At the School of Friendship, life was pretty fun. Many of the students were currently in class, either designing or making dresses with Rarity, baking with Pinkie Pie or getting cats out of trees with Flash.
One class though was spending their lesson outside in the courtyard with Fluttershy. Yona, Silverstream, Ocellus, Gallus, Smolder and Sandbar were helping maintain the flowers that were planted there while also removing all the weeds and keeping the bird feeders and water dispensers full.
"See?" Fluttershy smiled as Smolder used her claws to scoop a weed up by the roots before Sandbar replaced it with a flower. "When we all work together, everything is that much easier. You don't have to do a lot to show a little kindness to the world around you." To prove her point, a bird flew down as Gallus filled a feeder up with seed. It hopped onto the base tray and started eating before tweeting happily. "You're welcome."
"This is so much fun," Ocellus giggled as she watered a plant. "I love gardening."
"YAY!" Silverstream cheered as she eagerly flew above the grass with a pair of pruning scissors, "It's like giving the grass a haircut!"
"I guess it's okay," Smolder muttered as she pulled out another weed and used her fire breath to burn it up. "We don't really get a lot of pretty flowers in the Dragon Lands. But what's the point of them? Do animals eat them or something?"
"Flowers have lots of uses," Fluttershy chimed in, "Ponies eat them after all, but that's not all. For one, flowers take in harmful chemicals that could be dangerous to us in high amounts. They then release nice fresh air for us to breathe. Also, they're very important to creatures like-"
"BEE!" Yona suddenly yelled, leaping back as a tiny black and yellow insect flew out of a flower. The students all screamed as they flew over to the far side of the courtyard while the bee remained where it was.
"Everyone," Fluttershy frowned, "There's nothing to be scared of. It's just a bee."
"Of course there's something to be scared of," Sandbar yelped, "I got stung by one once and it felt horrible. I make it a point that whenever I see a bee, I run in the other direction! Besides, if there's one there could be a whole swarm!"
The others students all nodded, Gallus turning to Smolder. "What are you so scared about? Bees can't hurt you."
"They can't?" Smolder asked, Gallus proving his point by poking her with his talons, only for her scales to keep her safe. "Oh, sorry. Never seen one of those things. We don't have them in the dragon lands."
"That's probably why you don't have flowers there either," Ocellus pointed out as Fluttershy let the bee land on her hoof.
"I apologize. They just don't understand how important you are." The bee seemed to understand and flew off as Fluttershy turned to her students. "You all shouldn't be so afraid. Bees can sting you, but only if you make them feel threatened. Just give them space whenever you see them and there won't be able problems."
"You're talking like there's gonna be more of those things around," Silverstream gulped.
"Well of course there'll be more. With this nice garden, lots of bees will show up. It's why we're helping make it."
"We invite them here?!" Yona yelped.
"It's a downside of gardening," Ocellus added, "The more pretty flowers you have, the more likely bees will show up."
"We gotta do something!" Sandbar continued, "Maybe ask Headmare Twilight to put up a special barrier that keeps bees from entering the school."
The others nodded at this, only for Fluttershy to shake her head and sigh, "Come now, that's not nice. If you did that, there'd be no point in making a garden here. We're building homes and food for the insects that live around here."
"Why should we care about a bunch of disgusting bugs?" Smolder asked as Ocellus turned to glare at her. "Not you. The tiny ones that look gross."
"Everything is connected," Fluttershy replied, "Without insects like bees, our world wouldn't be able to survive." The students just blinked at her, Fluttershy sighing as she tried to figure out what to say, only to go back to the flowers.
Later that day...
Flash, Twilight, Pinkie and Rainbow were now in the teacher's lounge. "So," Twilight floated a cup of tea up to Rainbow, "How are you enjoying married life?"
"It's pretty good," Rainbow responded as she took a sip, "Soarin moved in with me, so that's fun. I never knew how much I missed coming home every day and finding somepony else there. Plus, Tank really likes him, so that's good."
"Ooh!" Pinkie's body vibrated. "Are you guys gonna have kids?" Twilight and Flash stared at Rainbow, the pegasi now blushing and twiddling her hooves.
"We're...gonna hold off on that. We just got married, so adding a kid into the mix right away might be a bit too much. Plus, I'd have to stop Wonderbolt activities while I was pregnant. No way I'm giving that up yet." Pinkie's mane slightly deflated as the others nodded, only for Fluttershy to walk in with a frown on her face.
"What's wrong Fluttershy?" Flash asked, as she sat down on the couch beside Rainbow.
"My students all got really scared when they saw a bee in the garden. I tried to explain it wasn't anything to worry about, but they're too scared to understand they didn't have to be afraid." Her four friends all couldn't help but hold back a snicker, finding it hilarious that Fluttershy of all ponies was saying that. "This could be really bad. If they let themselves get scared of bees because of something that likely won't happen, what if they have the same problem with other species? Smolder's more dangerous than a bee, so what if she starts burning them?"
