//------------------------------// // Chapter 7: Frosty Balneotherapy, Frigid Backstories, and "Friendly" Brawls // Story: Them's Friendin' Herds // by NotSoDogNinja //------------------------------// Rarity looked at her hooves. "My word, that took longer than expected. It took half the day to get over here!" Velvet offered an explanation. "Reine is zhe grandest city in Foenum. I'm not zurbrized that you're not used du zis..." The unicorn didn't react to the thinly hidden insult. They were finally at the spa! "Here we are! Aloe and Lotus's Ponyville Day Spa!" Velvet looked around the unfamiliar room, on guard for some reason. Then she relaxed as the sudden herbal scent of eucalyptus filled the room. As well as two rather clumsy spa ponies with some broken bottles of essential oils. "There you are!" Rarity walked forwards, picking up the broken bottles with her magic. "Oh, here. Let me help you with that. Now, myself and my friend here are going to have a nice relaxing spa night. If it's alright with you, at such a late hour, that is?" Lotus nodded. "For sure! You and any of your friends are always welcome here! What would you like?" "The usual." Rarity looked expectantly at Velvet, who seemed a little lost. "And yourself, Velvet?" "Um..." Velvet looked extremely confused at all of this. Rarity suddenly remembered that Velvet had never had a spa in her life before. "Aloe, could you show this fine reindeer a selection of your works? She looks all turned around." Nodding again, Aloe pulled down a small screen, which showed the selections in a neat and organized format. Rarity saw that Velvet was taking her time in deciding, so she grabbed a newspaper from a nearby stand. Breaking: New Reindeer Tenants Found All Over Ponyville! "Eh, zhe selections are not worth zhe effort. I'll take what zis pony gets." With that all said and done, the two spa ponies led them to the end of the hallway. The building in question was surprisingly large, for Ponyville standards. Several of the rooms held other spa related things; a steam room, sauna, hot towel press added after that broken pipe fiasco. But at the end of the hallway, was the main attraction, and the one that Rarity liked the most. The spa and massage room! She apparently knew it well, starting to head straight for the steaming hot tub in the center. Lotus told Velvet what to expect from this particular visit. “Alright. So Rarity’s usual is a spa, followed by a massage, then a simple hooficure and horn polishing. For you, we can certainly accommodate your antlers as well.” With that, Aloe and Lotus left the room, leaving unicorn and reindeer in the general silence of the room. Cutting into it, Velvet cooly asked, “Zo, are we chust to zdand around? Or are we going to zdard zis... spa?” But of course. Rarity stepped into the not-quite scalding water first, followed soon after by Velvet, who looked quite panicked. "Vat iz zis? The pot to maig reindeer zoop?" Laughing, Rarity said, "Of course not! Just take your time. You'll get used to it. I'm not boiling myself! Besides, that would positively ruin my mane. Just relax! I'm right here!" Not to look like a coward in front of someone like Rarity, Velvet slowly settled down in the heated water. "Ah! See! Whadever you can du, I can du as vell!" Rarity leaned back, allowing more of the water to cover herself. "Yes, I can see that. Besides, I bet you've never felt water like this in a climate of your own." Velvet seemed to be in agreement. The two sat for a few minutes in relative silence, only being disturbed once in a while when Aloe had to get something from the spa room. "Hmmm..." Velvet looked at Rarity strangely. "Vat iz it?" Sighing, Rarity let it all go. "Oh all right. I'll tell you. I've been with you for a few hours now, and I just can't understand your attitude. I know that you don't like the company of others, but that's no reason to act like that to everyone you meet. Even with me, after I offered you a spa day with myself, MYSELF, you still act like you're some sort of... QUEEN or something. Why are you acting like this? You froze a pony earlier, yelled at two other reindeer for not bringing you coffee, spat on MY statue, and acted very rude to Aloe and Lotus. As the Element of Generosity, please explain yourself!" Velvet looked ANGRY. Angrier and angrier by the second. Suddenly, Rarity realized that the water was getting cooler by the second, as Velvet let HER anger go. "ME? YOU ARE ASKING ME WHY I AM ACTING LIKE ZIS? I can see that 'my bervegdion' is not enough for you. Do you want to hear my story? Here you vill find my 'generosity.' Well, here you can take it from m-" Aloe tapped Velvet on the shoulder. "Um, miss? You are freezing the water. It is fifty degrees now (Fahrenheit). Might I suggest a massage? Your... floof is looking a little waterlogged." Angrily nodding, Generosity and Ice both left the spa and onto a small table, on which they both lay on. The spa ponies soon came back to start their massage. Massaging start! Rarity sighed happily, as the soothing hooves of the spa ponies started at her back. Velvet seemed to be more happy about this part, as she relaxed quite easily. And more importantly, DIDN'T try to freeze anyone. Since she seemed to be more calm, Rarity found it an opportune moment to try to find out the reindeer's origin story. "So how did you learn how to..." She was cut off. "Yes... I don't often tell others about my story, but for you I vill make an egzebdion. Now open your earz, and pig oud zhe wax, for zis! Is my origin." I wasn't always an ice queen. My powers; I didn't know them, or learn them. That was simply something that I- let me start from the beginning. I was a gentle soul to begin with. I often took long walks in the woods outside of Reine, enjoying nature, watching snowfall, seeing the natural beauty in everything; brown eyes and antlers to attract the masses. Not anymore. Even though I was a Hoofstrong, the renowned fighters of old time, no one minded that I was gentle. That was what most does were here. Gentle, and even slightly skittish. Feh! Like I would be like that now. My family was rather popular in the city as well. The Hoofstrongs were always strong, but they liked my gentleness, for once. The "star calf" of the family. I was subject to dreams often. Not fluffy, cute dreams, but nightmares. For much of the past few months. Dreams of darkness, large teeth, and doom, all to predators. Sometimes even, retellings of legends, but mostly predators. One of these dreams spoke out to me. It called me to find a small lake in the woods. But that was only the beginning. When I arrived, an orb of ice emerged from