//------------------------------// // Ponyville Confidential // Story: A New Hero // by Alex The Lone Wolf //------------------------------// Episode 49 – Ponyville Confidential I woke up and stretched a little bit, just as I did mostly every morning. I placed my hoof on my face and rubbed it, going through my mane a bit as well. I pulled away the covers and stood up from bed, making them again afterwards. I yawned and looked out the window. Hm… pretty sunny day… I walked towards the stairs and climbed down. I opened my front door and looked out. There were several ponies outside, hanging around. I walked through the door and closed it behind me. I began strolling around town, hopefully to wake up a little bit before I headed off to Fluttershy's. I suddenly felt something soft drop on my head. I stopped and looked up, grabbing it with my hooves. It was a muffin… I looked up to see Derpy waving a little embarrassingly at me. "Sorry, Alex." I smiled and chuckled a little. "It's absolutely fine. There's no need to be sorry for this." She giggled a little and landed in front of me. "You can have it if you want though." She faced towards her saddlebag, which depicted a muffin on the strap. "I have plenty of more in here." "Alright." I placed the muffin closer to my lips and took a bite. "Oh, sorry about not getting to talk to you much back when you pegasi had to make that tornado…" "Oh, it's alright! I understood that Fluttershy was having problems. Her problems are way more important than talking to me!" "Well, we solved them, so it's okay. Why don't we hang out together sometime? Maybe to make up for it?" "If you're not busy, then that would be great! Actually…" She thought for a moment, placing a hoof on her chin. "Why don't you come down to Sugarcube Corner later today? We can talk and eat muffins!" "Sure, that sounds great." "Okay!" She turned towards her saddlebag and pulled out a piece of paper. She pulled out a pencil as well and wrote on the paper, holding the pencil in her mouth. After a moment, she placed the pencil back in her saddlebag and held out the paper towards me. "Here. Just to make sure you won't forget." She giggled a little. I grabbed the piece of paper and read it. Sugarcube Corner Sweet Shop. 3:00 PM. Muffins! I chuckled a little and rolled it up to make the mobility easier. "Alright. I'll plan to be there. But if any complications show up, I'll let you know". She smiled brightly and nodded. "Okay! I guess I should let you go then. I'll start making those muffins!" "Alright." I continued to smile softly. "See you then, Derpy." "Bye!" She waved and began flying off as I finished the last part of the muffin. I looked around and thought I could probably visit Rarity for a bit in her boutique before heading to Fluttershy's cottage. First…let me just drop this off… I had placed the note in my saddlebag back at home and began making my way towards Rarity's boutique. I knocked on her door and opened it, greeting her. "Hey, Rarity. How's my favorite fashion pony doing?" "Oh, Alex." She giggled as I walked in. "I'm just tidying up a bit here. What about you?" "I'm fine. I thought I could just stop by for a visit. Is Sweetie Belle staying with you right now?" "Yes, she's upstairs. She just came back from school a little while ago." She grabbed a pile of cloth from somewhere and began walking towards another place. However, she tripped over something on the floor. I quickly rushed over to her and held out my hoof to pull her up. "Are you alright?" I asked. "Yes…" She grabbed my hoof and used it to pick herself up. She lifted her left back leg to see what she had tripped over. It was Sweetie Belle's saddlebag… "Ohh, Sweetie Belle..." She used her magic to pick it up. "…was she raised in a barn or something?" However, it opened and revealed a rolled up newspaper inside. Rarity looked at it for a moment. "Oh, you really shouldn't be snooping, Rarity..." "Well… I wouldn't exactly call "reading a newspaper" snooping…a diary is another story… But…" I lifted my hooves in the air. "Whatever you want…" "Oh, just a peak!" She grabbed the newspaper and began looking through it with her magic. On the front I could see the name Foal Free Press. "Hello... what's this?" Then, she released a giggle. "Alex! Come look at this!" She gestured me to stand by her in order to read the newspaper as well. I returned a confused look but did so. "Gum on their bum!" She laughed heartily, pointing towards the picture of those two colts with gum on them. "Too rich!" She continued to laugh. "Can you please keep it down with all the laughter?" I heard Sweetie Belle say as she came down the stairs. "I'm trying to- hey!" She noticed Rarity and I reading the article. "Bleh!" Rarity stuttered, quickly placing the newspaper back in the saddlebag and closing it. "I, I was just— "Are you snooping through my saddlebag?" Sweetie Belle asked, causing Rarity to grin brightly as she held the saddlebag behind her back. Sweetie Belle tried to see what she was hiding, but Rarity continued to keep it hidden from her view. Afterwards, she lightly slapped Rarity's horn, causing her to drop the saddlebag. She retrieved it with her mouth and pointed towards Rarity. "How dare you!" "Sweetie Belle…" I placed a hoof on her. "Calm down… Rarity wasn't exactly "snooping". She just tripped over your bag, saw the newspaper and became interested in it. It's not like it was your diary or anything." Rarity nodded as Sweetie Belle sighed. "Fine…" "Alex is right, sweetie!" Rarity included. "Besides," She retrieved the newspaper from her saddlebag. "…this Gabby Gums column is so funny!" "You actually like the school paper?" Sweetie Belle asked as Rarity continued to walk while holding the newspaper in front of her face. "It's so much juicier than anything in the boring old Ponyville Express. Could I borrow this to show my friends?" Rarity asked. "Your friends would wanna read the Foal Free Press? " "Oh, they'd just love Gabby Gums! Who is she, anyway? I've never heard of her before. Is she a new- Sweetie Belle suddenly ran off and out the door in an excited manner. "Um…" "Huh…" I commented after seeing her run off like that. "Well then… I looked at the same page Rarity was reading. "I just hope that these two didn't become embarrassed about this…" I directed towards the two colts in the picture. "Oh, it's just