"I see your point," Twilight replied while leaning back in her chair. "And bees are an important part of the ecosystem."
"Everything's important to the ecosystem," Fluttershy corrected, "The world around us is in a delicate balance. If even one creature were to be lost, something terrible could happen."
"Yeah...I barely get biology, and even I understand that."
"That's because you never went to school." Twilight deadpanned.
"And yet I'm a teacher here." Flash countered before glancing back at Fluttershy, "So, they're scared of bees, right?" Fluttershy nodded as Twilight glared at him, Rainbow snickering at the sight. The defender then put a hoof to his chin, rubbing it before shining a small grin, "I got an idea."
The Next Day...
Sandbar, Smolder, Gallus, Silverstream, Yona and Ocellus were walking through the halls on their way to Flash's Courage Class. "What do you think Professor Flash will have us do today?" Silverstream asked, "I hope it's something similar to yesterday's class. Riding that ice float was fun!"
"Yeah," Gallus chuckled, "Because you could easily jump into the water and swim away if things got hairy."
Sandbar let out a laugh, "Whatever it is, I'm sure we'll knock it out of the park. The six of us together are a crew that can't be beat."
"Too bad Ace and Mira aren't in this class," Ocellus added, "Them being with us is even better."
"Yeah," Smolder nodded, "But Sandbar's right. It's just gonna be a simple exercise. We can beat that easy."
But as they opened the door, they found Flash wasn't alone. "Professor Fluttershy?" Gallus asked first.
"Headmare Twilight?" Silverstream continued, "What are you two doing here? Are we in the wrong classroom? If so, what's Professor Flash doing here?"
Twilight giggled at this. "Actually, Fluttershy and I are gonna be watching you as you complete your assignment today."
"You are?" Sandbar gulped, feeling a small bit of sweat appearing in his mane.
"Why?" Yona asked.
"It's...complicated," Fluttershy replied.
"It'll become apparent when you've completed the assignment," Flash chimed in, "You all ready?"
He went to activate the crystal, but as he did, Ocellus raised her hoof, "Wait, what about the other students?"
"Oh, they've been given a free period." Flash responded, "This assignment is one you all need to complete more than they do. But I'll probably have the others take it later to see how well they do." The students all shared a glance, about to ask why they were being chosen above everyone else. "Now, you all ready?"
"I wonder what simulation he's starting for us," Gallus whispered.
"Whatever it is, I know it's gonna be amazing!" Silverstream exclaimed.
Smolder shined a grin at this, "It has to be if Fluttershy and Twilight are here to see it. An erupting volcano, a massive earthquake, a giant tidal wave...or even-" The classroom transformed and in a flash of light, they were all transported to... "A farm?"
It was almost an exact recreation of Sweet Apple Acres, even having a farmer that looked like a recolor of Big Mac. "This isn't just any old farm, kids." Flash chimed in as he touched the crystal and the Big Mac recolor vanished while a bunch of large trees began to surround the place. "There's a forest on the edge of the property...which is on fire." The trees burst into flames, filling the air with heat and smoke.
"Yeah!" Smolder cheered, "Now that's more like it!"
"This'll just be like our first Courage Class," Ocellus added, about to turn into an octopus, only for Flash to speak up.
"Your task, however, is not to stop the fire."
"What?!" Smolder yelped.
"Why not?!" Yona continued.
"In this scenario, other ponies have been assigned to fight the fire. The six of you have all been made responsible for protecting the farm's residence." A section of the farm, a large round circle of grass, suddenly lit up as a metal podium with a button appearing in the center. "In order to complete this task, you'll need to move Farmer Mic and all the animals that live on his farm to the safe zone."
"That makes sense," Sandbar nodded, "The farm and everything can be rebuilt. The animals can't be."
"Exactly," Flash replied, "And to make this just the tiniest bit harder, you've only got five minutes to move them all. Got it?"
"GOT IT!" The six cheered.
"Alright. And one last piece of advice. If you find yourself having difficulty completing this, remember that everything in connected." The students blinked at this, remembering Professor Fluttershy saying the same thing the previous day, only for Flash to yell, "And go!"
They quickly charged in, Sandbar asking, "Should we try and gather the chickens first? Or search for the farmer?"
"It'll take too long if we're all doing this one at a time," Gallus added, "It's best we split up."
"He's right," Ocellus nodded as she turned to see a bull in one field, the chickens in another, a shed that was likely full of cows, and saw no sign of the farmer. She also noticed a bee fly by and pulled away from it, trying to see if she could locate the farmer, but with no luck. "We've got four tasks we need to do."
"So who does what?" Silverstream asked as Gallus pointed at her.
"You and Ocellus look for the farmer. Yona, think you can get the bull to the safe zone? I think you two are related."
"Yona on it," the yak replied.
"Sandbar and I'll get the cows. Smolder, that leaves you with the chickens."
