June 10, 2020
Fluttershy’s Cottage
It was ten in the morning, and Jack was still in bed. The trip to Lake Marion and back had taken all day. When they finally returned to Fluttershy's Cottage, it was past midnight. Fluttershy had put his turtles in their new habitat, and Jack had gone straight to bed. He had been awake for an hour and a half, but he had no intention of getting up. Unfortunately, he wasn’t given much of a choice. His covers were ripped off of him, leaving him cold, confused, and pissed off. He scanned the room until he saw a certain white bunny dragging his comforter out of the room.
“ANGEL! COME BACK HERE, YOU LITTLE SHIT!” he shouted.
Jack threw on his clothes and gave chase. When he finally caught up with Angel, they were outside. He noticed Fluttershy struggling with a bag of laundry.
“Good morning, Fluttershy!” he cheerfully greeted. “Would you like me to get that for you?”
“Yes, please, that would be so much help," she answered.
“Where do you want to take these sheets?” asked Jack.
"There's a laundromat in town. I sent Angel Bunny to get your bedclothes. Now that we have your comforter, we just need to wait for him to bring down your sheets and pillowcase," Fluttershy said.
Jack was glad Fluttershy had gotten used to him so quickly. She no longer got startled by him popping up unexpectedly, the way she did when he arrived, less than a week before. Jack had made some improvements as well. Thanks to his medication, he no longer had to worry about avoiding eye contact.
However, something was bothering him. Fluttershy had clearly gotten attached to him. She treated him like a son. In Jack's mind, there was no doubt that this would prove problematic once Celestia figured out how to send him back. As he thought about how best to handle this, Angel hopped out the door with his sheets and pillowcase. The bunny threw the bedclothes in with the rest of the laundry, and Jack picked up the bag. Due to his size, the bag was a little heavier than he expected, but he managed to drag it to the laundromat.
The trip to the laundromat didn't take long. Fluttershy paid, and they dropped off the sheets. She then told Jack that she needed to go into town to get some food for the animals.
“I’ll just head back to the cottage then," Jack replied.
“Oh no, I don't think you should be walking out on your own like that," said Fluttershy.
"Why? I'm 21 years old. I'm perfectly capable of going home on my own," said Jack.
“I know, but um, the only ponies who know that are us, the Princess, and my friends," replied Fluttershy.
These conversations happened a lot between Jack and Fluttershy. Fluttershy's tendency to act like an overprotective mother around him was among the most annoying aspects of his time in Equestria. Still, he couldn't deny she had a point here. Everyone else thought he was seven. If Equestria's views on childcare were anything like America's, Fluttershy would probably get in trouble for letting him walk back to the cottage by himself.
"Fair enough. I guess I'll help you with your chores then," Jack said, gritting his teeth.
As they left the laundromat, Jack noticed Twilight, Pinkie, and Rarity out in the streets along with what appeared to be a small purple dinosaur. Angel noticed them as well and rushed up to the dinosaur, snatched a piece of paper, and brought it back to Fluttershy.
Upon seeing what Angel had brought her, Fluttershy gasped.
"Angel, these are perfect," she said excitedly.
"What are they?" Jack asked, examining the two golden tickets Angel was holding.
"These are tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala," replied Fluttershy as they walked toward Twilight.
“The Grand Galloping what now?” asked Jack.
“Oh, um, the Grand Galloping Gala is a formal party held by the Royal Family in the Canterlot Castle every year," answered Fluttershy.
Upon hearing the word "formal," all interest Jack had in the topic vanished. Fluttershy, on the other hand, was ecstatic at the thought of attending.
“Um, excuse me, Twilight?" Fluttershy timidly asked. "I would just like to ask, I mean if it would be all right if you haven't given it to someone else..."
Rarity, who had apparently been arguing with Pinkie Pie, seemed surprised by what Fluttershy said.
“You? You want to go to the Gala?” she asked with a raised brow.
“Oh, no. I mean, yes, or, actually, kind of. You see...” Fluttershy started.
