss Cheerilee made a face. "No, and I've made her promise not to follow us this time. No more party crashing." The class let out a groan of disappointment. Trixie was popular with the foals of Ponyville and this announcement curbed the class's enthusiasm a little. “Alight class, calm down," Cheerilee said, "open your social studies book to page 190. Today we will discuss how laws are passed in Equestria." --- “Under the sea though, it boggles the mind.” Apple Bloom said as they exited the school for the day. "Yeah, Miss Cheerilee is pretty cool," Scootaloo replied. “You would say that, teacher’s pet.” Diamond Tiara said walking up next to them with her crony Silver Spoon behind her. "Don't you have somewhere else to be?" Scootaloo scowled. Ever since deciding to become an astronaut and improving her grades, Scoots had become Miss Cheerilee's favorite and often gotten the most praise out of the class. It turned out the little pegasus was smarter than everypony thought. “And miss taunting you losers? Never?” Diamond Tiara said. “What’s up with you Apple Bloom? You barely seem to know what’s going on in school anymore?” “Yeah, like did an apple fall on your head or something?” Silver Spoon added. “It’s like she’d lose her head if it wasn’t attached.” Diamond Tiara smirked happy with her taunt. Dinky scowled and jumped in front of Apple Bloom. “Leave her alone. She’s having a hard time at home.” “Oh? Is that right?” Diamond Tiara said with a scoff. “Her big sis finally figure out what a dummy her sister is?” "Leave her alone!" Dinky growled. She wanted to beat them up so bad right now. But no, her mom wouldn't like that, and Trixie always said fighting is only for beating bad guys. As bad as Diamond Tiara and her crony were, they weren’t monsters. “Whatever.” Diamond Tiara waved a dismissive hoof. “Later blank flanks, and Scootaloo.” “Later blank flanks.” Silver Spoon said with a laugh. “I really don’t like them.” Sweetie Belle put a comforting hoof on Apple Bloom who was taking the taunting worse than they had expected. “Just ignore them.” “Yeah…” Apple Bloom didn’t meet anypony’s eyes. “Forget them!” Dinky said. “Let’s go to Sugarcube and get a cupcake!” Apple Bloom brightened at that and nodded. Bon-Bon didn’t need Dinky for another two hours busy with a big order today, so she planned to make the most of it. “How’s the cutie mark searching going?” Dinky asked. “Not great.” Sweetie Belle replied embarrassed. “We’ve tried hard yet still no marks.” She pointed at the spot where her cutie mark should be. “That sucks.” Dinky felt their pain and disappointment. Why did it have to be so hard to find your mark? “Don’t worry!” Scootaloo puffed out her chest. “I have plenty of ideas to help get your marks! Have you ever tried deep sea diving?” “That sounds fun!” Dinky said excited deciding to join in this time. She liked swimming. That would be a great mark to have. She couldn’t wait to get to Sugarcube Corner and try and get her mark! The pool would be a perfect substitute for the ocean. “Get ya apples!" A voice yelled out as they entered the marketplace ringing a bell while doing so. "Apples are 75 percent off this week! Get ya apples here!” As they approached Apple Trust's stand, they saw a huge line in front of it. Dinky had never seen such a huge crowd in front of the Apple's stand before. She could even see Snail’s big sister Raindrops in the line. It was like the whole town as here. Big Mac took orders as Applejack advertised their special deal. "Seems like you're doing pretty good for yourself Bloom," Scootaloo said. “75 percent off?!” Sweetie Belle beamed. “I need to tell my sister about this!” “So what?” Carrot Top said a deep and angry scowl etched into her face. “How do they expect to make any money off of that?” Her stand had no customers at all, and from her expressing, had none for a long time. "They do have deep pockets," Dinky said thinking out loud. “Don’t remind me.” Carrot Top said, her scowl deepening even further. “So, the Apples are finally trying to take over Ponyville’s market all for themselves?” Trixie said trotting up to them. “Maybe.” Carrot Top replied fighting back an urge to break something. “Trixie!” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo broke out into a wide excited grin. "Hey, squirts!" Trixie said with a wave. "A bag of carrots please.” “Thank Luna! Some business.” Carrot Top said. “You’re not here for apples too?” Sweetie Belle asked. "Heck no," Trixie replied, "apples are coming out of my ears at home! Thanks to that little tyke over there, I have more apples than I could ever eat!" She pointed toward Apple Bloom who waved back shyly. "Well, if you don't want them, mom will take them," Dinky said. “Sweet!” Trixie beamed. “I’ll bring over a bag later! I'm already sick of apples. Not even ranch and ketchup can save them at this point." Dinky turned green at the thought of that combination but decided it would be best not to comment. Trixie’s taste buds were truly an alien thing. “Apples are 75 percent off this week! Get ya apples here!” More ponies crowded around eager to take advantage of this amazing deal.