the center of the frozen pond. It said to me, "What do you want, Child of Reine?" "I've been having these dreams...Bad ones. They feel so real." "Omens. A sign of what is coming." "But I saw-" "No future is certain until we reach it. But the shadows have grown strong. Large teeth, sharp claws, and piercing eyes; all to satiate their hunger." I shouted, "But what can we do? We cannot fight these... these nightmares!" "No, not as it is now. But YOU can." "Me?" "At a cost. I can grant you a power. Power to spam snowballs like an degenerate fight these Predators." I listened intently. "What cost?" "The warmth of your heart." What? "I am able to bestow upon you the mastery of ice snow and frost. But! This is unable to co-exist with the warmth in your heart." I watched as it rose higher. "You will stand against the shadows; not only as a hero, but as Champion of the Tundra!" Then I thought a while. "I'm not sure I want that." But there was no other way. I gave up myself for the good of Foenum. As consequence, I also drove away my friends. My family. My previous fame, before becoming a champion. Still, you might see a bit of the old me shine every once in a while... but because of what this orb did, the cold in my heart is overwhelming. Ever present. Ever bitter. And evermore. "Zo? Appy? I haf told you everysing you need to know about me. Do NOT. discuss it any further with me, or anyone else. Ouch!" Velvet recoiled as a file nicked her head. Lotus, the file holder, looked panicky. "OH! I did not mean to do that! Please accept my apologies." "Eh... Alright. Vell, Rarity, I du fink ve should get going, no? It is quite late." Rarity snapped out of her shock at Velvet's story. "What? Oh, yes! Of course! Um..." She looked around nervously. "If you don't mind, could I stay at your place for a night? It's a long way back to my house, and you mentioned yours was around here..." The reindeer sighed and shook her head. "Alright. Chust don't tell anyone, fine? Fine." That worked out better than she expected! "Great! Now, let's get out of here, darling!" Velvet simply rolled her eyes as they left the building, and the waving duo of spa ponies. "Lotus, how much do you think we lost tonight from the freezing spa water?" "At least 500 bits..." "*Groaning*" They were at Velvet's home. Home of the Hoofstrongs. Fortunately, there was enough room to make herself easily comfortable, despite only getting the living room. The couch wasn't even half bad, even if not made of silk. The room was surprisingly similar to her own living room. Down to the placement of certain objects, but most of the spools and needles were replaced with medals and antlers. Lying on her back, Rarity thought about what just happened and Velvet some more. She probably shouldn't, but she just couldn't help it. So, if what she thought was true, a beam of light radiated from the Castle of Friendship, at the same time something similar happened to Velvet. That made some sense. But Velvet seemed to be everything she was... and possibly more. It was almost like Mistmane's story all over again. Just even worse. She sacrificed her control over emotions, for control of wind and ice and the future of her dimension. Even Rarity, if she was in her own hooves, couldn't bring herself to sacrifice her element. This... was generous beyond anything she has done. Her mind reeled at what her newfound friend had done. She stood up and softly vowed, "I can't feel what you've been through. But I can understand. I WILL help you, Velvet. With every ounce of my body." "Thank you. Thank you so much." Looking behind herself, Rarity saw Velvet with tears in her eyes. But something was off. Her antlers, hooves, and irises were now completely brown! "Velvet? What happened to-" The reindeer suddenly threw herself onto the floor, streams running down her eyes. Rarity ran over, confused. As she came closer, Velvet covered her face with her hooves, before launching into her second speech of the day. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for how I treated you. I'm sorry for how I treated THEM. I drove everyone and everything I loved away from me. I'm so sorry! "The orb told me that I would lose my warmth; that it was impossible for the warmth in my heart to co-exist with the cold of the ice. It was either myself or Foenum; one or the other. I chose Foenum. "I didn't know what that orb would do to me, in all honesty! I've lost myself! Completely! I couldn't feel compassion! Couldn't feel love! Couldn't feel other's pain! Couldn't feel... anything! "So cold... So cold! I don't know what felt worse, these... feelings, or the dreams I was plagued with! "I couldn't love my family the way I used to. Everyone was upset that the star calf of old had gone astray. They didn't care, or know, or even want to know what I went through, my loss. All they knew was that I was a selfish, LAZY, OAFISH jerk who somehow had won the tournament. And yes, they respected me, still found me beautiful, but it wasn't the same. It was NEVER the same. "Everything I told you in the spa was true. But I left one thing out. This. There was always this one inside of the cold, icy shell of the Velvet you know. Sitting. Waiting. That little voice that always got ignored when you do bad things. "This wasn't supposed to happen. But tonight, I thought about you. You weren't selfish, even with your pride. You showed me kindness. You wanted to see my problems, even if you didn't have to. I...Something happened. The warmth of my heart returned. "I thought I had lost this part of myself. But you have showed me that it's possible for anything to happen. I will be back to my cold, hard self by morning... if what the voices told me were true. But-" She pulled Rarity into a hug. "Thank you. Thank you for helping me feel love again. Thank you for bringing back my warmth, even if only for a night! Thank you for helping me! Thank you!" She continued to say thank you, over and over again, but softer each time. Rarity had started to cry as well, pulling Velvet closer. Eventually, Velvet broke out of the hug, and dusted herself off. Still tearful, she slowly walked back to her room, but blew a single, sweet, sad kiss towards Rarity just before she turned the hallway. Rarity thought about Velvet a little more. She was more than she had expected originally. Even more reason for Rarity to help her. She smiled at the hallway, before wiping the excess mascara from her eyes. Then she hopped back up onto the couch, and took her much-needed beauty rest. Mmmm... ah- Huh? Snow? But- Wait... this means... *gasp* Not you again! No! No! Please, just a little longer! I don't want to go