She went on to explain that the party itself was of no interest to her and that she really just wanted to see the private gardens at the castle. The mention of private gardens caught Jack's attention. He'd quite enjoyed touring the private gardens of Charleston's historical plantations. A royal garden would certainly be a worthwhile use of his time.
“Gee, Fluttershy, it sounds... beautiful...?” Twilight said once Fluttershy finished.
"WAIT JUST A MINUTE!"
Jack turned to see Rainbow Dash perched on a wooden beam above them.
“Rainbow Dash! Were you following me?” asked Twilight as the rainbow-maned pegasus flew down.
"No. I mean, yes. I mean, maybe. Look, it doesn't matter. I couldn't risk a goody-four-shoes like you giving that ticket away to just anybody," Rainbow Dash answered.
"Wait just another minute," said Applejack as she walked up.
“Applejack, were you following me too?” asked Twilight.
“No. Ah was followin this one tuh make sure she didn't try any funny business," Applejack answered, pointing accusingly at Rainbow Dash. "Still trying tuh take mah ticket," she muttered.
“Your ticket?” asked Rainbow Dash angrily.
“But Twilight's taking me," Pinkie Pie interrupted.
The ponies soon began to drown each other out with their arguments.
“Are they seriously fighting over tickets?” Jack asked the purple dinosaur.
"Yep, Princess Celestia sent Twilight two tickets to the Gala, and now they're all fighting over who gets the extra," the dinosaur said, crossing his arms. "I don't really understand why they want to go to that girly gala anyway."
"Well, they are girls, after all," Jack chuckled. "I'm Jack, by the way."
"Nice to meet you, Jack. I'm Spike," the dinosaur introduced. "Wait, you're the foal Fluttershy adopted, right?"
"Yes," answered Jack. "Keep it together, Jack. Celestia will probably figure out a way to send you back soon. You just need to keep your story straight until then. God, I hope he doesn’t ask any questions. I can’t even remember what the story I came up with was!”
"Sorry to hear about what happened to your family. Twilight told me all about it," said Spike.
"That's right, Jack remembered. "I told the class the other humans were killed by a plague. The foals in class must've told their families. I'll bet Twilight picked up on the rumors and ran with it.
Before Jack could respond, Twilight shouted, “QUIET!”
“And then I said, "Oatmeal, are you craz…” Pinkie started before noticing the others had stopped. “Oh.”
“Oatmeal? What does oatmeal have to do with anything?” wondered Jack.
"Girls, there's no use in arguing," said Twilight.
“But Twilight…” Rarity whined.
“Eh! This is my decision, and I'm gonna make it on my own, and I certainly can't think straight with all this noise...” she said as her stomach grumbled. “Not to mention hunger. Now go on, shoo!”
The ponies all walked off in different directions. As Jack and Fluttershy walked off, the human said goodbye to Spike.
"It was nice to meet you, Spike. See you later," he said.
"See you later," said Spike.
Soon after they had parted ways with Spike, Jack noticed something.
“Where are we going?” he asked Fluttershy. “The market’s the other way.”
“Well, um, Angel thought it might be nice to go get some of our animal friends and clean up the library for Twilight," she answered.
“You’re just trying to do her favors, so she’ll give you the ticket, aren’t you?” Jack accused.
"N-No, I Just thought it'd be kind to do something for her," Fluttershy replied.
Jack raised a brow at this explanation.
“Ok, I admit it. I just want the ticket," said Fluttershy cracking under the minimal pressure Jack was putting on her.
"Alrighty then, let’s go get you that ticket," said Jack, satisfied with Fluttershy’s confession.
“R-really? You don’t think there’s anything wrong with that?” she asked.
"So long as you're honest about it, no, I don't see anything wrong with it," answered Jack.
After recruiting the help of Fluttershy’s animal friends, Jack, Angel, and Fluttershy made their way to Golden Oak Library. Angel and Jack began working on a salad, while Fluttershy and the rest of her animals began cleaning. They had been working for several minutes when Twilight walked in.