"Got it!" Smolder saluted as they ran off, though thirty seconds of their time had already passed. Smolder was the first to arrive at the chicken hut. "This should be easy," she smirked before opening the lidded roof of the hut and seeing the chickens inside it. "Hey little guys. Ready to get out of here?" She smiled, showing the chickens her teeth and claws.
However, the birds all started squawking loudly and leapt out of the hut, stagger the dragon back. "Hey!" She yelped as she saw them all run around. "Ooookay, maybe not so easy." She ran after one, but the birds were fast little ones. She then saw one running for the edge of the farm, about to run into the blaze. "NO!" She took to the air and flew after it, getting ahead and scaring it back, only for it to zip back into the hut. "Wait! Don't run! I'm trying to help you!"
Sandbar and Gallus moved as fast as they could, Sandbar pointing to a building, "Here it is! If the cows are anywhere, they'll be in the milking shed."
"How do you milk a shed?" Gallus asked, smirking as Sandbar rolled his eyes. Gallus flew in and tried to open the door, only to find it locked. He then heard a lot of mooing and stomping around. "I think they might know something bad's happening. If we open the door, they'll stampede."
Sandbar nodded and spotted several pieces of rope wrapped around a nearby fence post and grabbed them, tying each into a lasso like Professor Applejack had taught them. "I got this," Sandbar cheered as he started spinning the lasso.
Gallus then unlocked the door, pulling it open, only for a series of moos to fill the air before the cows began to charge. "WHOA!" He yelped as they rushed past him, causing the griffon to spin around on the spot before falling to the ground.
Sandbar laughed at seeing Gallus laid out, his eyes spinning. He laughed so much that he didn't notice something right behind him, stepping back before feeling his hoof surrounded by something hot and slimy. "Ew!" Gallus then got up at this and started laughing at him.
"I think that's called a cowpat, but ew works too." Sandbar sighed as Gallus kept laughing.
Meanwhile...
Silverstream and Ocellus flew around the farm in search of Farmer Mic. "Hello!?" Silverstream called out when they reached the farmhouse. "Mr. Farmer?"
"Are you in here?" Ocellus added as she opened the door, but still found no sign of the farmer. "Please, we have to go! The fire's getting closer!"
"Don't worry about your animals," Silverstream continued, "Our friends are helping them." But still, there was no reply. "Oh, where is he?" They left the house and continued glancing around, Silverstream opening the mailbox. "Mic?"
"Mic?" Ocellus checked inside the outhouse.
"Mic?" Silverstream lifted up a flowerpot. "Nowhere." She turned to Ocellus, "Let's fly up and get a birds eye view."
"Great idea," Ocellus nodded before transforming into an eagle. "And what better to do it with then a pair of bird eyes?" They both laughed and flew up, beginning to scout the area.
Smolder had chased the chickens all around the farm...but not towards the safe zone. "Here chick chick chickens!" She cried as she followed them to an area full of beehives, which the chickens began sitting around or on top of. That is, till Smolder ran up to them, causing the chickens to start going nuts and running around again.
"Oh, come on!" She cried, "I'm not gonna eat you! You probably taste all digital and terrible!" As she said that, she found herself being surrounded by a small swarm of bees. Luckily, her thick scales made it so she wasn't worried, only annoyed, "Ah!" She began swatting them away, "Shoo bees! Can't you see I'm busy?" But the bees remained, causing her to start waving her arms around harder.
As she did this, the chickens all stopped and turned to her. The way she moved around, swinging her arms, caused something in their tiny bird brains to click. They clucked, catching Smolder's attention. She folded her arms and started flapping them to symbolize a chicken, causing the birds to squawk happily at her.
"Huh. So you like that? Okay, I can work with this."
"Come on bull!" Yona growled as she pulled on a rope she had tied around his neck. "Yak...say...GO!" But the bull remained where he was, constantly chewing on some grass.
Yona moaned and tried to think, an idea forming in her head as she ran around the back of the bull and started pushing it. Had she been bigger, she could move it without issue, but at her current size, she was only able to get the bull to move a few inches.
"Augh!" Yona moaned as she stopped pushing, only to turn and see a large wagon with a ramp-like drop-down. "Ah-ha!" She ran over and pulled the wagon over to the bull, dropping the ramp down right in front of it. She then pushed the bovine up it, amazed the wagon was strong enough to hold it. "Yak one, bull zero!" She laughed as she hooked herself onto the wagon and started pulling, the wheels making the action easy with her level of strength.
"YEE-HAAAAA!" Sandbar exclaimed as he threw the lassos and hooked them around each of the cows, allowing him to pull them along without worry.
"Not bad!" Gallus cheered as they began to make their way to the safe zone, then looked up to see Silverstream and a blue eagle flying above them. The two continued glancing around, but still found no sign of the farmer. They then decided to check the edge of the farm near the burning forest, Ocellus now spotting a well on the edge of the property.