back yet! Please! Get away! Please! I- Ngh- I- So... Cold... Can't- Mo- C-c-c- Cold... "Velvet, Wake up!" "Aah!" Velvet woke up, waving her hooves. She took some time to look at them, for some reason. Blue. She shook her head a few times, as a headache had started to form. "Vat is it, Rarity?" she snapped. Rarity looked startled, then looked concerned. "You were making the most DREADFUL noise tonight. Did your dreams return?" She tried to recall such a dream, but none came to mind. She shook her head to signify this. Rarity, thank goodness, didn't press any further. She instead picked up a small platter holding a steaming hot teapot, bowl, creamer, and two small cups with her magic. "Your father, Jarl, said you liked dark coffee with creamer best." The reindeer shook her head a few more times, to get rid of the last bits of her headache. "Yes. Is zere sugar? I like zat." "No... but I did bring some pumpkin spice..." "PUMPKIN SPICE?!" Velvet quickly got up and checked the contents of the bowl Rarity had brought. Only sugar. Rarity giggled a little. "Oh, please! It was just a joke! Jarl made SURE I didn't bring anything even related to pies into here." She flopped down next to Velvet, alarmingly close to Velvet's... dirty... floof. Aah! Her floof! What she doing last night? Was she on the FLOOR? She looked to Rarity for an answer, but she didn't seem to notice or share the reindeer's confusion. "...Fine. Dark coffee, you said? That is acceptable, fur myself." "Well, yes, of course! I don't see why it shouldn't be. My, my, what it must be like to have a father like Jarl... Is he taken?" "Taken?!" "As in dateable. I like my dates to sometimes be more... rugged, you know, darling?" "RUGGED?! MY FATHER?!" Rarity chuckled some more, then regained her composure. She held a small notepad with her magic. "Don't worry! I'm not sure what the rules are on on interspecies marriage here. On an unrelated note, I hate to ask you at a time like this, but could you show me more around Reine? I would really enjoy a tour, and I find no better person to ask than yourself. Are you willing to help someone like, me?" Velvet took a small sip of her tea. "...Fine. Chust don't ask me too many gueszions, yes?" Unexpectedly, Rarity gave her a big, warm hug. "Thank you, darling! It means a lot to me!" The reindeer rolled her eyes. Why was this unicorn acting so attached to her lately? Not that she really minded much, but still... "Ve go in one hour! I need my dime du ged brebared." She looked at her chest floof again. "SPRITES!" They left the house, some ice sprites, and a smug male reindeer behind as Velvet started to show Rarity the unique facets of the neighborhood. Pointing dramatically to several large buildings in the vicinity and explaining what each and every building meant in a detail greater than the usual tour guides, Velvet cut a somewhat comical sight, at least to most usual ponies. Seeing the ice glazed houses, and front wall, Rarity remarked, "How beautiful! Everything is much more appealing in the day." Before Velvet could reply, a few ponies and reindeers in coats and hats passed by. They were talking amongst each other, so they weren't hiding anything. Still, Velvet couldn't help but eavesdrop a bit. Rarity, was preoccupied with chatting with someone she knew, so there wasn't anything stopping her. "So, that's what happened?" "Oh, yes. I wouldn't have expected it any other way. That doesn't matter. Twilight will most certainly fix it. She always does." "Yes, your ruler. I've heard you talk about her a lot. Didn't you say she had a few friends?" "Yeah! In fact, I think two of them are here now! One of them just arrived. Also, I heard she was with someone else..." "Really? Who?" "Did she bring muffins?" "No, she did not bring muffins. Besides, that doesn't matter here. Not yet, at least." "Well, if this friend arrives, I, Comet, would be glad to share any muffins they have!" "Wait, Derpy, didn't you bring a hat or coat?" "Huh? Oh... I thought you said ratty oats!" "It's winter here in Reine, Derpy! How couldn't you understand what Octavia- What-!" A few rats and grains popped out of the grey pegasus's mane, which started to chase Comet and... Octavia. Derpy simply looked around with an expression that just said "I just don't know what went wrong!" "The poor thing..." Rarity shook her head. "Dr. Whooves has been hearing the most DREADFUL noises at night. And from the neighbor's basement... I shudder to think what happens under there." Velvet thought. "Hm. I have heard a similar complaint. I haf remembered that I should probably take care of it myself... But!" She faced Rarity with a slight scowl on her face. "I vill allow you to come wiv me. But only if you promize to not tarnish my image. Understood?" Rarity nodded, then pulled out a small comb. "So! Let's get going, shall we?" They headed to a small house in the middle of the block, where presumably the complaint in question was. Upon opening the door, they saw two reindeer inside, one anxiously pacing in front of the doorway, and the other staring out of the window with an unreadable expression. The one at the door immediately perked up at the sight of Velvet. "You finally got here! I thought I'd have to go looking myself! We keep hearing strange noises from the basement." Suddenly a loud growl erupted from the floorboards. All reindeer, including Velvet were caught completely off guard, all of them throwing themselves onto the floor. Rarity nearly shrieked aloud, before neatly faux-fainting onto a pillow. The male reindeer at the window yelled, "There it is again! You heard it, didn't you? It's been like that for weeks! Coming from the basement! We don't dare to go look!" The female looked downwards with a pained expression. "Please do something quick! We can't sleep with all the noise!" "You poor things, having to deal with this. We will be helping, right Velvet?" "Right!" Velvet turned to face the wife. "Where is the basement located?" She nodded. "You can get in from the back of the house. Here's the key." She handed them an ornate key, complete with some strange green jewel on the end that wasn't emerald. Satisfied, Velvet ushered the still slightly shocked Rarity out of the room. "Ve are wasting time. Let's ged zis over with. Zhe day isn't over yet. "So, zis is ze spot. Hand me ze key?" *unlocking sounds* "I could have very vell done zat myself, you know?" Rarity pouted. "I would let you, but you said you wanted to get this over with quickly. Besides, there's no way for us to undo the action, is there? Hm? Now, let's go." The two trotted down the steps into... a large basement largely unfitting with the