“Fluttershy, not you too?” Twilight gasped.
"Oh, well, hello, Twilight. I hope you don't mind, but Angel thought it might be a good idea to clean the Library up for you." Fluttershy answered.
“You're not doing this for the ticket, are you?” Twilight asked accusingly.
"Yes, we are just doing it for the ticket," said Fluttershy honestly as she flew down from where she was cleaning.
Angel brought the salad to Twilight, causing her stomach to growl.
“No, no, no! Well, this was all very nice of you guys, but I'm not accepting any extra favors until I've made my final decision, so I'm going to have to ask you to leave,” she said as she opened the door.
However, when she opened the door, she was surprised to find Pinkie Pie and a group of other ponies waiting for her.
“SURPRISE!” shouted Pinkie Pie.
Pinkie began singing a song about Twilight giving her the ticket while the lavender unicorn desperately tried to get her to stop.
“She’s not very subtle, is she?” asked a slightly annoyed Jack.
"But I thought you said it's ok so long as you're honest," Fluttershy pointed out.
"Well, there's honesty, and then there's that," said Jack pointing to where Pinkie and several ponies were tossing Twilight in the air as the pink pony sang.
“PIIINKIE!!!!," shouted Twilight.
“Yes, Twilight?” asked Pinkie.
“At least the other ponies tried to be subtle about the ticket,” said Twilight
“Wait, what ticket? What gala?” asked one pony of the other ponies.
“Oh, you didn't know?” asked Pinkie. “Twilight has an extra ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala!”
“The Grand Galloping Gala?!” shouted all the ponies present.
The ponies immediately began to swarm Twilight, offering her favors and causing her and Spike to flee.
"I'm going to go after her," said Pinkie Pie.
"Pinkie, wait," said Jack.
“What?” asked Pinkie Pie.
"Why do you want the ticket anyway?" Jack asked.
“Because the Grand Galloping Gala is the most amazing party in all of Equestria!” exclaimed Pinkie. “Why wouldn’t I want to go to that?”
“Is that really worth causing Twilight to be mobbed like that?” asked Jack.
"What do you mean, Jackey?" asked Pinkie.
"When you told all those ponies about the ticket to the Gala, they swarmed her," Jack explained. "Can't you see that what you are doing is causing Twilight stress?"
"Oh," she said as her hair deflated slightly. "I never thought of it like that."
Pinkie, Jack, and Fluttershy went back into the Library, and before long, there was a knock at the door. When Jack opened the door, he found Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack waiting outside.
"Jack, darling, where’s Twilight?” asked Rarity.
"She's not here right now," Jack answered.
“I KNEW IT! YOU’VE FINALLY SHOWN YOUR TRUE COLORS!” accused Rainbow Dash. “WHAT DID YOU DO WITH TWILIGHT?”
"I didn't do anything to her. You did," Jack said, staring her straight in the eyes.
"I thought you couldn't look ponies in the eye, Jack," Rainbow Dash growled.
"My medication helps with that quite a bit," Jack replied. "Back to the point. Your obsession with this ticket is going to drive Twilight insane."
“STOP LYING!” Rainbow Dash roared. “TELL ME THE TRUTH!”
"He is tellin' the truth, Rainbow," said Applejack, rubbing her head.
“But I haven’t done anything to Twilight!” Rainbow Dash said defensively.
"It's not just you, Rainbow Dash! All of you together have been collectively pestering her about this ticket. To an extent, even I am responsible since I encouraged Fluttershy to do it," explained Jack. "What do you think this constant harassment is doing to her?"
"Well, what do you think we should do?" asked Pinkie.
"How about instead of pestering Twilight about it, you explain to each other why you want to go and determine for yourselves who has the best reason for going," said Jack. "Pinkie Pie just wants to party, and Fluttershy wants to see the gardens. So, what do the rest of you want the ticket for?"
“I just want to be able to meet my true love," said Rarity.
"Ah want to set up a stand and sell Sweet Apple Acres pastries to the ponies at the gala," said Applejack.