"Hey, what's that?" They flew over it and Ocellus looked down, her bird vision allowing her to see the very bottom and she gasped. "He's down there!"
The pair dived down, Ocellus returning to normal as they stared at Farmer Mic at the very bottom. "How'd he get down there?!"
"It doesn't matter," Ocellus replied, "We have to help him!"
"Right," Silverstream nodded, "I'll fly down and-" She stopped and frowned before opening her wings, her full width being longer than the size of the well. "Oh, I can't fly down there. I could fall down there no problem, but there's no way I'd be able to fly back up, especially while carrying him."
Ocellus measured her wings and determined she could fly down, but she doubted she was strong enough to lift him. And anything she turned into to fly him out would have the same problem as Silverstream. "What do we do?"
"If only we had some rope..." Silverstream commented before turning to Ocellus, "Say...how long of a snake could you become?" Ocellus blinked at the question before turning into a twenty-foot python, who Silverstream grabbed the tail of before lowering her down into the well.
"Hang on sir," Ocellus told the farmer as she got in range. Luckily, he was wearing a vest, so she was able to grab it in her mouth. "Okay," she cried through a clenched jaw, "Hoist us up!" Silverstream began pulling, her form barely able to yank them both up.
And as she Ocellus up high enough, the changeling turned into an elephant and grabbed the farmer in her trunk before pulling him the rest of the way. "How is he?" Silverstream asked, Ocellus looking him over and nodding.
"He's not a real pony, so I doubt he can actually get hurt. But for a pony that fell down a well, he's doing remarkably...well." Silverstream smiled before getting serious.
"Let's get him to the safe zone."
Smolder was continuing to buck like a chicken, making her new feathered friends happy. Eventually, they all grouped up and Smolder quickly grabbed a metal container and scooped them all up.
"Let's go!" She cheered, flying off for the safe zone.
The others were already there and as soon as Smolder landed, Silverstream hitting the button and stopped the timer. The timer showed thirty seconds remained, causing them to all smile. "We did it!" Silverstream cheered as Gallus flew up to high-five her.
"And with time to spare!" The illusion room began to return to normal, the others all cheering as Smolder and Sandbar high-fived...clawed...hoofed.
"Easy peasy lemon squeezy!" Sandbar cheered, the group turning to their teachers.
"It was a walk in the park," Smolder added before she suddenly started coughing feathers. But as Ocellus patted her on the back, the room flashed red as a beeping sound filled the air.
"What that?" Yona asked.
"The fail noise..." the changeling gasped, "We...we didn't accomplish the mission."
"How is that possible?" Gallus yelped.
"What did we miss?" Smolder added, the group now staring at their teachers as they smiled.
"It's not a test if we give you the answer," Flash responded.
"You need to pay better attention to the little things," Twilight continued, "But don't be disheartened. You can't be expected to accomplish every mission the first time."
"Ready to try again?" Flash asked, the students all nodding. "Okay, your time starts now!" He hit the crystal and the farm scenario formed again, this time the students didn't wait to assign tasks, all running off to do the same thing they did before.
Yona ran over to the bull and pushed the wagon in front of it, quickly pulling him as some bees flew by, "Go away bees! Yona have no time to mess with you!"
At the same time, Smolder, Ocellus and Silverstream found themselves having a much easier time. Smolder started clucking and flapping her arms about while Silverstream and Ocellus flew over to the well and pulled Farmer Mic up the same way they did before. Gallus and Sandbar headed to the milking shed and Sandbar quickly made the lassos again. Gallus opening the barn doors and this time leaping to the side so the cows wouldn't stampede over him. "Ha!" He cheered as the last cow left, the griffon stepping back in front of the shed. "Not this time." But then he realized one cow was missing, only for it to suddenly shoot past him, "WHOA!"
Sandbar laughed at that, "I thought by now you'd know not to do that." But then he backpedaled into slimy hot goo again. "Augh!"
"You were saying?" Gallus cackled before they quickly got the cows lassoed up and pulled them to the safe zone, arriving as Yona, Smolder, Silverstream and Ocellus arrived with their saved targets. As they all reached the circle, Silverstream hit the button and stopped the timer. This time they had completed the task with a full minute left.
"YEAH!" They all cheered as the illusion vanished, only for the room to flash red with the buzzer again.
"Oh, come on!" Gallus yelled, "What are we doing wrong?!"
"Let's do it again!" Smolder added, "We can do it this time!" They all nodded in agreement, Flash giving the other two a look as they nodded. Flash activated the illusion again. If they didn't get it this time, they would need to give them a hint.
The farm reformed as the students rushed into action, each heading to their areas and being sure to keep an eye out for anything. "Did I miss a chicken?" Smolder asked as she did her chicken dance before scooping them up.
"Does bull have friend?" Yona asked the bull as she pushed the wagon in front of it, the bull not saying anything and continuing to graze. Yona pushed him in and glanced around, "Nope, one bull."