harmless little gossip. Nothing to worry about." Rarity assured. "It's not like their super deep secrets or anything…" "Hm…I guess you're right…" "Oh! You know what we should do, Alex?" Rarity brought up. "What's that?" I asked as she placed the paper away. "Let's all go to the spa and relax! I can show the others about this Gabby Gums." "Oh…sure, alright." I accepted. "I'll get the others. Why don't you go get Fluttershy?" "Alright, I'll meet you back at the spa right after I come back with Fluttershy?" "Yes, sir." "Okay. I'll see you in a bit then, Rarity." "Bye!" She waved. I chuckled a little and waved back, walking out the door, and heading towards Fluttershy's. When I arrived at her cottage, I lightly knocked and waited for her to come out. Seconds later, she opened the front door and faced me. "Oh, hello, Alex." "Hey, Fluttershy." I grabbed her hoof and pressed my lips on hers, kissing her. After I pulled away, I smiled at her. "Rarity wanted us and the other girls to spend some time at the spa. Do you think you have the time?" "Sure! That sounds wonderful." "Fantastic." I turned around and waited for her to stand by my side. Afterwards, we began walking back to town. All of a sudden, as we were walking through town towards the spa, we heard insanely loud crying at the nearby jewelry shop, catching our intention. "Oh, my…" Fluttershy commented. "What's that?" "It sounds like Pumpkin Cake and Pound Cake; the Cakes' babies. They're probably having some trouble with them." I sighed. "I hope they are handling the situation or will be able to handle it well… "So do I…" We wished them the best of luck and then continued heading towards the spa. "Welcome!" Rarity greeted us, wearing a bathrobe, when we arrived at the spa. "Come in! Come in! The others are here, even Spike." Rarity led us towards the bath room where we saw Twilight lying on one of the chairs and reading a newspaper. Her tail had some sort of accessory on the strands of her hair. Spike was lying on his back on another chair with pieces of cucumber on both of his eyes. Applejack was lying on her belly with her eyes closed and a towel over her. Pinkie Pie was inside the giant tub, looking very happy as she wore a towel on her head and mane. "Look! I even managed to grab some of the Gabby Gums that just came out." She pointed towards the stack of newspapers near the tub. "Take one! You'll have a good laugh!" She grabbed one with her teeth and took it to the other empty chair, where she laid down, held the paper with her hooves, and read it. Fluttershy grabbed a pink towel, wrapping it around her mane and beginning to walk up the stairs nearby to enter the tub. "Hm…" I thought and grabbed one of the newspapers as well, just to see what was really exciting about it. I didn't take a towel, but I walked up the stairs and placed the newspaper near the tub. After I entered the tub between Pinkie and Fluttershy, I grabbed the newspaper with my hooves and began reading it. "Pound and Pumpkin Cake trip to the store ends in tears." I read out loud. I shifted my eyes for a moment and then looked at Rarity. "We just heard this crying a while ago. How did this come out so fast?" I asked. Rarity shrugged. "I don't know, but it sure is interesting! Or might I say entertaining?" I furrowed my eyebrows a bit, continuing to study the picture and text. "Two colts having gum on them was one thing…but this is really personal! I mean, does every pony really need to know about the Cakes' trouble with the babies? Every pony usually goes through it, if they have children." "Settle down, Alex. Everypony heard the screaming. Why does it matter if it's printed?" "Then what's the point of printing it if everypony knows already?" I sighed and flipped the page. "What's this? The Great and Powerful Trixie's secrets revealed! Isn't it that light blue pony that came to town, boasting about her magic a long time ago?" "Looks like it." Rarity responded, continuing to read the paper. "Oh! You should definitely read the paper and hear what secrets she has that nopony has known until now!" She giggled and shuffled her hooves playfully." "No thanks…" I placed the paper near the tub on the outside. "Even I feel bad for her…" "Suit yourself." One of the spa ponies finally came and attended to Rarity, filing her hooves. "Oh, this is the life, isn't it, girls? The best hooficure I've ever had!" She announced to all of the other girls. Another spa pony came and began tapping her hooves on Applejack's back, creating vibration in her voice. "You said it, ooh." Spike sighed as he continued to lie on his back and cross his arms behind his head. "I don't know if I've ever been so relaxed. "You guys!" We suddenly heard Rainbow Dash exclaim, causing Spike to yelp. His pieces of cucumber were thrown from his eyes and placed on Rainbow Dash's instead. She stopped and placed a newspaper in front of all of us. "The new Gabby Gums just came out! "The Great and Powerful Trixie's secrets revealed!" "We already read that one, Rainbow Dash." Rarity answered as Rainbow grabbed one of the cucumbers with her tongue and placed it in her mouth to eat it. "Come on, relax, have a hooficure, it feels amazing." Rarity fell back on her chair from pleasure. "Did you forget who you're talking to? The day I get a hooficure is the day I turn in my daredevil license. Besides, I haven't read this Gabby Gums yet." Rainbow Dash grabbed the newspaper again with her teeth. Spike grabbed the piece of cucumber from her eye to place it back on his. "Well, do it quietly, will ya?" He opened her mouth and retrieved the other piece of cucumber, placing it back on his eye as well, sighing afterwards. "Some of us are trying to unwind!" "I like Gabby Gums too, but don't you think she can be a little mean?" Twilight commented as one of the spa ponies was trying to place another accessory on her tail, but seemed to be having trouble doing so for some reason. "She's not mean, Twilight, she's a hoot!" Applejack responded, flipping a page from the newspaper she had in front of her as she continued to lie down. "Celestia, just like us?" Twilight announced, reading from the paper and catching my attention when I was trying to lie back and close my eyes in relaxation. "Gabby Gums doesn't value anypony's privacy." "What?" I exclaimed, quickly grabbing the newspaper from nearby the tub. "They