scenery outside. It was made of hard stone, possibly some sort of granite. It also branched off into two other caverns, but they were blocked off by... something. Rarity confusedly looked at the purple tendrils, before making up her mind to investigate them further. She walked directly into them, attempting to push through- ow owie fire hot hot -before quickly jumping away back onto the cool stone before getting burnt. Velvet rushed over to the groaning unicorn on the hard stone. "Zere's no way ve can get through zat..." She pointed back to the entrance. "Ve should think about zis more. Let us get out of here." Nodding, Rarity stepped back onto her hooves and with Velvet, headed to the door. But just as they reached the entrance, the same purple flames erupted from the entrance, blocking their exit! "Vat?" Velvet checked the flames blocking their escape. "Hm! Nozing zat ze ize bueen can't conquer!" She readied a small ice shard, which she shot at the base of the fire. Unfortunately, something got in the way of the blast. Something big and hairy. Something black. Rarity stumbled backwards upon seeing the wolf, and right into two other, smaller ones. She screamed, but at least this time it was warranted. 'Velvet! What are these... THINGS?!" The reindeer stood in an attacking stance. "Vell, I haffe to vait no longer for zis. Predators! Zey are our enemies. I hope you vill fight, as I must remain focused." Gulp. Ready? Fight! Well, at least Velvet was having an easy time with her opponent. She was dancing circles around it, all while gracefully attacking it from all angles from ice shards and statues. True to her nature, as well as practical. Rarity was in the middle of a two-on-one. Even though the other wolves were smaller, they still posed some threat. Well! No point in messing around! She picked up a paper fan with her magic and opened it towards the aggressors. Both wolves strafed around her, but with a simple sidestep, slammed into each other instead. The paper fan was smacked over their rears, bowling them over (somehow). She conjured up a large gemstones and held them in place with her magic. Apparently, the fan slap was enough for one, but only one of the wolves. The other one stood at a greater distance, bristling at the pony. "Ugh... could you please kindly remove the purple... things? blocking our way? Pretty please? Or I'll cream you with this crystal. I think that's a fair deal, do you?" Apparently not, at it lunged at her again. She released the gemstone... which fell straight down on the dwarf canine, crushing it with 400 carats of force. It's over! With the end of the battle, the purple flames dissipated, leaving the exits of the room open again. Rarity looked at her companion, who seemed unharmed. "So where to now?" Velvet stepped back to the entrance, judging which door was better. "Ze right one! I smell zomesing zere!" "Right. Let's go." The two elegant females walked into the next room, where a few barrels lined the walls. "Ugh, just pine? Cherry gives a much better flavor." Velvet noticed a small mug of... ale sitting on a small shelf. Realizing that Rarity probably wouldn't be one to drink it, she picked it up herself. GAINED MUG O' MAGICAL OAT BREW ANTI-COFFEE! -3 Energy -4 Cognition Gonna kill you and I'll keep killin' you and I'll never, cause you're 'onna be dead and then I'm gonna kill you- Rarity wasn't focused on Velvet, though; she was more focused on the fact that it was a dead end and that the dust in the room was absolutely RUINING her mane. "Well, there doesn't seem to be anything here... so we should- AAAAH!" Purple flames erupted from the floor where the exit was, again. Sighing, Velvet came to the realization that "Zis vill probably happen in EVERY room ve enter. And now I suppose zat-" A large snake and two small wolves spawned in the room. "Uv course." 3...2...1...Go! Discord... I don't think that playing Smash Bros right now is a good idea. "Well, why not? I need a break from this show, anyways." But- "Oh, shut up. I'm only going to do this for a little bit. Almost- Got him! Take that, you spammer!" Good old Game and Watch. The only guy who can make Samus actually play the game. It's over! The large snake disappeared at the sheer number of projectiles shot at it. Rarity, just to make sure, shot a couple more gems at the spot the snake was lying before. "Well, that was certainly something." She looked around, then pointed at the room's corner. "Say, have you noticed those orbs?" "No..." Velvet crouched over them. "Although...I fink we should take zem with us. Zey might be useful." Rarity nodded in agreement. "Well, with that done, where to next?" Of course, Velvet had an answer. "Vell, since zis room doesn't lead anyvere, I suppose the next logical place to go vould be in the ozer direction. Correct?" "Right. Let's not waste any time. I so terribly want to get out of here. This place is giving me the chills. And from what Meadowbrook told me, chills are not good for the skin." The two queens, one of ice and one of drama, backtracked to the previous room. Fortunately, it didn't seem like any new predators would spawn there, so they enjoyed a nice rest before entering the new rooms. This one was longer, with a single archway separating the room in two. The first part contained nothing in particular, but the second one held a table. And a VERY angry cat. "Just az I zuspected." "A cougar? Ugh! I knew I should have brought more ponies to help me..." "Cougar?" Velvet shook her head as readied her ice shards for the fight with the large cat. Welcome back to Discord and "Italics" review. So how are you liking this story so far, Discord? "Personally, I think the characterizations of the four we've met so far are... alright. The alpaca is clearly the best of all of them." Agreed. Even without a word, her actions are communicated so well. "The story seems to be decent as well, though I think that the movie with the bees had a better plot." Wholeheartedly agree. "But, I will say, I am LOVING the action scenes! Although I hope Fluttershy is safe..." Gee, that's depressing. Well, tune in next time, where we discuss the hit classic, Super Mare-io Bros! *ahem* The fight with the puma went well, again. Keeping the opponents at bay worked surprisingly well, with Velvet taking down the larger opponent with her extra skills, and Rarity taking down the smaller ones with her telekinesis and literal rocks. "Hmmm..." Rarity was looking at the table with her eye for beauty. Sitting on it was a lonely plush of a reindeer. "I wonder why anyone would leave a positively good doll down here... I'll take it." GAINED THE TEDDY DEER! +2 Care +4 AWWWWW! Just hoping that it doesn't come to life. Past the next doorway was a rather long walkway, flanked on one side by a wall, and on the other, an underground lake that was presumably filled with sewage. Rarity in particular cringed at the scent. Dotting the floor were more black orbs. Similarly to the last few, Rarity packed them into a purse she had brought, for safekeeping. The hallway wasn't very long, and neither pony nor reindeer were feeling very chatty, especially with the stench, so they passed through it noiselessly to the next room, where they were immediately blocked in by the purple flames and beset upon by two mountain lions and a large wolf. Not that they couldn't handle these as well. "Gee, it sure is boring around here." My lord, this peace is what all true warriors strive for. "I just wonder what Fluttershy is up to!" My lord, Fluttershy's location is not known for now. "Hmmm... How can we help?" It says, "Only 'she' can find Fluttershy." "Oh, boy! I'll grab my stuff!" No, you aren't. You don't even know where she is. "*ugly crying*" One last room. Neither of the party had gotten hurt thus far, but Rarity in particular was starting to feel tired. More predators appeared in front of them, this time a wolf, snake, and panther. "Is this the last of them?" Velvet looked at the advancing predators, then back at Rarity. "Almost... But I think zere's zomezing about zis place..." With that... Rarity pulled out a roll of fabric and started twirling it around the enemies. "Well, we'll find it sooner or later. But for now," emphasizing it with a hoof slap to the wolf's jaw, "SHOW ME THE BLOODY." "Hello readers! It's viewer mail time!" This one comes from someone named "NotSoDogNinja." Dear Discord, Are you messing with the story again? "Oh my goodness! How did you guess! Ha! You're better than I thought!" Thanks, Discord! This next letter also comes from "NotSoDogNinja." Dear Discord, If you have this letter read to you, I'm going to ban you from the rest of the chapter. "..." Thanks, Discord! This has been viewer mail time! And thank YOU for joining us! Dear weird unspecified italic writing, You're welcome. Finally. Discord's gonna stop interrupting. And the protagonists have finished off the predators, still with nary a bruise. Velvet said to Rarity, "I fink ve are almost done here... Although zis place... I've veen looking for it for a long time! It is clear to me zat zis is where the Predators are coming from in Reine! Through the door!" And through the door, was the Altar of Appetence. A sacred place for the Deerfolk, before being lost to ruin and sewage. At the end, stood a door. Rarity ran down the windy pathway leading to it, past the flowing water, past some extra black prbs, and a large pit. Velvet followed more slowly, taking in the extra details of the place. "Velvet Look at this door!" Rarity pointed at the pictures of the predators lining all sides of it. "These carvings look like the brutes we faced earlier!" Velvet stood on guard, at more of a distance away from the door and Rarity. "I don't like ze look of zis... Ve shood find a way to seal it-" An ominous rumble interrupted her. The eyes of all of the predators on the door started to glow with an evil, red glow. The door opened up, and the largest predator yet lumbered out. Upon noticing the ungulates, it roughly pushed them into the pit. To their credit, they recovered from the shock quickly. As they looked up at their aggressor, it growled, and stomped on the floor, causing more predators to appear on the other sides of the pit. Two wolves, two snakes, and four cougars were looking down at them as well. Rarity wasn't having any of it. "Do I have to fight you? You'll positively ruin my mane if you fight me!" Seemingly in response, two wolves and a cougar teleported around the champions. "Ohhh......" Fight! Wolf 1 headed for Velvet first, who simply put up an ice shield to block all attacks. Rarity did something similar with her two enemies. The wolf started to get aggressive. He started attacking from all angles, trying to make an icebreaker. Realizing this, Velvet created an extra statue from her shield, deftly knocking it away. Rarity, on the other hand was utilizing the tried and true method of “run.” She stood at more of a distance, almost up to a wall, and formed a few gems. Of course, Velvet was having no problem keeping her wolf at a distance. Her disjointed ice spikes was keeping her wolf well on its toes. Eventually, it reached its breaking point, bursting into black smoke like all the others beforehand. A snake jumped down to take its place, where it promptly spit its venom from its fangs. Right into Velvet’s eyes. Being in a two on one, Rari doubled down on her fighting, even bringing her hooves and horn into combat. Block, jab, hook! Finally, the puma was downed, and the wolf was in critical condition. A second one jumped down in its place and headed towards Velvet, as Rarity sent the wolf running. Straight towards velvet with a hungry glance. Partially blinded, Velvet stumbled around, even tripping over one of her spikes. She faceplanted on the floor, HARD, but before the wolf was able to get over to her, it too was tripped, this time by a fancy tablecloth trick that swept his legs out. With all wolves downed, a puma and one other snake jumped into position. The snake attempted to fire at Rarity, but was repelled by a silk fabric that fluttered in the still air. After the successful block, Rarity used the silken threadwork to bag up both snake and cougar. Tying a knot in the top for good measure, she slammed the bag onto the ground, spikes from Velvet aiding in this process. With the bag in useless shreds, the panther jumped up and snarled, before calling down its buddies from up top. Velvet had defeated her snake like she did with all the others. By beating it in a snowball fight, by which the snake lost by a mile. She looked at Rarity, who seemed willing to fight. Now, roles were reversed, as Rarity took out the larger opponents with Velvet providing coverage. And they were doing surprisingly well. Rarity had quite some brawls in the past, and with her magical abilities (and fan), she was easily keeping the predators down. Velvet had no reason to be worried at all; she was standing far enough away to not get hurt. With her long range ice eruptions, none of the predators could touch her. Eventually, all pumas were downed, leaving Velvet and Rarity in the pit. Rarity sighed, and flopped down, near Velvet. Velvet gave her a hug. Rare for her, but she sort of felt like she needed it. Suddenly, she remembered. "Ze large one!" Noticing a doorway at the