As Ocellus was lowered down into the well, she tried talking to the farmer. "Excuse me, do you have a wife or somepony else living on your farm?" The farmer shook his head, "Maybe a pet goldfish or hamster in your house." The farmer shook his head again. "So, if that's not what we're missing, what is?"
Over by the milking shed, Sandbar was making the lassos as Gallus prepared to open the door. As he worked, a bee flew passed him and he leapt back. "Ah!" He yelped, falling back and feeling his front hoof land in the cowpat this time. "Oh, come on!" Gallus saw the bee and quickly pushed his wings to create a draft powerful enough to push it away, allowing Sandbar to get up and wipe his hoof before finishing the lasso. "Ready?"
Gallus nodded and opened up the door, flying straight up so the cows didn't run him over. Once he was sure every cow was out of the shed, he flew in, "Hey, any baby cows need saving in here?" But nothing called out, the griffon flying around the room and looking behind every bale of hay. "Nothing here. Must be one of the others." Sandbar nodded and pulled the cows he had lassoed up to the safe zone.
They all arrived right before Smolder did, the dragon putting down the chickens and counting them all to make sure none had jumped out during the flight. She shook her head, determined they had saved every animal. Silverstream hit the button and stopped the clock, the six waiting patiently as the illusion faded away.
For a moment, they thought maybe they had passed...only for the room to flash red as the buzzer sound. "Ahhhhh!" Smolder cried in frustration, "How is this possible?!"
"Or logical?!" Ocellus called out, "There are no significant life forms left to save!"
"Do you think maybe the training room's broken?" Sandbar asked, all turning to their teachers. The three shook their heads and instead of checking to see if the classroom was broken, Flash touched the crystal.
"Training room. Please display the farm after the fire went out on the last attempt." A holographic screen appeared above them, showing the image of the farm, the farmer and all the animals they had saved. "Now show us what happened each passing week." They watched as the screen's image began to change, showing the farmer and animals in different areas. At first, they didn't notice anything was amiss as the time passed. But then they noticed the flowers at the bottom of the screen suddenly vanished, followed by the grass they were all standing on turning yellow. Leaves on the surviving trees behind them began to slowly disappear, along with several bushes surrounding them.
"What?" Smolder asked as the trees got worse and worse with each passing week, eventually becoming nothing but dead sticks poking out of the ground. Then the animals started vanishing, the first being the cows, then the chickens, then the bull. The image then changed to show Farmer Mic in front of his house, then the time skip began and flora around him vanished. His house and barn slowly started falling apart, with holes appearing in the roof, the doors starting to come off their hinges and panels of wood rotting off.
Eventually, the farmer himself completely vanished.
"But..." Sandbar turned to the teachers, "The farm's a disaster. I don't understand. What did we do wrong during the task?"
"Were there creatures we didn't see?" Silverstream asked, "Hidden somewhere? Sheep live on farms. Maybe we missed a sheep."
"There were no sheep," Twilight responded, "There was only what you saw."
"Maybe you should take a break and think about it," Fluttershy added before turning to Flash, "While they're doing that, we should let the other students use the last of the class time to try this out." Flash nodded and dismissed the students, making them frown as they all slumped out of the room.
They headed to the courtyard, all thinking about the test. They started talking about the entire assignment, only to come up with nothing. "I can't believe we failed such a simple mission," Ocellus commented as she sat on the edge of the fountain.
"What's not to believe?" Gallus replied, "Did you not hear the fail noise?"
"Not helping Gallus," Sandbar grumbled.
"There is no way I'm letting this stand," Smolder growled, "We just have to figure out what we missed. Alright, let's go over what each of us did. Yona, you first." Yona explained everything she did, her friends asking a bunch of questions to try and determine if there was anything there she might not have been aware was important. Afterwards, they did the same with Silverstream and Ocellus, then Gallus and Sandbar before finally moving to Smolder.
"Then I put the chickens down and counted. They were all there."
"So none of us missed anything," Ocellus concluded.
"Then how we fail?" Yona asked, the other five moaning. They felt like their heads were gonna blow up from thinking, only for it to get worse as they heard the bell ring.
"Class is over," Sandbar sighed, "The other half of our class'll be leaving."
"Yeah," Gallus nodded before getting an idea. "Come with me!" He took off and the others followed, heading to Applejack's classroom. There they spotted the pony Gallus was waiting for. "Sky-Writer!" The pegasus that shared their Courage class turned to them.
"Hey everypony," he waved. "Professor Flash's lesson was pretty fun, right?"
"Did you complete it?" Ocellus asked, Sky-Writer nodding.
"Took us two tries, but we got it with five seconds to spare." Smolder then grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Tell us everything you did!" She yelled, her face inches from his.
He shook his head, "I can't. Headmare Twilight said we weren't to discuss it with you until you all pass it yourselves."
"Augh!" Smolder cried, letting him go. He ran into class as the six leaned against the walls, "This is so unfair. How are we supposed to figure this out if they won't tell us?"