“I want to meet the Wonderbolts!” said Rainbow Dash.
"Ok, so now we just need to decide who has the best reason to go," said Jack.
The ponies argued for several hours and came to an agreement just in time to see Twilight and Spike teleport into the Library.
“Ugh... Warn me next time you're gonna do that," said Spike.
“I didn't even know it was gonna happen. Now quick, lock the doors!” Twilight replied.
Spike quickly locked the doors while Twilight turned off all the lights, completely missing that Jack and the ponies were already inside. Thinking she was in the clear, she let out a sigh of relief. However, Jack switched the light back on, bringing Twilight's attention to them.
“Yaaaargh! I can't decide. I just can't decide! It's important to all of you, and I just can't stand to disappoint any of you, and giving me gifts and doing me favors won't make any difference, because you're all my friends and I wanna make you all happy and I can't, I just can't!” said Twilight in distress.
"We know Twilight, and we're sorry," said Fluttershy.
"We've put you through all this stress today and gave no consideration to your feelings," said Rarity.
"Ah wouldn't blame you if you decided not to take any of us," said Applejack.
"In fact, you probably shouldn't take any of us. We've all been terrible friends," said Pinkie Pie.
"Yes! Since you all give up, that means I get the ticket!" exclaimed Rainbow Dash.
"Really, Rainbow Dash? I thought we all had an agreement," said Jack.
"Fine, I don't want the ticket anymore," Rainbow Dash scowled.
"We're sorry, Twilight," they all said at once.
“Spike, take down a note," said Twilight. “Dear Princess Celestia, I've learned that one of the joys of friendship is sharing your blessings, but when there's not enough blessings to go around, having more than your friends can make you feel pretty awful. So, though I appreciate the invitation, I will be returning both tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala," she dictated as she wedged the tickets into the parchment.
“What?!” said everyone at once.
“If my friends can't all go, I don't wanna go either," finished Twilight.
"Are you sure about this, Twilight?" asked Jack.
“Yes, I'm sure," she answered. "Spike, you can send the letter now."
Spike opened the window and engulfed the letter in a green fire.
"Holy shit, Spike! She said send the letter, not burn it!" said Jack in surprise.
“I did send it!” said Spike.
"You just burnt it. We all saw you," Jack said in frustration.
"Uh, Jack, that's jus' how Twilight sends letters tuh the princess," said Applejack.
“Really?” asked Jack.
"Yup," Applejack confirmed.
"Oh," Jack said with a blush.
“Now, you won't get to go to the Gala either," said Fluttershy.
“It’s fine. I couldn't possibly enjoy myself without my best friends there with me...” Twilight started as the rest of the Mane Six hugged her. “So, I would rather not go at all.”
Spike began to gag.
"You ok, Spike?" asked Jack, mildly concerned.
“Well, wallop mah withers, Spike. Isn't that just like a boy? Can't handle the least bit of sentiment," said Applejack before the dragon burped out a letter. “Whoa Nelly!”
“A letter from the princess? That was fast," said Twilight.
“My faithful student Twilight, why didn't you just say so in the first place?" Spike read as six golden tickets popped out of the letter. “Six tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala!”
“Now, we can all go!” said Twilight.
And there was much rejoicing!
Twilight's stomach growled, and Rarity offered to treat her to dinner. As each of the Mane Six left, they took a ticket from Spike.
“How come I don’t get a ticket to the Gala?” Spike wondered before burping up another ticket. “And one for you Spike," he read before taking the ticket and running off.
“Glad I don't have to go, that gala sounds boring as Hell," thought Jack.
“Hey, Jack!” shouted Spike. “Celestia sent you a ticket too!”
"Well, fuck," Jack said aloud.
He ran after the ponies, and upon his catching up with them, Twilight decided to ask him something.
“I’ve been studying human history from some books I took out of a Library before Fluttershy found you. I understand most of it, but there are a few things I'd like you to explain to me," she said. "Could you come by tomorrow?"
"Sure, I don't have anything else to do," Jack said.