//------------------------------// // Chapter 32: Pox-pox! (S2E6) // Story: The Elemental Manipulation // by GalaxyEmpire //------------------------------// Pox-pox "Alright, team. Let's check our preparation for the second time." Earth said like a leader to his other self and Spike. "Our balls are shiny like a star, Earth!" Wind stated happily, rubbing four types of bowling balls with each has its color; brown, blue, yellow and green. "Every chore for today are finished." Lightning said while fixing the position of his armbands. "And no more assignment for the day now!" Spike told to the brown lion, yet, what are there up to? As you guess, today the boys are organized for the bowling day. As for Leo to split, since their big brother couldn't come here like because of work so he decided to split for replacement. Don't worry, they did this usually. The purple drake doing some warm-up by stretching first. "Finally, it's time for us to spend time together at the Ponyville Bowling Alley! It's been so long we haven't done this." "Yes! A quality time only for us boys!" Wind smile cheerful. "Too bad big bro can't join us." "Eh, he busy like always." Lightning commented. "Wonder he trying to take Cadence heart again." Earth stepped in. "Okay, guys. Now that we all have prepared, let's go now!" He shouts on, making the group glee in joy. As they're about to enter the building, they saw a familiar group of the filly, babbling to each other. "How 'bout the Pin Twins?" "But here, there's three of us," "Okay then...Um...the Bowling Dolls!" "The Bowling Dolls! That's it!" "Perfect!" "Hey! It's the crusaders!" Shouts the blue lion as the three fillies turned to see the Sparkle brother heading towards them. "Oh, howdy, y'all!" Apple Bloom greets them when she saw four clouring bowling ball. "I reckon you guys here just like us right?" "Sure does, I never thought you girls like bowling." "Not exactly, we here for our cutie mark!" Sweetie Belle said in energies as Scootaloo came next. "Yeah! And we are..." "THE BOWLING DOLLS!" Almost the lions and the dragon nearly got knocked down from that loud voice coming from them. Maybe have a chance to beat even Luna which is pretty bad if you want the entire residents to become mute. "All right then! Let's bowl 'em over!" said Apple Bloom excitedly as the crusader march in leaving the boys behind. "Umm... Should we be worry?" Spike feel concerned. "I mean, is the first time for them, right?" "Oh, I'm sure it fine! Besides, what could go wrong?" ... ... ... ... ... "You know, they're pretty bad actually!" "Shh, keep it down Wind. Don't be rude to them..." Inside the building, Leo's and Spike are playing next to the girls who not professional at all. Sweetie Belle was first to go as she then put her blue bowling ball in front of her. She then used her head to push it forward. The ball started rolling straight but then curved towards the right and into the gutter. The marshmallow filly just smiled and headed back to the benches. The other two fillies cringed but smiled at her when she walked by. "You know, she might find it easier to use her forehooves to push the ball..." Said Spike while sitting on a bench in their lane, waiting for his turn. "That will prevent the ball from curving into the gutter." Next is Scootaloo, she decided to buck her ball. However, she struck her ball so hard that it ricocheted about the Bowling Alley and passed other ponies and even the sibling's lane. Luckily, the Geokinesis create a small earth barrier to prevent the ball from hitting them before landing in the gutter several lanes away. Everyone just stared at Scootaloo, who just smiled and laughed nervously before the dash away. "Now that's what I called mortifying," Spike mumble crossing his arm. The Aerokinesis tried to hold his laugh only to got smack by the leader. Last is Apple Bloom, who is...kinda use a weird technique. The yellow filly narrowed her eyes at her goal and then looked at her red ball before grabbing it with her mouth. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle went agape and even the boys worried. "Careful, Apple Bloom," Earth warned uneasily. "If you do that, then there's a chance you will swallow their ball using that technique." The farm filly took note as she wobbled over to her lane before spat her ball towards the pins. The ball rolled smoothly and with a definitive STRIKE, Apple Bloom ten-pined! The other ponies nearby cheered excitedly. "Cool! A bowling cutie mark!" "I did it! I did it!" But then her excitement was shattered when she found her flank was still blank. "Blank?" "Look over there!" Some random pony shout as the entire ponies in the building look to see a yellow lion doing a strike, it was Lightning. BUT it's not done yet, the edge of the left and right pin bounce and hit all the next lane of a pin, making it another strike! "Cool! A triple strike!" "Amazing!" "Unbelievable!" The public roar cheering on the Electrokinesis lion, who got on his hind legs as he back to his regular position. "Heh, no sweat." Lightning grin at the pin area as he retreats to the beach while hearing the sound of applauding. "But...but...what about my ball?" The apple pony asked. "Umm...over there," Earth gently said, pointing a paw at their lane. Apple Bloom, as well as the two other fillies, noticed that her red ball was thrown nice and straight, but at not enough power. The ball slowly came to a stop and barely tapped the centre bowling pin. The ribbon filly felt very dejected as she lowered her head sadly, even her beautiful bow went limp as well. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo just looked at her with rather worried looks on their faces. "Guess that should be called the most disconsolate pony ever am I right?" Spike nudged the brown earth. Which receive a death glare from him...maybe the drake should zip his mouth. Surprisingly, he literally zips his mouth with a real zipper. "Hmm..." "What's the manner Earth?" Lightning asked. "Not much, but Apple Bloom seems depressed." Earth said before been jabbed by Wind. "Relax, Earth!" Wind gleamed happy. "What could possibly gone wrong?" Without a reason, eventually... Inside of the Everfree Forest, where flora and fauna don't control by any creature. Lay a hut, home of a certain zebra we all know; Zecora. Currently, she goes out to gather some ingredients called amethyst too with the other elements for her next mix. As the zebra keep going in the forest, she saw bushes shaking. "Who comes for me? State your business, if you please." The dark green bushes began shaking loudly before a black figure comes out from it. Zecora doesn't have a chance to react as she pinned down hard. She grunts and looks who's the figure is. Much to her surprise, it's a golden lion. "Gotcha! Who's the prey now, eh?" Leo joke to her, who is giving an amused face. "As much cat catches a mouse, the predators and prey such as well," Zecora said as the lion got off so she can stand back up. "Leo Sparkle, what brings you here in the middle of the unstable forest?" "Well, I was bored. But then, I haven't visited you for a while so..." Leo looks at what she carried on her back. "Woah! Are these amethyst?" Zecora nodded. "Indeed, I need it for a rooster and his chicks since the rooster has lost its crow, making mornings very slow." While having some conversation, the duo march on as the zebra continue. "If you don't mind me asking, your pouncing need a bit of adjustment because of the appearance from the bushes that shack hardly will surely lead the entire heard shock and run away before you could even strike." "Really? Alright, I'll make some changes next time." "Yes, and it reminds me of the lion back at my hometown." The female said, started the lion right next to her. "There's a lion in your kingdom?!" Leo shouts, but just stunning but also excited. Never in his life to see another lion just like him, well, a lion in a book but that's not the case. "Yes. And my hometime is in a place called... The Land of Avalon." "The Land of... Avalon? I never heard of that place." "Indeed, young lion. Avalon we're far from Equestria right now and it was the location of where I was born, learning and socialise with the animal from there." This was incredible, the lion awe from he could hear. That land, somehow, making him tingling for some reason. Like... "Hmm? What's this?" Said Zecora as the cub realised that they now in Ponyville's. Talk about how fast there walk. That's not the point, what the zebra saw is the street is empty, where is everypony? "Hey, I thought we agree that Zecora is not a witch," Leo stated. Zecora just nodded. "I thought I had removed their fear the last time I had visited here, but doors are barred and shutters shut. Guess I should've stayed inside my hut." As soon she was about to leave, a lavender unicorn and orange earth pony appeared before her. "Zecora! Apple Bloom has the cutie pox! We were just on our way to see if you had a cure." It's was Twilight, pointed towards the common filly as she was now doing advanced math on a chalkboard. "Wait, Apple Bloom?" Leo puzzled before look at what's on her body. "Pawesome! You earn your cutie mark! And woah! I never knew ponies can get a lot of it instead of one." "That's because nopony can't, Leo!" Twilight look at him worried. "Apple Bloom has Cutie Pox!" "A pox-pox?" "What?" "You know, like a polka dot. Except I use the word "pox-pox" so I can use anything that has the same pattern like a polka dot." Leo explain. "Or I was wrong?" "Not related to this situation, Leo. But I can clarify it." Zecora said. "The Cutie Pox is a cutie mark that appeared all over the ponies' bodies, it causing them to perform all the talents that came with them, forcing them doing the action." "And we're about to go find