"That's probably part of the assignment," Ocellus replied, "It's like a math problem. We're not being given the answer, but we've been given everything we need to figure it out."
"But aren't you supposed to tell the student what the answer is if they can't figure it out?" Sandbar asked as the warning bell went off. "Ugh...I gotta get to Laughter Class."
"Yona too," the yak sighed, "Figure it out later." She and Sandbar went off while Silverstream and Ocellus left too. Smolder and Gallus entered the class, taking their seats while trying to not think about the humiliating failure they had undergone.
The rest of the day, the students all kept daydreaming through their classes. Each of them was reliving the class and still trying to think what they did wrong. And there weren't the only ones. Flash gave the assignment to each of every class that he had that day, with some of them managing to figure out how it was done while the others were all up a creek. Since the passing students weren't allowed to explain the solution, the failing ones were all getting more and more frustrated.
When the last class of the day was over, the Student Six were all found themselves outside the school on one of the bridges that was over a stream filling the pond. Gallus was sitting on the edge of the bridge, staring at the water while Sandbar was laying on his back and Yona was working on her braid. Smolder was watching as Silverstream and Ocellus turned into their water forms and dived into the river to try and swim away their frustrations. But nothing they did helped, only to be made worse when they heard laughter.
They turned to see it was Ace, Mira, Heart and Soul. The four were walking up, only to see the six and their laughter vanished, "Hey there," Mira waved, "What's up? You look like someone just cancelled Heartswarming."
Silverstream and Ocellus leapt out of the water and landed on the bridge. "We're upset because we couldn't figure out Professor Flash's assignment," Silverstream grumbled.
"Oh," Ace smiled, "The farm one. Yeah, that was tough. Took us three attempts to get it right."
"I don't suppose you're gonna clue us in about how to pass it?" Gallus added, Ace opening his mouth, only for it to be magically shut by Soul.
"Sorry. Flash said we can't." The six all groaned as the four got closer, Heart flying past the bridge while Soul and the jakhowls walked onto it. Soul sat down and took out a book she had been reading, while Ace and Mira moved over to the edge of the bridge. It was then that they noticed the pair were each carrying a stick.
"What are you doing?" Gallus asked.
"Check it out," Ace replied, "It's a game Springer taught us. We both drop a stick into the water on one side of the bridge and run to the other side."
Mira continued, "Whoever's stick is the first one from under the bridge wins."
Smolder raised an eyebrow at this, "Isn't that a bit childish?"
"Yeah, so? We're kids."
"And even if we were adults, Springer always said there's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes." The group shared glances at this, only for Ace to add, "You all wanna play? It might get you out of your slump. And you never know, you might be able to figure out how to do Flash's challenge when you're not thinking about it."
The students shrugged before grabbing their own sticks from the nearby trees. They all returned a minute later, each with their own stick...except Yona. "That's a branch," Sandbar told the yak as she held a two-foot tree arm in her mouth.
"Does it not still count as stick?" Yona asked, the others rolling their eyes.
So they each stepped up to the bridge, the fliers hovering above them. "Ready?" Ace asked, "Everyone drop at the same time. Three...two...one...NOW!" They let go and the sticks, and branch, hitting the water and started floating under the bridge. Alas, Yona's branch was too big and got caught while the others continued on.
"Grr..." Yona growled as they all ran to the other side of the bridge. As they did, a stick floated out from under the bridge.
"Yeah!" Gallus and Smolder cheered, only to look at one another. "That's my stick!" They yelled in unison, making the others laugh.
"Maybe you should do it tournament style," Soul suggested, "Two at a time with the winners playing on." They nodded and all ran off to get another stick, Silverstream and Ocellus being the first back.
"Ready...go!" They dropped their sticks and went to the other side, waiting for the stick to flow out.
"I win!" Ocellus cheered, Silverstream clapping for the changeling as Yona and Sandbar ran up with their own sticks. Yona actually had a real stick this time, Silverstream moving out of the way to let them race. As she did, she then saw Fire Heart was off in the trees.
He had a long piece of rope in his hooves that had a tennis ball tied around the edge, the pegasus slowly spinning it around several time before thrusting it forward. The ball flew through the air and truck a target Silverstream hadn't seen on one of the tree's trunks. He then pulled it back before spinning it around again and throwing it at another tree's target.
"Wow..." Silverstream commented as she watched Heart swing the rope and ball around while moving his body in such a way that it never got hit as the ball flew around him. He then used his back leg to hook the rope and cause the ball to change directions on the sly, causing it to go flying into another tree. And as the ball bounced off and flew back to him, he used his back hoof to hook the rope just before and ball and push it to the ground. He smirked and used his hoof to swing it back into the air, spinning it around while leaning back to prevent his head from getting cut off. He then swung it to another tree, but missed the target, making Silverstream frown as the rope flew around and wrapped around Heart's body, though his wings stayed free, until the ball almost hit him. But before it could, Heart moved like a hula hooper, causing the rope to suddenly swing in the opposite direction and unwrap from him. He thrust it at the tree again and this time, hit it head on.