did one on Princess Celestia too?" I opened the newspaper to the page and discovered a picture of Princess Celestia, eating a piece of cake while some bits of it were on her mouth. However, it seemed she had seen who ever photographed the picture, revealing surprised and widened eyes because of it. "Are you serious? What? Is Princess Celestia so expected to act in royalty that she can't even have some private time to herself to be herself?" I began feeling irritated. "Oh, lighten up, you two," Rarity continued to defend politely as the spa pony filing her hoof finished and walked away. "There's nothing but harmless gossip!" "Yeah!" Pinkie Pie announced, suddenly diving up from the water to face them. "I mean listen to this one." She pulled out the newspaper from the water, which was surprisingly not wet… That's Pinkie… 'Mayor, not naturally gray!' The Mayor in a mane dyeing scandal?" She presented, showing a picture of the Mayor dying her mane gray, which was originally pink… She too revealed widened eyes in the same manner as Princess Celestia. "Who wouldn't wanna read that?" "I just can't help feeling sorry for the ponies featured in her columns." Twilight replied with her hooves now placed in some other thing that was used to separate her hooves and allow them to be painted. "It's gotta be a little embarrassing." One of the spa ponies began painting them in a lighter color. "I agree." I added, placing the newspaper near the tub again. "Sure, it may be interesting to read now, but wait until you're unexpectedly placed in the column, with your most private and personal information about you! It's ridiculous!" I finished with my forelegs crossed and looking back in an irritated and annoyed manner. "Are you kidding?" Rainbow faced towards me. " Do you know how awesome it is to get your name in the paper?" However, Rarity shifted the conversation from Rainbow and me to Rainbow and her. "Rainbow, why don't you join me in one of these delicious hooficures?" Rarity questioned. Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight, who returned another look and sent a gesture with her eyes, indicating for her to go ahead and accept her offer. "It's that good, huh? Well, maybe just one little hoof…" She began walking towards her as Twilight nodded. Rainbow laid down on the chair, but looked a little stiff. The spa pony began inching her head closer to Rainbow Dash's hoof, in order to file them, but Rainbow began flinching. Every time the pony tried to file her hoof, Rainbow would shake and flinch for some reason. Just when the pony was about to touch her hoof with the filer, Rainbow Dash quickly jumped onto the air and flew, surprising Rarity and the pony. "Forget it, I don't like ponies touching my hooves." She flew back towards the paper and landed. "Man... I'd love it if Gabby Gums did a story on me." "She did one on me." Spike commented, instantly grabbing all the girls' attention, even Fluttershy's. "What?" They exclaimed, surrounding him. "Yeah… I talked about Canterlot, naps, and my favorite jams!" "Whoa!" The girls responded with general excitement. I slapped a hoof on my face and sighed. Then, I purposely sank myself in the water, holding my breath and closing my eyes. I decided to only stay for a very short while, just so I can mute all the noise and actually relax a bit. I was able to hold my breath for a few minutes, so I lay there, in the water, trying to unwind my nerves. After having only several seconds of time to myself to critically think about this whole situation, I was suddenly pulled out of the water and onto the solid ground, hearing Pinkie exclaim, "Oh no! Alex is drowning!" "What?" I released until I was interrupted by Pinkie when she forcefully planted her hooves on my chest in a harsh way, causing me to puff out some air. "BREATHE!" She yelled out and continued to pump her hooves onto my chest. I tried to tell her that I was absolutely fine, but she continued to strike my chest with her hooves. Finally, I felt too out of breath to say anything. "No! He's not breathing! Time to perform mouth-to-mouth!" Pinkie was just about to place her mouth on mine to blow in air, but I quickly placed my hooves on her and stopped her. "Pinkie! I'm fine!" "Oh…" She responded. "Okay!" She smiled brightly and jumped back onto the tub and creating a splash of water. I sighed and continued to lay there on the area near the tub. "So much for relaxation…" I muttered under my breath. "Alex…are you okay?" Fluttershy asked me, revealing her face above me. I turned around and stood up. "Yeah… I'm fine…" After spending some time at the spa, I began walking with Fluttershy back in town. I remembered that I still had that time where I was supposed to be with Derpy. I seemed to have spent a few hours back at the spa, so I decided it would be best to meet up with her now. Just as I was going to ask Fluttershy if she wanted to come with me to see Derpy, she looked at me and spoke instead. "Alex, do you mind if you take me home? There's something I wanted to try back at the cottage…I'm going to be pretty busy…you know…with girl stuff…" "Oh." I responded. I guess I can just see her by myself… "Alright, that's okay. I understand. I'll walk you to your cottage." When I did, I faced her and gazed her for a moment. She released the sweetest smile and softest eyes I could ever possibly receive. "Can I have a little kiss and hug from my little sweetie?" She asked. I smiled warmly and gazed at her beauty. "Of course…" I answered, feeling a little love-struck. We both closed our eyes and began leaning in for our kiss. I then felt my lips plant on hers, kissing her more passionately than just "a little". I placed my hooves on her cheeks to strengthen the kiss, but suddenly I heard something snap and a bright light attacked my closed eyes. "What the?" I looked around to see any source of the strange occurrence. "What's wrong?" Fluttershy asked, showing a little concern in her eyes. I continued to look around, but finally, I stopped and looked back at Fluttershy. "Nothing…" I planted one more sweet kiss on her lips and embraced her. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" I pulled away. "Okay, Alex. I love you." I smiled and nodded. "I love you too." Afterwards, I waved and began heading towards town. I decided I would stop by my house to retrieve my saddlebag, in case I wanted to buy anything at the sweet shop. I stopped at my front door and was about to open it, but I realized something very strange and odd… There was a small space between the door and the wall, looking as if I didn't close it right when I left my house. Hm…did I not fully close the door when I walked out…? Nonetheless, I walked in and closed it, making sure it was shut fully, which created an almost loud sound. I walked over to the saddlebag on my counter near the stairs and spotted that it was open. "What the…?" I spoke under my breath, feeling puzzled. Did I leave my saddlebag open too…? I walked towards it and looked inside. The first thing I noticed was that Derpy's note wasn't in there. Everything else seemed to be there. I became even more puzzled. Did I place her note somewhere else? Or did it fall out? I groaned. Well…it's alright. I know where it's going to be at and what time it is. Just when I was going to close the saddlebag and place it on, I heard some noises upstairs, almost like shuffling. I furrowed my eyebrows in curiosity and a little in confusion. I began walking up the stairs. I reached my room and looked around. I didn't see anything unusual. However, I spotted something off near my bed. I walked towards the nightstand and noticed something missing. Derpy's Hearts and Hooves Day card wasn't there… Did I misplace it? I rubbed my head with my hoof, completely puzzled now. I began looking around, seeing if I did. I looked on my shelf. It wasn't there. I checked to see if it was inside the drawers in the nightstand. It still wasn't there. However, I did notice some things shuffled in there… I began feeling a little suspicious. Why does everything seem off just right now? I shook my head and placed my hoof on the bottom of the floor. I began leaning towards the floor to check under the bed, in order to see if the card slipped under there, but then I remembered about something. I checked the clock on my nightstand. 2:57 PM. Forget it. I'll just look for it when I come back. I walked, almost quickly, down the stairs and back to the counter where my saddlebag remained. I closed it and placed it on, almost galloping out the front door, but remembering to shut it fully. I finally made it to Sugarcube Corner. I entered the sweet shop, ringing the bell, and alarming Derpy who was inside with her saddlebag as well. "Hey, Derpy." I was panting a little as I galloped a bit on the way. "I'm hope I'm not too late." She giggled a little. "No worries." I smiled and looked at my saddlebag. "I brought my saddlebag, just in case you wanted any sweets from here." "You didn't have to do that!" She responded and looked through her saddlebag. "I made enough muffins for us to get stuffed!" I chuckled a little. "Alright." I walked towards the table she was sitting at as she placed a few muffins on there and sat across from her. "So, how have you been? I also forgot to ask you on how your Hearts and Hooves Day went. Did you find a special somepony?" "Oh! No… But I did get to make little glittery hearts with my little sister and stuff, so it was still a great day." She smiled. "Oh, I see. Well, I'm glad you still managed to have a good day." I returned a soft smile as well and grabbed one of the nice and soft muffins on the table. Derpy grabbed one as well and took a big bite, moaning in pleasure after. When she swallowed, she looked at me. "What about you? How have you and Fluttershy been doing?" I took a bite of the muffin and swallowed. "Great. I think our bond has been growing stronger." I chuckled a little. "There have been a few problems…not with us… but caused by our surroundings. We've managed to overcome them together though." I smiled warmly and took another bite of the muffin. Then, I looked at Derpy and analyzed her crossed eyes, bringing up a question that I couldn't believe I hadn't asked before. "Hey, Derpy…" "Hm?" "I hope and don't mean to sound offensive…but…why are your eyes crossed like that anyway?" "Oh!" She giggled, still eating her muffin. "I learned to cross them like that! Don't worry, it's not permanent. It's just really fun seeing in different directions at the same time! Look, I can make them normal anytime." She shifted her eyes to where they appeared normal, surprising me greatly as I had never seen them like that before. "Wow!" I almost exclaimed in excitement. "I never knew that." I chuckled a little. "That's really cool, Derpy." "Thanks!" She shifted her eyes back to where they were crossed. "I hope I didn't scare you, hehe. I taught my little sister to do that, so she does it most of the time as well. She really enjoys it. I can teach you if you want." "Heh, no thanks. I think I'm fine like this. Although…" I narrowed my eyes a bit towards her eyes. "I'm still pretty intrigued on how your eyes cross so much like that… Are you sure it doesn't hurt?" "Nope!" "Hm…" I rubbed my chin. "Do you mind if I take a closer look?" "Nope." She repeated. I leaned closer to her over the table and observed her eyes. I tried to study them very carefully. Hm…that's very interesting…how she is able to cross them so much, especially on opposite sides, without them hurting or anyth— I was suddenly pushed forwards, shocking me and throwing me towards Derpy. It was all too quick. Before I knew it, my lips were on Derpy's. I was highly shocked. I quickly pulled away and looked back to see what caused me to be pushed so suddenly. "Oh, sorry, dear!" Mrs. Cake turned her head to see me. She was holding a huge cake that seemed to be unfinished. "I was trying to move this cake, but it's really heavy." "It's alright…" I responded, still stunned about the incident. Mrs. Cake walked away carefully with the cake back into the kitchen. I turned around to Derpy. "Derpy, I'm really sorry about that! I didn't mean to do that!" "It's okay. Accidents happen, right?" She still managed to smile after that awkward scene and held out a muffin. "Right…" I answered, feeling bad for some reason. I spent some more time with Derpy, possibly a few hours, but I still felt a little…odd…about the situation that happened. Derpy assured me that it was okay, but I could only nod my head and wave goodbye to her before I left the shop. I started heading home, reaching it shortly afterwards. I opened my door and walked inside. I placed my saddlebag on the counter and walked up the stairs. I headed towards my bed and climbed on it. Then, I lay on my back and stared at the ceiling. I kissed another pony besides Fluttershy… I sighed. It was an accident though… I didn't mean it… I just feel…really bad though. I wonder if Fluttershy will get mad or cry though? I really hope not… I mean… I can treat it as just an accident and as if it was nothing important, but I'll still feel bad… Maybe I'll tell her tomorrow, just to make sure that I wasn't cheating on her or anything. Well… I better get some sleep, and then tomorrow, I can say whatever I want to say to her when I meet up with her… I heard a knocking on my door, causing me to wake up. I opened my eyes and shook my head. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. I heard the knocking again. I sighed and stood up from bed, planting my hooves on the ground. I walked downstairs and answered the front door. It was Twilight. She was holding up a newspaper with her magic. "Twilight…?" "No time to explain, just come with me." She grabbed my hoof and began leading me out of the house. "What's going on Twilight?" I asked, concerned. "Emergency meeting at the sweet shop." "Huh…?" Nonetheless, she led me inside and I saw the others there. Pinkie Pie was sitting at the table with a newspaper in her hooves. Rarity was across Pinkie Pie with a newspaper in front of her on the table. Fluttershy was nearby them, near the staircase. I noticed Applejack, pacing around, looking a little irritated. Twilight took a seat near the table. I faced Applejack, feeling highly concerned on why she was pacing around like that. "Applejack, what's going on?" "This!" She pointed towards a newspaper. It was the Foal Free Press again. "What about it?" I questioned. "Gabby Gums posted a story about me! And it's not good!" "What…?" She picked up the newspaper with her hoof and presented it towards me. " 'Applejack, asleep on the job!'" There was a picture on there, depicting Applejack resting her eyes and crossing her hooves as she laid on a tree and near a bucket of apples. "Can y'all believe this?" She continued pacing. "And this one:" She stopped and pointed towards the newspaper again, flipping the page. " 'Big Macintosh – what's he hiding?'" There was another picture. It was Big Macintosh with widened eyes as well. He had that same rag doll that Twilight used in order to create a friendship problem… Smartypants if I recall correctly? "Who the hay does this Gabby Gums think she is?" "Listen to this one." Twilight held the newspaper as well, depicting a picture, which showed her reading a book as if she was one of those snooty ponies. "'Twilight Sparkle: I was a Canterlot snob. A well-placed scaly source close to the prissy pony says Twilight Sparkle thinks Ponyville is nothing but muddy roads and low-class rubes.'" She turned her head towards Spike, who was also reading the paper against the wall. "Spike!" Her call caused him to yelp and belch, burning the newspaper he had. "How could you say such a thing?" "Well, I didn't!" He responded. "Gabby Gums made that up!" He analyzed the piece of burnt newspaper in his claw. "I never said anything like that!" "Everypony, please!" Rarity announced. "She's just a harmless schoolpony engaged in a little idle gossip. You're really making too big a deal out of this." She pulled the newspaper to her face in order to continue reading. "But it's all lies!" Twilight explained to Rarity, placing the newspaper back on the table. "Gabby Gums prints whatever she wants, she doesn't care whose reputation she destroys!" She grabbed the newspaper with her magic and began flipping through it. " 'Fluttershy has tail extensions!'" She announced, directing towards a picture which showed Fluttershy's tail. There were arrows pointed at her tail. This caused us to look at Fluttershy, who only returned a shocked look. She slowly lowered herself behind a wooden cover, hiding her from sight. But that wasn't the problem. Twilight flipped the page. "'Pinkie Pie is an out-of-control party animal!'"Twilight announced again, displaying a picture with Pinkie dancing in a punch bowl. "What?" Pinkie cried out and grabbed the newspaper, beginning to analyze it with her eyes planted directly on it. "It's true!" She cried. "I do have a problem!" She continued to cry afterwards. "Oh look! According to this one, the Cakes are breaking up!" Twilight announced again. "We are?" Mrs. Cake rushed out of the kitchen, holding a tray of cupcakes on her hoof. Then, we heard a crash behind us. "Well, my life is officially over." We saw a huge pile of newspapers being hovered inside. Rainbow Dash poked her head out of the pile. "Gabby Gums has made it to Cloudsdale." She presented the newspaper as well, showing a picture of her at the spa, looking as if she was going to get a hooficure. "'Rainbow Dash: Speed demon or super softie?'?" Twilight read it. "I grabbed as many copies as I could, but it was too late!" Rainbow responded. "I'm a laughing stock!" She cried and fell to the floor. "See, Rarity? Your so-called 'harmless gossip' can be very hurtful!" "Honestly, you ponies have no sense of humor." Rarity returned an uninterested expression and continued reading the newspaper. "So she tweaks a few ponies every now and then, maybe they dese— She suddenly gasped. "I'll destroy her! 'The Drama-Queen Diaries'... she's reprinted my diary! How could Gabby Gums possibly get access to my private diary?" Twilight continued reading through the newspaper and brought something up as well. "And look at this! 