bottom of the pit, Rarity and Velvet scampered up to the edge of the rim to reach the bear, who hadn't moved the entire fight. It slowly turned to them, as they got into an attacking stance...Then teleported away in a similar fashion as the others. As he did, the door's eyes returned to their slaty gray color. "Vell..." Velvet said. "Ze noise issue haz been zolved. I do not want to be in zis altar anymore. Let us make haste out of zis dark place." "Agreed. Oh, UGH!" Rarity pointed at a few splatterings of black on her fur as they walked away. "I just took a shower..." Back on the surface, Rarity quickly took out a small makeup pad and dotted her face and barrel with it. "Well, now that that's done with, where should we go next? There's still much of the city left to explore." "Vell... ve are in ze vicinity... And I'm sure Blitzen vouldn't mind." They walked a block or two away, when Velvet stopped in front of a courtyard. "Behold! The Elite Seven's mansion!" Rarity gasped in wonder at the rather tall structure. Predictable. "Uv course you're impressed. Who wouldn't be? They're the SEVEN!" In front of the building stood a cow and an orange pony, listening to a reindeer talking. Judging by their stance, they had been standing there for a while. The reindeer threw a chest in front of herself, and they opened the contents of it, revealing a plush of an ice sprite. They then went on their way. Good riddance to them. Upon noticing Velvet, the deer stepped aside, as well as a deer that was in remarkable likeness to her. The chatty reindeer immediately started gushing over the ice queen, as a confused Rarity watched from the sidelines. "Miss Velvet the High and Mighty! Wow! Why are you here?" Velvet very narrowly managed to avoid bashing their skulls of the speaker in. That one was pretty annoying. She turned towards two other reindeer standing in the front of the building. One of them was the shy Dancer. Upon noticing her, she stammered, "Oh, Velvet! H-hello! I wasn't expecting anyone today.” She looked at the reindeer she was talking to, who shook his head. “Sorry, we aren’t having any visitors to the Elite’s house. Come back in a couple of days, and we’ll be sure to have some coffee for you and your... friend!” At the very least, Velvet was alright with that outcome for once. After all, it WAS their rules. “Oh! There’s Cashmere!” Rarity was looking over at the shop in question, a little ways down the street. She quickly let Velvet know, before trotting off towards it. Velvet was fine with her leaving. She needed a bit more time to herself. Just what she needed. She didn’t really tell anyone, but when no one was looking, she liked to sometimes slip into an alleyway to think to herself. Besides, most of them weren't dirty in the slightest. The sanitation department, she had to admit, did their jobs well. And also got paid well. She sat down an a random barrel. Sturdy. Nice and surprisingly warm. Must have been some sort of ale. Also nice to get away from the crowds once in a while. Mostly because there wasn't even a crowd for once, but that was beside the point. Also, what is wrong with the tastes of the reindeer who designed this alleyway? So uncultured... She heard a noise from the front of the alleyway. She pricked her ears in expectance, and heard a...rustic, ugh, voice. And female. It said, "She wants to go to a store? Well, good luck to 'er. Thought Ah herd somethin' in 'ere." The voice came from a pony. Upon noticing the reindeer sitting on the barrel, she walked up to her and inspected her from all angles, before nodding. "Howdy! Whut're yew doin' in a place lahk this?" Velvet didn't give anything. "Fascinating, isn't it? This...erm... barrel is simply divine! I've been staring at it for days! Simply days!" The orange pony didn't seem to buy it. "An' what's so special about it? Just a regular barr-" "Because! It is an ornate version! See zese markings on the staves? Zat's zhe markings of a very old creator. Zese staves are also made of a particular type of wood; cherry. Gives a better flavor to zhe ale anyway. I don't see how zhe ozers can stand not having ze fruity flavor, but I don't judge ungulates based on flavor." On the topic of judging ungulates by flavor, have any of you noticed that 5/7 of the Foenum 7 are edible? The only two that aren't are only inedible because they don't actually exist. Huh. "Still, how plebeian! Ze sprites make ze ale. Zis one was probably grand. Good winter sprites are so hard to find zese days. Do you agree?" "Huh?" The half asleep pony woke up. "Uh... well... Ah don't 'ave winter sprites, whatever they are, from where Ah come from." "No?" Velvet was immediately invested in the conversation. "So who styles your floof? Who brings you oats? Who carries you from place to place?" The pony, still with the same tired expression, responded, "Ah reckon mahself?" Eh. Might be worth the effort. "So! You seem like a fine, upstanding... pony as well. What brings you to Reine, darling?" Something seemed to go off in the pony's head, but she didn't say it. "So, uh, forgive me if I forget any details, but... Y'know that decree that supposedly came from the Council of Ungulates, of the whatcha-ma-callits?" Velvet was listening. "Mmmm hmmm... Yes?" "Well, Ah'm teamin' up with one a' the champions! The champion of the prairie!" Shouldn't have said that. Should NOT have said that. Velvet smiled sweetly. "Oh, really? Well, zen..." She raised her volume level to "drama queen meltdown." "I'M CHAMPION OF ZE TUNDRA! Ze greatest fighter in all of Reine!" She pulled out a little satchel of glowing powder, which she sprinkled onto herself. "EN GARDE!" Ah, yes. The Cash and Cap! Still there. Cashmere was standing out in front, so Rarity threw up a hoof in greeting. She suddenly noticed that there was someone else in front. A cow? That was strange... So this dimension didn't only have reindeer? She wouldn't have gotten that from just listening to these deer... The cow took out a small cube of salt from a knapsack stationed on her back. Cashmere said something to it, before shaking her head. The cow looked a little downcast, Cashmere said something else, and then the calf looked a bit surprised, before confidently telling her off. Cashmere simply shrugged before smiling and walking back into her shop. The cow walked away, taking a final glance at the stand before walking fairly close to Rarity. Suddenly, the calf looked up at Rarity and broke out into a fake-ish smile. It shouted a "Howdy!" to her before walking closer. After recovering from the shock of having a COW of all creatures come over and greet her like that, Rarity managed to stammer