"WOW!" Silverstream exclaimed, loud enough to catch Heart's attention.
"Huh?" He glanced down, only for the ball to hit him in the head. "Ow!" He cried, clutching his noggin.
"Uh," Silverstream flinched, "Sorry."
"it's fine," Heart moaned as he started picking up the rope. "Flash always says training with distractions is useful."
"You're really good at...whatever you were doing," Silverstream replied, "But what are you doing? Is it some kind of game?"
"I'm learning to use a chain mace," Heart responded, "Flash wants me to be an expert in every single weapon for some reason. Don't know why, since I'll only use one when I get my Celestic Gear. But it's still cool to use all these different weapons."
"It looks really fun! Can I have a try?"
"Sure." Heart held out the practice weapon and the hippogriff started spinning it around, starting off slow, but quickly picking up speed. But when she tried pulled it back in preparation of throwing it, the rope spun around her body, quickly tying up her wings and her front legs.
"Ahh!" She yelped, trying to do the hula hoop trick she had seen Heart do with no luck. Instead, she simply fell to the floor with a huff. "Ow..." Heart laughed and started helping her untie herself. "You make it look so easy."
"Now I do," Heart replied, "I've been learning to use this thing for months. The first time I tried, I did the same thing."
"So what's the trick?"
"No trick. It's just a matter of patience. At the start, just focus on swinging the ball around without hitting yourself or tying yourself up. Flash actually took me fishing once and had me use a fishing rod to help me get the hang of controlling the line. It's all about taking it one step at a time. You need a great form if you want a great outcome. That's what Flash always tells me." Heart did a simple spin of the rope before letting it lose, hitting the target head on.
Silverstream blinked at the colt as the info flowed through her mind, the hippogriff then remembering the images they had seen of the farm at the end. "Wait...you mean I shouldn't look at the end for answers, I should look at the beginning?"
"Well, that's what I just-" He didn't get to say anymore as Silverstream zipped over to her friends.
"Follow me!" She told the other five, making them raise an eyebrow and miss who won the final race.
"Follow you where?" Sandbar asked as Silverstream began to head for the school.
"Not where! When!" They blinked at her, only to follow until they reached Flash's classroom. Looking inside, they found the place was empty as Silverstream flew over to the crystal.
"What are you planning?" Gallus asked her as Silverstream activated the room.
"Are you gonna watch a rerun of another team?" Smolder added, "See how they completed it?"
"Isn't that cheating?" Ocellus continued.
"I'm not watching a rerun of the others," Silverstream looked up at the screen, it now showing the farm in utter chaos. "This is how the disaster ended. But if we want an answer, we've gotta watch how it started." The footage rewound until it was on the first image, with the farm and animals looking happy. Silverstream then changed it to the next image, which showed only one difference.
"Flowers?" Yona asked.
"It all started with the flowers?" Gallus added, "But why? How do flowers affect a farm?"
"Animals need them," Sandbar replied, "Farmers can't afford to feed creatures as big as cows and bulls on their own. Without grass and flowers, they'd go hungry. And if the animals can't be fed, the farmer wouldn't be able to keep them."
"He'd have to send them to another farm," Ocellus gasped, "Which means he wouldn't be able to produce milk, so he wouldn't be making as much money as before."
"And that mean no chicken food," Yona continued.
"So he'd have to give the chickens away too," Silverstream gasped. "Meaning no egg money!"
Gallus slowly started putting it together, "Which means he couldn't afford to fix up his house and barn whenever they got damaged."
Sandbar nodded, "And his crops might have been damaged in the fire. He wouldn't have had any money to replace them. And even if they weren't, all the money he would make from selling them would have only been enough to feed him and to buy new crop seeds."
"All this because the flowers and grass died?" Gallus asked.
"Don't knock flowers till you've tried 'em," Sandbar chimed in, "But I don't get it. Why did the flowers and grass die? They looked perfectly fine after the fire."
"I think that's what we have to solve!" Silverstream exclaimed, "The fire did something to make the flowers unable to survive, so what do plants and flowers need?" They all exchanged glances, most thinking about water or sunlight, only for Ocellus's eyes to go wide.
"Pollination!" She gasped, "They need pollination!"
"Pollen...what?" Gallus asked.
"It's what allow plants to develop seeds that they can use to reproduce," Ocellus responded, "But they can't be pollinated by themselves. There are certain types of animals that do it: Hoverflies, hawkmoths, and the most well-known pollinators-"
"Bees!" Smolder's eyes went wide, remembering the beehives she had seen when she first saved the chickens. "We didn't save the bees!" They then remembered the incident yesterday and how Fluttershy had tried to explain why bees were so special, which none of them believed or even listened to.