'Alex caught cheating on Fluttershy' I— She suddenly stopped talking and they all looked at me with widened eyes. "What?" I exclaimed and grabbed the newspaper from Twilight. I began reading through it and I was completely shocked… There…laid a picture of Fluttershy and I kissing back at the cottage yesterday. Not only that, there was a picture of the Hearts and Hooves Day card Derpy gave me…along with…with… the picture of when I accidentally kissed Derpy… Oh my… This picture was exactly taken when I was pushed towards her. This picture was taken so quickly and with a pinch of luck, it captured me with my eyes closed, along with Derpy's eyes closed, looking as if we enjoyed the kiss… It's not like that at all! Our eyes were closed because of the impact! Not because of the kiss! I could only slowly lower the newspaper as my eyes remained widened and I was in complete shock. The other girls looked at me in shock as well. They all stared at me in silence…especially Fluttershy… "Alex…this isn't true…is it?" Twilight asked me, looking highly worried now. "No!" I exclaimed, throwing the newspaper at the ground. "But…" Twilight grabbed the newspaper with her magic and analyzed it again. "But, why does it show these pictures? Especially the one with you kissing that other pony…" "It was an accident! She was just a friend and I was just talking with her! It was nothing like that! It's just that Mrs. Cake accidentally bumped into me and made me push forward and accidentally kiss her! It was just an accident!" "It's true…" Mrs. Cake added. "I did bump into him yesterday..." "Yes…" I sighed. "It was just…an accident…" They all sighed. "Well…that's a relief. We could never believe that you would actually do something like that… Don't worry, Fluttershy, everything's al— Twilight turned to see Fluttershy, but she wasn't there… "Fluttershy? Where'd she go?" "Oh no…" I released, figuring what might have happened to her. "What?" Twilight turned to me, wondering what I was starting to panic about. "Fluttershy! She probably still thinks that I'm cheating on her!" I quickly began galloping my way to the door. "I have to go tell her that I'm not!" Afterwards, I sped through the door and headed towards the only place I could think of… Fluttershy's cottage… By the time I reached her door, I saw puddles of water escaping from the small opening under the door. I frowned and pushed the door open with my hoof. I saw her there, crying on the couch. I instantly felt bad. I walked in, letting the tears below me stain my hooves. I closed the door and faced Fluttershy. "Fluttershy…" I softly called. She stopped sobbing but looked at me teary eyed as I walked towards her. "A-Alex…? Is it really true…? Are you really cheating on me…?" "No, Fluttershy…" I strained. I took a seat next to her. "It was just an accident… I'll explain everything to you, Fluttershy… I don't like to see you cry." She sniffled a bit and continued to look at me. "Listen… after you went home, I went to the sweet shop to see Derpy. I was going to invite you, but you said you were going to be busy…so I decided to go by myself. When I was there…I was talking to her about her crossed eyes. I then became intrigued that I wanted to take a closer look at her eyes. However, Mrs. Cake had bumped into me, causing me to push forward towards Derpy and…you know…accidentally kiss her…" I turned my eyes from the floor and looked at her. "It was just an accident, Fluttershy… I Pinkie Promise." I crossed my heart and made a gesture with a cupcake in my eye. "I love you with all my heart and I would never do anything like that to hurt you." She sniffled a bit again and then embraced me tightly, wetting my coat a bit with her tears. "…I believe you…" "You do…?" I asked. She nodded. "Yes…I knew you couldn't have done something like that…not after all we've been through and what you've done for me… I love you so much, Alex." "I love you too…" I shared a passionate kiss with her, holding her tightly for a moment. After, she lightly pulled away and still cried a bit. "But…I'm still humiliated…and the…the…" She began crying a bit more. "The whole town knows it!" "About the tail extensions…?" I questioned. "Yes!" She cried. "I was only trying them for a day!" She shook her head. "I only just wanted to try them…but now the whole town is going to laugh at me! I can never go to town again! Not with my fear of public humiliation!" "Fluttershy…" However, she began crying out loud again. I could only frown. I was about to try to comfort her, but I heard a knock on the door. I walked over the teary puddles to answer it. It was Twilight. "Hey, Alex…" Twilight managed to hear and see what was going inside. "Oh no, does she still think that you…?" "No, no…" I shook my head. "She's upset about the tail extension thing now… I'll comfort her right now…" "Oh…well… I have some news…" "About what?" "About who published all those lies about us…" "Who was it?" I leaned my head in, wanting to know. Twilight remained silent for a moment. "Rarity found out that it was Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo." I was shocked. "Are you serious…?" She nodded her head solemnly. "I can't believe it… I can't believe those girls would do such a thing like that…" I began feeling angry. "I know how you feel Alex… that's why I'm creating a force field around my house so they don't get anywhere near me." She placed her horn on me and closed her eyes, casting a spell on me. "If you ever need to talk to me or something, you can just walk through that force field." "Oh… thanks Twilight." "You're welcome… Take it easy, okay?" I nodded. "Alright…" She nodded as well. "I'll see you later then." I waved and she began walking off. I turned back around to face Fluttershy and her sadness. I closed the door and walked towards her, taking a seat next to her. I stroked her mane and kissed her on the cheek. After a few moments of trying to comfort her, I heard another knock. I sat up from the couch and walked towards the door again. I opened it to see those three… "Oh…hi, Alex…" Sweetie Belle greeted as they had lowered heads. "Is Fluttershy home…?" "I don't know." I responded sarcastically. "I mean, I'm pretty sure you can hear that heart-breaking crying can't you?" They didn't answer. "Or that big puddle of tears coming from inside, which is also soaking my hooves." I pointed towards the stream of tears. They remained silent for a moment. "…so you found out too…huh…?