//------------------------------// // Falling Into Place // Story: Friendship Knight // by Pegyunicorn //------------------------------// “Okay now I told you how I absorb ponies’ magic, now tell me how in Tartarus we’re getting out of… Tartarus.” Tirek asked after finishing his diagram of the magic absorption process. Cozy finished her notes and spat her pencil out of her mouth. “Oh you’re so silly Mr Tirek. I’m just a cute wittle filly. I can’t get us out of here.” Tirek yelled in the young ponies’ face. “WHAT! You said you could get us out of here!” “No. I said I had a plan but we’d need an alicorn to get us out of here.” A cruel smile twisted the young filly’s face. “Fortunately I know just the one.” Tirek quirked an eyebrow. “You mean Twilight? Why would she free us? She’s the one who put us down here in case you forgot.” “Golly friend you really don’t get it do you. The key to a good evil plan is to turn your enemies’ greatest strength into a weakness.” Cozy explained. “What’s Twilight’s greatest strength than? Her magic?” Tirek guessed. Cozy laughed in the minotaur's face. “No silly. It’s Friendship.” “Great friendship saves the day.” Tirek sarcastically said. “Forgive me if I’m a bit sceptical.” “No not boring old friendship. I’m talking about Friendship.” Cozy clarified. “You didn’t capitalized it.” Tirek rolled his eyes. “What's the difference?” “One is when two or more creatures really like care for each other in a non-romantic way. The other is the most powerful source of magic in all of Equestria.” Cozy explained. “So how are you going to convince Twilight to free us while still being trapped down here?” Tirek asked. “I don’t need to convince Twilight to free us. I just need her to cast a specific spell and I also need this.” Cozy dug up a small box. She opened the box and pulled out a small object wrapped in cloth. “This is the key to our freedom, our revenge, our conquest of Equestria. This Mister Tirek is the key to our future.” Tirek leaned in close as Cozy unwrapped the object. The moment he saw It he recoiled back. “Ewww! Is that what I think It is.” “Yes, It is.” Cozy said looking at It like It was made of solid gold. “Isn’t It amazing?” “It is disgusting is what It is.” Tirek said from the corner of his cage farthest from It. Cozy saw her minatur friend cowering and smiled that sadistic smile of her’s. “Oh golly look at me being so rude, hogging It all for myself. Do you want to hold It Mister Tirek?” Tirek’s eyes were wide with fear. “Cozy Glow I swear don’t you dare. Keep that thing far away from me.” Cozy started walking over to the minotaur holding it out in her hoof. “Come on buddy, TOUCH IT!” Tirek screeched in terror and began to run in circles as he was chased by the filly. After a few minutes he tripped allowing the little filly to jump onto him. Shaking with fear he begged. “Please have mercy.” Cozy cruel face came closer and closer to the minotaur as did It until. “Boop.” She tapped his nose with It. Tirek turned green and knocked the cackling pony off him as he rushed to the side of his cage and began puking while Cozy for her part was rolling on the ground laughing. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The student six sat inside Twilight's castle in what was once a large storage area that had been converted into barracks for the Friendship Knights. The various creatures stood staring at a door labeled Captain Berrytwist. "So who's going to knock?" Smolder asked. "Well I'm not knocking." Gallus said shaking his head. “Are you sure it's us she wanted to see. Maybe she was looking for another changeling." Ocellus whimpered backing away from the door. "Well Yona no knock. Last time Yona knocked, Yona knocked pony out." Yona said nervously. "Well someone has to knock." Sandbar told them but made no move to knock himself. Silverstream thought back to what Tempest had told her about not being afraid. She took a deep breath and repeated Headmare Twilight's calming technique and knocked. After a moment the door opened as the scared mulberry unicorn opened it. "Ah you're here, come on in." Tempest said stepping aside to let the six kids come in. Hesitantly they walked passed the mulberry mare and tensed at the sound of the door locking behind them. “Please have a seat. There should be enough.” Tempest said gesturing to two sofas and a few chairs in the large room. “So… are we in trouble?” Silverstream asked tapping her claws together nervously. “YONA SORRY SHE CRUSH PONY!” The yak screamed deafening the room. “No one is in trouble.” Tempest reassured them taking a seat behind her desk. “Really?” Gallus asked. “What are you cool with getting knocked out twice in less time than it takes to make popcorn?” “I wouldn’t say cool with