"It's just like what Professor Flash and Fluttershy said," Silverstream whispered, "Everything is connected."
"Wow..." Smolder added as she stared at the destroyed farm. "I never realized something so small could be so important. In the Dragon Lands, if we see a bug or anything small enough to fit in your claws, we just crush it. But...could that have been doing more harm than good?"
"It sounds like you've all learned a very valuable lesson." They spun around to see Flash, Twilight and Fluttershy standing with smiles on their faces. Twilight stepped up next, "I hope you now understand why it was so important to learn this?"
The students nodded back, Ocellus replying, "We shouldn't let how we feel about creatures determine how we deal with them."
"Exactly," Twilight nodded. "I heard about your plan to ask me to put an anti-bee shield around the school. You realize what would have happened if I agreed to that?"
"The flowers we planted in the courtyard would have all died." Silverstream responded, the teachers nodding back.
"Anyways," Flash stepped up to the crystal, "Do you all want another try at completing this assignment?"
The students all smiled as Smolder crossed her arms. "Does Sandbar step in cowpats?" Sandbar growled at her as Flash shook his head.
"I'll take that as a yes," He replied as the students cheered and ran to the center of the room. Flash activated the crystal and the farm reappeared, the fires blazing as the six split up to complete their tasks.
After so many previous tries, they had saving their animals and the farmer down to a science. Sandbar even managed to avoid the cowpat this time. They all ran them over to the safe zone, Smolder the last to arrive, putting the chickens down and counting them again to confirm she had them all.
"Alright!" Silverstream cheered, "Now we just have to save the bees!"
"How much time do we have?" Gallus asked Ocellus, who looked down at the timer below the button.
"One and a half minutes!" The group quickly cut into a sprint, all following Smolder as she went to the beehives she had found. They arrived and found the place was still swarming, but the fire was getting close.
"So how exactly do we save them?" Sandbar asked.
None of them had an answer, only for Smolder to say, "Maybe we can ask them to get back into their hives so we can carry them to safety?"
"Great idea," Gallus deadpanned, "But do you speak honeybee?"
Sandbar walked up to the hive and removed the lid, turning the hive in one direction. "Do you all think you can make a gust strong enough to push the bees inside?" The winged members of their group nodded and started beating their wings has hard as they could, creating a gust the blew the bees away. But no matter what position they stood in or beat their wings, only two bees were actually blown into the hive. "How's it going?" Sandbar asked, hiding behind the hive to keep from getting stung.
"Great," Silverstream replied, "Unless you actually wanted the bees to go into the hive." Sandbar frowned and put the hive down as Yona grabbed a nearby net.
"Let Yak try!" She started swinging the net around, but the bees easily dodged every swipe. "Yak not so good at bee catching."
Gallus turned to the others, "Now what do we do?"
"We're running out of time!" Smolder cried.
"If we can't herd the bees and we can't catch them, the only solution is to lure them." Ocellus chimed in.
"With what?" Yona asked, only for Gallus to quickly dig up the surrounding flowers and bushes. Smolder and Silverstream did the same, Sandbar and Ocellus starting to place them atop Yona's back. Soon enough, the young yak was a walking garden. Sandbar and Ocellus grabbed some more flowers while Gallus and Smolder picked up a beehive, the six beginning to walk toward the safe zone.
"Let's hope this works," Gallus gulped as they made their way through the farm as Yona took a big whiff of the air she was giving off.
"Yona smell good."
"The bees think so too," Silverstream giggled as she saw the swarm following them. They moved as fast as they could without losing any flowers or bees, eventually reaching the safe zone. Once there, they put the beehive down and Silverstream hit the button with fifteen seconds to spare.
"We did it!" She cheered, the others all celebrating as well.
"Victory dance!" Sandbar cheered before feeling his back hoof land in something the cows had left while waiting for them. "Oh, come on!" The others laughed as the training room shut down, Flash, Twilight and Fluttershy flying over while clapping.
"Well done," Fluttershy giggled, "I hope this little adventure has helped you all realize the important of other creatures."
"It sure has," Smolder nodded along with the others.
"Great!" Flash laughed, "Now, I think you all deserve a treat." He and Twilight nodded at one another before Twilight's horn glowed, flashing to summon a plate full of cupcakes. The students all gasped at this and took one, each taking a bite before their eyes went wide. They then watered at the taste.
"What's in these?" Sandbar asked while licking his lips.
"Just a little something we asked Pinkie Pie to whip up for you," Flash replied, "The secret ingredient is something very special made from the creatures you all just saved: Honey."
"Honey?!" They all yelped, Fluttershy soon explaining what it was and where it came from.
"If bees make something so great, I say let as many bees as possible come by!" Silverstream cheered, nobody disagreeing with her. Their hatred of bees had transformed into respect and love. It was clear now that every creature on the planet deserved to be there, for each one played a vital role. And as long as every creature was respected, the world would always bee in perfect balance.