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Yeah." I responded, angrily. "I can't believe you girls would do that to us. We're your friends! Even family! Did you even think about how your 'stories' would affect us? You made me look like I cheated on Fluttershy! Which I didn't! It was a complete accident, but now you made it look like I'm some kind of…" I sighed. "Now, Fluttershy's crying because you embarrassed her on the paper. She's afraid of public humiliation! And you exactly used that for who knows what!" I paused for a moment as they continued to remain silent, full of guilt. "I thought you girls knew better than to do something like this…" I shook my head and turned it away. "Just get out of here…" I shut the door in front of them. Afterwards, I walked back to the couch. I sat down and stroked her mane. She nuzzled her head closer to my chest. I held her closer and thought she would probably feel more comfortable in her bed. "Come on…let's get you to bed…" She nodded, but instead of letting her walk, I placed her on my back and began carrying her up the stairs. I arrived at her room and walked towards her bed. Then, I gently and carefully placed her on the bed. Her crying was slowly becoming softer. I wrapped her in the covers and continued to stroke her gently. She opened her eyes and looked at me with some tears still streaming down her face. Learning from last time, I lifted the covers and joined her in her bed. I could feel she felt much better when I was right by her. She wrapped her hooves around me and continued to cry softly on me. I placed my hooves around her as well and continued to stroke, pat, and rub her. This continued on for a while until we both fell asleep. There was a soft knocking on my door, waking me up. I opened my eyes and noticed Fluttershy still asleep in my hooves. I slowly slid from her embrace and climbed out of bed. I began walking down the stairs and towards the front door. I opened it to see those three little fillies again, but I didn't say anything. I only returned an irritated look. "Listen, Alex…" Sweetie Belle began. "I know you and Fluttershy don't want to talk to us…but we just want you to read this…and we'll leave you alone…forever." She presented me a newspaper. I grabbed it and began reading it. On the front, it displayed the three little girls. The headline read: An open letter to Ponyville by Gabby Gums. My eyes then moved towards the text at the bottom, which I began reading. To the citizens of Ponyville, for some time now, you've been reading this column to get the latest dirt and the hottest buzz. But this will be my final piece. We want to apologize for the pain and embarrassment we've caused. Y'see, I'm actually three little fillies, Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo. As the popularity of our column grew, we got swept up in the hype. We knew that what we were doing didn't feel quite right, but we ignored the guilt because everypony seemed to want to read what we were writing. From now on, we promise to respect everypony else's privacy, and we won't engage in hurtful gossip any more. All we can do is ask for your forgiveness, Ponyville. Signing off for the very last time, XOXO, Gabby Gums. As I finished reading…I could even feel some tears form in my eyes. I smiled lightly and looked at them. They returned soft smiles as well. I reached out my hoof and grabbed them all, hugging them forgivingly. "Alex, what's going on?" I heard Fluttershy from the stairs. I pulled back my hoof and walked towards her, presenting the newspaper the three little girls had written. She grabbed it and read it as well, shifting her eyes between the words. Once she finished, she smiled and walked towards the front door to meet up with them. She placed a hoof around them as well and hugged them forgivingly. "So you forgive us?" Applebloom asked. "Yes." I answered, returning a soft smile as Fluttershy nodded. "It must have taken a lot of guts for you girls to publish that story…" "We only wanted to apologize for all the friendships we ruined with everypony. We felt really bad…" Sweetie Belle replied. "But, that doesn't change the fact that we're going to be completely embarrassed tomorrow…" Scootaloo added. "What do you mean?" I inquired, growing concerned. "It's Diamond Tiara. She has these embarrassing photos of us and she's going to publish them tomorrow!" Sweetie Belle answered. "Yeah." Scootaloo nodded. "She said if we ever quit our jobs, she'll publish those to make up for it." I managed to smile lightly. "You see girls…you're about to witness one good thing about being an adult…" "What is that?" They asked, their eyebrows rising in confusion. I chuckled lightly. "Take me to the Diamond Tiara, and I'll make sure those photos don't get published." They exchanged looks with each other, but then quickly agreed, nodding their heads. I looked back at Fluttershy. "I'll be back. Why don't you go meet up with the others about this?" I suggested. "Mmk." She nodded, continued to smile. I looked back at the girls, causing them to smile and quickly lead me towards the schoolhouse. When we arrived, they led me around the side of the schoolhouse, pointing towards an entrance to the cellar. "She's in there." "Alright." I opened the cellar doors and walked in. My vision was immediately greeted by stacks of paper, and this one little colt that was covered in ink as he was working on the pressing machine. Not only did I notice him, I noticed a large chair that was turned backwards to me. I walked towards the desk in front of that chair and called for her. "Diamond Tiara?" The chair turned around, revealing her to me. "What is it?" She asked, rudely, and then observed me. "Who are you?" "I'm just a friend." I answered. "I recently heard that you had some embarrassing photos of three little filles?" She smirked. "Oh, what? These?" She held up a folder. "Yes." I swiped them from her. "Hey!" She responded, trying to reach them again, but was too small to barely even touch them. "Thank you." I responded as I looked through the folder, making sure that it was the photos the girls were talking about. "These were all I needed." I began turning around, walking away. "Hah!" Diamond Tiara laughed. "You think taking away those embarrassing photos will stop me from publishing more? I'll just get my staff photographer to snap some more!" I stopped, glancing at her. "Oh, really?" She smirked evilly. "Really. And there's nothing you can do to stop me." I faced back towards the entrance of the cellar and chuckled lightly. "Wait right here, girls." I told them as I walked past them. "I'll be right back." They returned confused faces, but I absolutely knew what I was doing. I walked out of the cellar and into the schoolhouse. In the classroom, I saw Ms. Cheerilee reading a book at her desk. "Ms. Cheerilee?" I called, catching her attention. "Oh." She looked up to me. "Why, hello, Alex. What brings you here today?" "I'm just concerned about something." I answered. "Really? What about?" "Are you in charge of the Foal Free Press?" "Well, I'm not exactly 