it.” Tempest told them. “But I am impressed Yona and Silverstream were able to knock me out. I know it seems like I go down so easily, like it’s a gag in some dumb story but usually I’m pretty tough. Plus I’m also told if it wasn't for you we’d all be bowing to the Empress of Friendship Cozy Glow by now, Is that correct?” Smoulder leaned back checking her claws. “Yeah we kicked some major ass that day.” She said smugly. “We did help save Equestria.” Occelus shyly spoke up. “Good because I want to recruit you kids.” Tempest told them. “You kids will be Friendship Squires.” “Yona likes squirrels. They have cute fluffy tails.” Yona cheered bouncing on her couch. “Not squirrels Yona, squires, it’s like a young knights in training.” Sandbar told her. “So we get to be soldiers?” Smolder asked. “Do we get weapons? Can we kill people?” “Nope, not soldiers.” Tempest said shutting that ideal quickly. “If you were soldiers at your guy’s age that would be a war crime, and part of my parole is not to commit anymore of those. No you kids will just help me maintain the Knights. Help with odd jobs and right now I need help recruiting ponies and other creatures. During emergencies you kids will help manage evacuations by guiding folks to down the evacuations routes and taking a head count.” “So were glorified gophers?” Sandbar asked. “Bummer.” “Hey I'm sure some pony would try and trap ponies in a magic mirror or something over a gopher job.” Tempest stood. “Look kids. I can’t officially order you into battle but you handled yourselves well with Cozy Glow. If Equestria needs heroes you kids will rise to the occasion, just let us old folks give it a shot first. Plus as Friendship Squires you’ll basically be guaranteed spots in the Friendship Knights when you are old enough. Hell I’ll even bump you up one rank in the guard upon officially joining.” The six looked at each other exchanging smiles and nods. “Where do we sign up Captain Berrytwist?” Silverstream asked saluting the unicorn. Tempest smiled handed out papers to everycreature. “Alright recruits I want you here at sixteen-hundred hours sharp. I want you to write some letters home asking for creatures that think they’ve got what it takes to join this illustrious unit. Any questions?” each of the kids raised whatever appendage they had. Tempest sighed. “Sixteen-hundred is four o’clock, I want you here after school. Now that that’s cleared up any other questions?” Everyone put their limbs down and shook their heads ‘no’. “In that case you’re dismissed.” Tempest told them as she returned to her desk. Once the kids were gone she pulled out some paper and started writing. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Late at night wind blew across Sweet Apple Acres as a young filly with a bow in her hair sat on a hill. Apple Bloom choked back a few sobs. She had just gotten into an argument with her family or at least it seemed that way. She heard somepony coming up behind her their horseshoes crunching the leaves in a way that she recognized. Only one pony took strides that long and wore horseshoes. “I was really hoping ya’d turn up.” She said staring up at the moon. “I really hoped Applejack didn’t really call me those things.” Applejack felt her guest sit down next to her. “Yes Apple Bloom twas just a nightmare.” Princess Luna said sitting down next to the filly joining her to look at the night sky she didn’t paint. “Ya like what I did to the sky?” the young farmer asked. It was nothing special but it was rare to see a dreamer take the time to dream a whole sky. Moon and stars and even clouds drifted lazily by over the dreamer and the night princess. “Yes tis a lovely night sky.” the nocturnal princess told the dreaming filly. “Apple Bloom, what hardship corrupts thou dreams?” Apple Bloom stared out over at the moon that would vanish when she woke. Minutes passed as the filly and the ancient princess sat in silence, one trying to calm her mind to reply the other sitting with the patience earned from a thousand year imprisonment. “Princess Luna, can a mare love another mare?” Luna wrapped a wing around the filly. “Dear Apple Bloom thou knows the answer. Thou hast seen mares in relationships here in Ponyville. Lyra and Bon Bon, Octavia and Vinyl Scratch, even thy’s friend Scootoloo is cared for by her aunts.” Luna looked towards the child. “Perhaps the question you really want to know is if it is ok for thou to love mares.” Apple Bloom looked down at her hooves. “I reckon that’s really what I want to know. Like ya said I know plenty a ponies that are gay.” She paused for a moment. “Luna I think I might be gay.” “How hast thou realized this?” Luna asked. “I found this poster of Twilight looking all seductive with her mane wet and her eyes