a greeting back as well. "Come around 'ere often?" "Huh?" Rarity asked. Realizing that this was a real, sentient being, she started to talk as her usual self again. "Oh! No, I'm just visiting this location." The cow, now being noted as female, shook her head. "This reindeer drives a hard barter fer most a' 'er prices. What was 'er name? Cashmere? Certainly earned it." "Yes of course." Rarity used her magic to style her hair more acceptably. "On the topic of names, what's yours?" "Arizona, the bonna-fide Champe'en 'a the prairie! An yours?" The accent and mannerisms seemed... extremely familiar. Almost like... "Rarity. It's a pleasure to meet you." She giggled. "My, if one of my friends saw you, she'd throw a fit!" "Oh, really? Why d'you say that?" "Because, she's never seen a talking cow before! And she's just like you!" "Aw, shucks!" Arizona kicked a hind leg awkwardly to the side. "That's jus' like the pony I met earlier!" Rarity laughed again. Then she pulled out a small makeup kit for a few last touchups. "Well, they must have been in just as much of a shock as I was! Did you get her name?" "Sure did! We're travelin' partners now! 'Er name's Applejack!" [beat] "Applejack?! Th-that's exactly who I was thinking about!" "Really?" "Yes! You must show me to her immediately; I had no idea Applejack was with you! I was worried about her and the rest of my friends!" She packed up her makeup kit and faced the cow with a large smile. The cow tipped her head, then shrugged. "Oh, all right. She's back over there." Rarity grabbed the cow with her magic and gave her a nice hug. "Thank you, darling! You're really just like her!" Arizona led her to where Applejack supposedly was, only to be met with... Nothing. Rarity turned to Arizona and asked, "Where is she?" Suddenly, a western accented voice yelped out in pain from an alleyway. A thin sheet of ice also emerged from on the inside. "Woah! Some kinda ice monster?!" Before Rarity could stop her, Arizona ran headlong at a breakneck pace towards the alleyway. Upon reaching the entrance, all she saw was a reindeer shooting some shards at AJ, who was backed into a corner. "Not on my watch!" AZ pulled out her lasso. "Time for a good ol' fashioned hoedown!" "Ugh! Could you at least take a bath first?" Fight! Using her lasso seemed like the best idea to Arizona, so that's exactly what she did. Lassoed the reindeer! She pulled her towards herself, freeing Applejack from the sub-zero bullet hell in the process. Applejack tipped her hat to Arizona before sliding in and giving a few good hits on the ice queen before she ultimately got tossed away. "Hmff! Vell, you don't want to take zis ze eazy way out, no? Well, have at you!" She started to spin rapidly in circles. "TOOOOOOORNAAADOOOOO!" Quite suddenly, a large tornado spawned where she was standing, the winds knocking her opponents away a fair distance. She poked her head out of it, facing her opponents. "Now ve fight!" She sent a large ice chunk hurtling towards the cowgirls, which were easily jumped. What wasn't so easy was avoiding the other attacks she threw at them, especially with the slippery surface of the ice sheet. Arizona in particular was struggling to keep her balance along with not getting creamed, but was somehow managing. But Applejack reached Velvet first, and with that came a good ol' beatdown! She knocked her out of the tornado completely, after which it dissipated. A single kick with a hind hoof sent her hurtling towards the wall that AJ was trapped in front of not moments ago. With nowhere to go and on the verge of panicking, Velvet attempted to block any further attacks with a shield, only for it to get snuffed out as the cow rammed her chest, and tossed her back towards the center. "Ha! Yer in over yer 'ead!" Arizona crouched down. "Here's the big one! Ya'll in fer a-" "STOOOOOP!" The cowgirls halted their actions, Arizona particularly midleap. She ungracefully faceplanted right into the cold, hard, icy floor. "Rarity?" Huh. Well. So, I guess that means that It's Over! "Rarity, it's you!" Applejack attempted to run over and give her a hug, but lost her footing on the ice and crashed into a nearby wall instead. "Of course it's me, darling! I'm never one to not help!" She turned back to Velvet. "And YOU are not doing that!" Rarity gracefully skated over to the bellyflopped Arizona and the downed Velvet. "She should not have done that. Velvet, say you're sorry." ... "VELVET, SAY YOU'RE SORRY." "Fine. You have bested me." AZ scraped her front hoof on the ice. "Still doesn't give an explanation for why she attacked mah partner 'ere!" "Because," Velvet hollered, "you're the Champion of the Prairie! Ve MUST fight!" "Now hold on just a minute! You just said that you were 'Champion' from the start. You never told me you had to fight other ungulates!" Rarity yelled. Velvet simply looked on with an expression that could be summed up in the word "Um." Arizona shook her head. "Sorry. Shoulda' told ya the Champe'ens hafta compete in this tournament to get to seal the predators as Key Keepers." "Oh." Well, that complicates diplomacy a bit... "Uh...Applejack, what do you-" Suddenly, the alleyway was closed off completely as the bear teleported back in! To ensure that no ungulate would leave until he was done with them, purple flames appeared at the exit. Rarity hurriedly turned to the other three. "You won't fight each other now will you?" Not waiting for a response, Rarity spawned a couple of gems in the air. "GOOD!" Fight! Rarity released the gemstones, sending them flying towards the bear. It swiped a massive claw, knocking them all away without any visual damage done. Seeing that it had no effefct, rarity started to get worried. "How do we-" Applejack and Arizona ran past her, comically spinning her around on the still-slippery surface of the ice rapidly. Arizona and Applejack flank the bear, and pummeled him with lower attacks to his legs. This was much more noticeable to him, actually making him grunt in pain. Having had enough of the cowgirls jabs, he smashed the ground with his heavy body, creating a shockwave consisting of broken ice and wind, pushing both AZ and AJ away. Velvet and Rarity ran forwards and jumped at his face, as Arizona righted herself and smashed the ground, tripping it. While he was down, Velvet blew a smaller blast of ice from her mouth directly at his nostrils, as Rarity was taking Velvet's quote "Staby staby!" with stride. The bear was showing more and more signs of pain from each hit, and it seemed to know what to do. A slash of claws hit Rarity, knocking her into the far wall, which she slid down like a doll. It followed up