you, but magically you're here!" said Applejack, "Was your zebra sense a-tinglin'?" "My "zebra sense" did not bring me round, it was a special flower that I needed found. I thought I picked enough to fix all the potions I had to mix, but after my visit from Apple Bloom, some had mysteriously left my room. Apple Bloom! What do you say? Did this flower just walk away?" "I, um..." The lion notes she shuttering before another cutie mark appeared and she started to wash and clean a pony's windows. The pony inside looked at her fearfully as they put a hazmat mask over their face. Leo clear that she has a problem talking, so he did what he can. ELEMENTAL POWER! ELEMENT LEAF! The golden lion transforms to Leaf form. With his crowd control ability and that cheeky smile. What could go wrong? Eh? Eh? "Uh, Leo. What are you doing?" Twilight asked confused. "Hehe, Just watch!" He said as he stomps the ground using his front paws, sending a wave of green energy through his foreleg into the ground. Binding Vine! Without a second, a burst of green vine came out of the dirt. Reaching their target; Apple Bloom! Upon it, the vine wraps her back and her abdomen before dragging her toward the lion while leaving a mark of hooves from the dirt. "Oh! I got her, I got her!" Leaf tiptoe excitedly. "Now you don't have to worry about losing your movement because of the pox-pox!" Applejack leans to the unicorn. "Tell me again what the personality for this element, Twi?" "Childish, naive, and innocent person. Tend to get distracted very easy." "Ah, okay..." The farm mare will remember that. "Enough of the sudden, let's plant those seed right now!" While Leo transforms, the zebra explained to the ponies that she has a cure, and it's a seed. So Applejack quickly made a hole, tossed the seeds in and buried them for planting, "Alright, they're planted, now someone starts telling the truth." "Oh! Uh... Is it a trick question?!" "Nevermind, somepony start telling the truth!" Although it's for her good, the yellow filly just looked uneasily until another cutie mark appeared that made her start spinning around like a mini-tornado. Snapping the binding vine. Ironically, Leaf face contains his confused smile like "what the heck just happen" expression or "Uh..." Face, while smiling. Apple Bloom cried out as she spun about. Zecora just watches her unamused as Applejack and Twilight grow more worried. Leo on the other hand... "What's worse than a filly spinning it around at 100mph?" The other simply staring at him unconcerned as he picks a long digging thing from nowhere. "Stopping it with a shovel!" Unfortunately for the green mane lion, he got smack by his sister for being immature as the situation not going anywhere. Pinkie Pie was up, telling her truth about eating more than Ms Cake told her but the seed still didn't grow until the spinning pony finally admit. "Wah, I can't stand it anymore! It's me! I admit it! I didn't earn my cutie mark! They're all fake! I figured the Heart's Desire would help me get what I wanted most! So when Zecora left her hut, I mixed up a special potion and put the rest of the Heart's Desire in it!" After that confession, ponies began to peak out of their hiding places. Others were slowly removing their hazmat gears and smiled at her. When Apple Bloom has finished the seed or it called the Flower of Truth, it blossomed. Before everypony continues to awe the flower, Apple Bloom grabbed the entire of it with her teeth and gobbled it up. She had barely swallowed it when she plopped to her stomach as her cutie marks disappeared one by one. "Pawesome! She has been healed!" Leo jump in joy as the residents cheering for the simple blank filly as the other crusaders race up to her. "Apple Bloom!" "Are you okay?" The farm filly smile before looking at them sadly, "I'm sorry I lied, 'specially to you gals. I was so desperate for my cutie mark, I just got carried away." She's not done yet as she moves to Zecora. "And I'm sorry I snuck those flowers from you, Zecora. Why I wouldn't blame you if you never wanted me to come by again..." The zebra smiled. "Now Apple Bloom, do not be silly. You are always welcome, my little filly. With each mistake you learn something new, growing up into a better you." Applejack smiled and gave her a wink as Twilight and Mario smiled at her as well. Then Applejack silently gasped when she noticed that Zecora has mysteriously disappeared. "Apple Bloom," Twilight said. "Would you mind writing to Princess Celestia and telling her what you've learned?" "I'd be happy to, Twilight! Spike?" "Ready!" While in the distance, Leo seems are in his mind of his own. Try to solve the unsolved of his problem after getting a bruise on his head thanks to the certain something. "Oh~! I get it! Chickenpox is not pox-pox because it doesn't have any polka dot! But has a small little red mash for those is are!" Some random things...