all flirty like and I felt somethin’ I ain’t never felt before. Scootoloo got her hooves on a Playmare magazine and I didn’t feel nothin lookin at the stallions and they was showin off a lot more than Twilight’s poster.” Apple Bloom explained pulling out the poster in question or at least it’s dream counterpart. Luna looked over the poster with a smile on her face. “Indeed this recruitment poster would certainly make stallions stand at attention.” Apple Bloom lightly punched the princess. “Dang nabbit Luna that’s nasty.” Luna laughed a bit. “I suppose so but thou are no longer a little filly. Thou is growing into a mare and during that transition it is natural to explore one’s romantic and sexual preferences. Now Apple Bloom tell me, dost thou know where baby foals and fillies come from.” Apple Bloom blushed. “Yeah my sister and brother gave me the apples and pears talk and… Holy hay that was about our parents! Ew now it’s three times as gross!” the young farmer cried in disgust. “While that sounds like an unusual way to explain it it seem thou no longer believes childish stories about storks or cabbage patches.” Luna told her. Apple Bloom laughed. “I was told baby ponies were grew on trees like apples and there were orchards like our’s that parents went to to pick a baby.” “So dost thou have a crush on Twilight? She is a princess and thou wouldn't be the first young pony to harbor a crush on a princess of Equestria.” Luna asked. Apple Bloom shrugged. “I mean she’s purdy but I don’t think I like her like that. But once I saw this poster I started noticing other fillies.” Apple Bloom pointed down the dream hill to a young pony stood. The filly had a pink coat and a purple and white mane topped with a tiara. “Diamond Tiara. She has come a long way since she lost the class election hasn’t she?” Luna asked. “Yeah, she's become a good friend now that she ain’t such a bully.” Luna sat with the filly she used her magic to ensure that the Diamond before them was a creation of Apple Bloom’s sleeping mind, once sure that they were the only two real ponies in this dream Luna continued. “When I first arrived thou expressed relief that this was a dream and that thou sister hadn’t truly insulted you. Is that what you fear? That thou family will not accept thee when they learn of who thou loves?” Apple Bloom teared up. “Applejack, or Dream Applejack called me a disgusting fillyfooler and kicked me out of tha house and disowned me.” Luna again wrapped a wing around the filly pulling her close. “I see thou knows Applejack has never treated any of those ponies who loves another mare differently, but I know the fear you feel. Without parents Applejack had to become a blend of sister and mother to you much like Celestia has unto me. Like you I was terrified to come out to Tia.” Apple Bloom pulled out of the feathery embrace. “Hold up. You’re gay?” Luna nodded she pointed down the hill where the dream Diamond Tiara was talking to another mare. The new mare had blueish grey fur with a mane and tail of snowwhite and a darker blue than her coat. “Her name was Snowdrop. She made snow gentle and soft like you ponies know today by shaping it into shapes that sounded like the stars did to her. She never saw my night sky as she was blind but she heard it and appreciated it like no other, even I did not see the sky like she did. To her it was a beautiful symphony. When she died I felt truly alone and it was on the fifth anniversary of ours that I had celebrated by visiting her grave that I became Nightmare Moon.” Apple Bloom watched the two dreamer’s loves talk at the bottom of the hill. “How’d Princess Celestia take it?” “You have to understand that this was long ago and ponies were a bit more close minded. That said, while some nobles raised a fuss my sister was nothing but supportive. After my banishment she tended to Snowdrop’s grave so that even a thousand years later, when cities I know were abandoned while new ones rose, even when everything else had changed my love’s final resting place remained exactly the same.” Luna reminisced. “We are very fortunate Apple Bloom, for while they may drive us insane our older sister truly do love us. Tell Applejack how you feel as nothing will ever change the love she has for you. Plus you may find you and thou sister has more in common than thine thinks.” With that Luna vanished. Apple Bloom watched the night princess fade from the dreamscape before looking back down to the mares at the foot of the hill. Now there was a third mare joining in the distant conversation with white fur and a purple mane. “Huh guess me and sis got similar taste in mares. We like elegant classy ladies.” She started to wake up leaving dream Diamond Tiara, Snowdrop and Rarity behind.