with a roar that blew nearly everyone else over, forcing everyone to crouch. While Arizona and Applejack could do little but hunker down and wait for the winds to subside, Velvet came in with a low icicle that stabbed straight forward, right into the bears gut. An extra statue popped out the top, sending the bear upwards It attempted to right itself, but to no avail. Velvet snapped an order to the others present. "You! Cow! Get me into ze air! Orange pony! Keep ze bear in his place!" She ran forwards, then jumped up into the air. Not stopping to think, Arizona and Applejack followed her orders blindly. Applejack took out her lasso and threw the end of it upwards, quickly bringing the ursa down faster than a shooting star, while Arizona ran directly under Velvet and used her head and strong neck to headbuck her higher. Now acceptably high, Velvet started to barrage the bear from above with icicles while Applejack held it in place as it writhed around in pain and to try to get an early freedom. Just before Velvet landed, she spun around in a few quick circles, blowing both bear and lasso away from Applejack. The bear lay on the ground, then stood up wobblily. The flames at the entrance of the alleyway dissapated, as the bear lumbered off with a grunt. Which is absolutely what it would have done if it wasn't tripped by Rarity using the same tactic as before. Rushing forwards, Arizona jumps on his head to make sure he was down, while Velvet started to spin around again. "Tornado!" This time, she sent the tornado straight at the hapless bear, nearly picking up Arizona as well. "CHILL OUT!" As soon as the tornado appeared, it contracted into nothing, entrapping the bear in a pillar of ice. It broke, and the great grizzly sagged down on the floor, motionless! It's over! Velvet stood over the defeated bear, which disappeared. Rarity and the others fighting with her were cheering her on, for her stunning performance. Not to be one who is modest, even when hurt, Velvet threw her hooves in the air in victory. "Alright." Arizona took the knapsack off of her back, revealing the black orbs from earlier. "No fightin' each other fer' now." She extended her front hoof in alliance. Velvet looked at the hoof, face holding some emotion that was somewhere between disgust, concern, and thrill, then begrudgingly took the bovine's hoof. After the armistice, and a short rest, Velvet stomped her hoof on the ground. "Now vat?" "Let's take a rest at my house, this time! There is positively enough beds for everyone here back at the Boutique." To the rest of the group, that sounded like the best idea for now. All four of them started to walk towards Rarity's boutique, Velvet giving general directions towards that part of the city. A single head poked out of a shop in the middle of the street. "Are they gone? Did they take care of the predators? Phew! For once I didn't jinx it! Woo! Woo. Woo... I'm going to keep hiding." "Wow... Ah had no idea that Velvet 'ere went through alla' this. You helped 'er open up?" "Why of course, darlings! I can't just let someone like her stay like this, can I?" They rounded a corner, where Rarity's home was soon visible. "We're here! The Carousel Boutique!" Both Velvet and Arizona seemed rather impressed with it. Surprising for Velvet, considering she found all reindeer things... superior. Applejack sighed with relief. "Alright! My hooves need a-restin'! 'Specially after travelin' through that cave." Suddenly, Rarity noticed three figures standing on the roof, with an ice statue between them. "Wait! What are those...things doing on my house?" Applejack squinted, trying to get a better view. "That's Spitfih'! They're throwin' 'er off the roof! An' are they... A pen, pink thing, and wooden block?" AZ did a few short hops. "Let's get 'em!" Them's runnin' herds! And run they did, towards the boutique, some tea, and three very strange objects. Pen: Okay! Ready? Blocky and Eraser: Yep! Pen: Three... Two... One! Blocky and Eraser: Hup! *Shattering noises* Blocky: Dang it. She got out. Eraser: Now what? ?: You! What are you doing here? Pen: Freeing a pony. Why? Rarity: No, I meant, what are you doing on top of my boutique? Applejack: Should Ah kick 'em off too? Arizona: I second that. Blocky: How did you get up here? Velvet: Zhe door uv course. Where else? Eraser: Can't we just talk about this? Pen: Yeah! We even finished the dresses! Rarity: You did? Wait just a moment! Don't attack them yet! Let me see! Blocky: Ooooooo kayyyyy? I should probably tell you that- Rarity: Where are they! They aren't where I left them. Pen: Oh, yeah, Mrs. Collins liked them so much, she took them with her and paid, like, 1.5 times the amount you asked for. Money's in the cash register on the rightmost compartment. I also added a 20% salt tip. Rarity: Really, darlings?! That's positively wonderful! Thank you, thank you! Is there any way I can repay you? Pen: Well, if you could- Blocky: Wait... about the kicking thing... Rarity: Yes? Blocky: The reindeer. Velvet: Yes? Vat? No vey! Away! Hooves off! Hooves, OFF. Whaaaa- AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH! Blocky: OOOOOOHHH! GET PRANKED! GET PRANKED BROAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH! *splintering noises* Applejack: That'll teach ya! Oh... Is 'e? Eraser: Yep. Looks like it. Great job, you just killed Blocky! Applejack: Uh, I didn't mean- Eraser: Don't worry. I know you didn't. Since I'm cool, I won't brutally murder you as well. Arizona: Uh... an' you...? Pen: Nope. I ain’t a fighter. Ooh, right in the dumpster. Rarity: With that out of the way... would you two like some tea? Eraser: Nah. Pen: Actually, I'd be down! Been a while! Also, we could really use an explanation on why we're here now... I think it's an okay idea, Eraser. Eraser: Whatever. Rarity: Yes, we'll explain all we know. But let me put on the kettle for you. Blocky: Can I join, too? Applejack: Whut? Ah saw yew dah right in front a' mah eyes! How're yew back up 'ere? Blocky: The door, of course. Where else? Got the reindeer too! Velvet: *Reindeerish profanities* Blocky: Hah! For a prank, throw someone of an opposing team off of a building and into a dumpster! Then, when someone tries to take revenge, fake your death, come back, and throw her off again! *This program was brought to you by: Blocky's Funny Doings, International.* Velvet: Oh, mother of Foenum! Someone, help! Pen: Actually nah. Bad idea. We're outnumbered, anyways. Let's all just cool down, and have a nice drink. Eraser and Blocky: Fine, whatever. Pen: Situation sorted. Let's get some info! Everyone but Velvet: Yeah! Velvet: Lutefisks! All of you! Lutefisks!