'in charge'. I'm only an adviser. But, if you're asking me in the way as if I'm higher authority, then yes." "Okay." I walked up to her desk with the folder ready. "Recently, there have been some problems with your editor-in-chief, Diamond Tiara." "What kind?" She asked, growing concerned as she leaned her head towards me more. "Well, she has been making Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo publish many gossip and embarrassing stories, which were mostly lies, which even included me. In their last release, the girls created an open letter to Ponyville, apologizing for what they've done. Now, I found out that Diamond Tiara was going to publish these…" I placed the folder of the photos on her desk, allowing her to open it and view them. "…in order to 'make up' for the gossip." "I see…" she answered, no longer in the cheery mood she was in. She closed the folder and slid it back to me, standing up. I grabbed the folder as she began walking away from the desk. "Come with me, Alex, please." She led me back into the cellar, which all the children seemed to return surprised eyes. "Can I have every ponies' attention, please?" She asked as she began walking towards the chair. All the fillies and colts gathered together to listen to what she had to say, while Diamond Tiara remained by the desk, a little confused in an irritating way. Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo looked at me in happy shock. "You didn't…" Scootaloo commented. I smiled and nodded. "I did." Cheerilee sat on the chair as Diamond Tiara must have figured out what I did. She lowered her head and narrowed her eyes angrily as Ms. Cheerilee spoke. " It has come to my attention that there have been several problems with our new editor-in-chief. Well, staff, I guess I gave a little too much authority to a first-time editor." She faced, in a scolding manner, towards Diamond Tiara, who continued to lower her head and flop down her ears. "I'm sorry, Diamond Tiara, I have to strip you of your title." She kicked the wall, causing that huge photo of Diamond Tiara to be rolled back up. Diamond Tiara growled and walked over to the others. "And for the next editor of the Foal Free Press..." Diamond Tiara blew a raspberry at them. "...here's your new editor-in-chief," Cheerilee pointed towards a door that contained a small colt behind it. "Featherweight!" The students cheered in response to this as he slapped hooves with the presser. "Oh, him? But what about me?" Diamond Tiara whined. "Here ya go!" The pony covered in ink placed the cap and apron on her. "I've been promoted to staff photographer!" He answered as he carried a camera around his neck. He snapped a picture of her, causing her to flinch back and slip on the ink on the floor, impacting against the pressing machine which then covered her in ink. Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo began laughing, causing Diamond Tiara to return a grumpy face. I smiled and looked at the girls. "Come on, girls, let's go back to town." I began leading them out of the cellar as they followed me, continuing to giggle. "Wow, Alex! That was awesome!" Scootaloo expressed. "Yeah! You really saved us back there!" Applebloom added. I chuckled lightly. "What are friends for?" I remembered about the folder I had. "What about the folder of the photos?" "You can give them to us. We'll get rid of them later." Sweetie Belle answered. "Alright." I carefully gave them the folder, and they released sighs of relief. When we arrived at town, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom ran to their sisters to hug them while Scootaloo was with Rainbow Dash. I heard a flapping of wings, and Derpy landed next to me. "Hey…I heard and read about what happened back at the sweet shop being published…" "Yeah…but you've read the recent newspaper, right?" "Yep. I'm not mad anymore…but what about you and Fluttershy? Are you two alright?" She asked, forming concerned eyes. I smiled lightly and nodded. "Yes, we're fine. She understands." Derpy returned a sigh of relief. "Good… Otherwise, I'd feel really bad if something might have happened." She paused for a moment. "Anyways, I better get back home. I wanted to check up on you and make sure nothing bad happened." "It's fine, Derpy." I continued to smile. "Thanks." She nodded and waved, flying away. "Looks like everything is back to normal?" I heard Twilight's voice ask, causing me to turn around and face her. "Yeah." I nodded. "Fortunately… I wouldn't want this becoming into an entire mess." I released a sigh of relief myself. Fluttershy came by, flying near me. She landed by my side and grabbed my hoof, smiling lovingly at me. I looked at her the same way. "Fluttershy's the only pony I love romantically…" She blushed a bit and then kissed me on the cheek. That night, I walked her home. When I reached her door, I began making my preparations for tonight's farewell. "So just to be sure…everything's back to normal, right?" I asked. She responded with a confident nod. "Yes, don't worry." I returned another smile. "Good…I'm glad this mess is out of the way." "Me too." She smiled brightly and pressed her lips against mine, wrapping her hooves around my neck. After a moment, she pulled away and I could see her eyes sparkle under the night light. "Goodnight, Alex. I love you." "Goodnight, Fluttershy. I love you too." Afterwards, she walked into her home and gave me a shy wave until she quietly and softly closed the door. I continued smiling and turned around to head home. Arriving in my house, I yawned and began walking upstairs. When I reached the bed, I instantly noticed something. I saw a note on my nightstand, along with Derpy's card. I walked towards it and began to read it. Sorry, again! The Cutie Mark Crusaders. I smiled lightly. They returned the card and were still apologizing. I climbed in my bed and began covering myself with the blankets. I stretched and loosened up to become comfortable. I closed my eyes and thought a little of what happened recently. I sighed mentally. These past days were such a mess… I'm glad to know everything is better and back to normal. I had a little scare there, knowing what might have happened to Fluttershy and me… I shook my head mentally. But that's enough. It's all in the past. We can forget about it…or maybe even bring it back up as a joke in the future, heh.