//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: In search of a cure for Jokes // Story: Tom & Jerry: Journey to Equestria // by ShaggyBoi23 //------------------------------// Tom and Jerry should not have asked where they were going after all. Because navigating the city was very problematic. And they could have asked the other ponies, but then Tom would be humiliated enough for all nine of his lives. So they had to duck and camouflage. Finally, they made it downtown and hid behind one of the bushes, next to a bench. Now they could at least look around. At first, the cat and the mouse looked at the huge oak tree but immediately dismissed this option, for the reason, it's too open and far to get there. Then they looked at the house, which looked like a store with sweets. The option was ruled out because they don't think a place that buys cakes and cupcakes would be a home for a mare and her sister. There were many options, and the duo didn't know what to do anymore. But then they saw a yellow pegasus, with a pink mane and tail, and the cutie mark of three butterflies, and a white unicorn, with a blue-purple mane and tail and the cutie-mark of three blue diamonds. They were headed toward the cat and mouse, and they were frozen and gave no sign of life. Obviously, the mares were tired, but of what, that was another question. Sitting down on the bench, it was as if both were in paradise because they were already tired of walking. "Oh, darling..." the white mare began." We must remember this day as the day of the biggest line for a skein of thread and needles for sewing." "Perhaps your skills are already beginning to be appreciated and want to sew as much as you do." Fluttershy remarked "Believe me, Fluttershy, I'm very happy to be appreciated, but I don't like waiting three hours a day." Rarity exhaled to continue. "I have so many orders that you can't leave them all in a long box." "I'm pretty sure you can handle it all." said Fluttershy. "But it's like who knows... Just remembering Sweetie Belle ruining her sweater by washing it in the washing machine makes me scared." Tom and Jerry remembered Sweetie Belle. They could already sense how close they were. The only thing left to do was to find out who this Rarity, who happened to be right next door. "But understand, Rarity, she is your sister." Fluttershy answered, which made the cat and mouse finally convinced of the accuracy of their guesses. "She's trying to help you." "Except that her help can be disastrous!" Rarity protested. "Can't even leave her alone for five minutes, and in the end, something happens!" Jerry chuckled, remembering how Tom's landlady had said almost the same thing, for which he got a fist to the head from the latter, turning the whole mouse into a flapjack. "Well, what can you do... A sister, she's still a sister. She's trying." Fluttershy continued to defend the filly. "It depends on what she's trying to do, whether she's trying to annoy me or drive me to an early grave." Rarity answered. It seemed to Tom that the filly was too strict with his sister, but he dared to draw such a conclusion because Sweetie Belle does not know as much as her older sister. Jerry, though, agreed with that point of view. "Well, all right." Rarity spoke again. "Why don't we go to the spa? I could use a massage and a hot tub." "I'd like to relax at the salon, too." Fluttershy agreed. They immediately got up and headed off in an unknown direction. Tom and Jerry, on the other hand, now understood who they had to follow, but they had to wait until she came from the spa. So the cat and mouse followed their friends. The walk lasted about ten minutes, but then the cat and mouse's old acquaintances showed up. And those were clearly out of sorts. Moreover, there were plasters and bandages in some places and a cold compress on the wings of a pegasus. "Hey, girls!" Rainbow greeted her quickly. "Say, have you seen a cat and mouse around here?" "What cat and mouse? What kind of expression is that? I'd say cat and mouse." Corrected Rarity. "Rarity, that is the truest expression of all right now!" Applejack said, through her teeth. "Did you see it, or didn't you?" "What happened?" Fluttershy asked. "Those two rascals stole our apples and our cider!" Applejack answered. "And now I want to tear their tails off and make ties out of them!" "APPLEJACK!" Fluttershy was indignant at her friend's cruelty. "You'd what?! Obliterate them over apples and cider?!" "If you think that for nothing, no." Applejack replied. "I'll tell you the story to warn you about those vermins now. Me and Rainbow come to the barn, where this cat with sprinkled hair is hiding, with a mouse! I ask them whether or not they stole everything from us, and they brazenly lie to me! Then I charged the cat in his insolent face and wanted to lasso him, and he put a bucket on my head also and knocked something on it! My head is fizzling right now!" "And that rascal made me laugh and I crashed into a beam and fell into a barrel, and then he locked me in it and launched me into the barn where Applejack was standing!" Rainbow continued. "Now we're walking around with bumps and bruises!" Tom and Jerry laughed softly at the description of this story. "But how?" Rarity wondered. "Aren't cats and mice less than us? And didn't you start all this?" "Yeah, right!"Applejack replied with a certain irony. "I don't forgive thefts that easily, especially if that cat has no conscience! And he was almost a head taller than me, if only because he walks on two paws, it turns out! The mouse is right, he's smaller, but why the cat is taller than us, that's what I don't understand!" "You can't be cruel to these harmless creatures!" Fluttershy protested again. "Maybe they're afraid of you, so they run away? They're hungry." "Oh really?," Rainbow snarled, ironically. "And we're walking around Ponyville like idiots, with all the gifts from the cat and mouse, like it's our fault! Cool!" Tom and Jerry could barely contain their laughter, but if they laughed now, they would expose themselves, and what are the odds that Fluttershy would protect them? Eventually, they couldn't contain each other, and so a loud laugh erupted from behind the bushes. The ponies reacted quickly, looked into the bushes, and found their enemies. Those stopped laughing as soon as they realized they had been exposed. Rarity and Fluttershy also went over to look at the creatures and were indeed surprised. Rarity winced and was uncomfortable looking at the naked cat with no fur, though, so she averted her eyes. "There you are! Now you're caught..." said Rainbow with a sinister smile. "Any last word before we give you two a big bulking?" Applejack asked, stretching her hooves. Tom and Jerry looked at each other and nodded, and then the Mouse ringed his fingers in the eyes of the mare with the rainbow mane, and Tom pulled the orange pony's hat down over her eyes and unfastened her mane. To do this, he took off the red rubber band, and then tied it around the hat so it couldn't be removed, and then both of them dashed across the street to an unknown destination. "What are you standing around for?!" Rainbow rubbed her eyes. "You see how lousy they are?! Get after them Fluttershy!" Fluttershy was wicked, and so she took off after the cat and mouse. "Yeah, dang nabbit," Applejack tried to untangle herself. "Help me get my hat off!" "Without the magic word?" Rarity asked, who was amused to see Applejack kicking. "Can't you do it without it?" Applejack stood quietly in place to navigate by ear. "No way" Rarity muttered. "Rarity, do not mock already!" Applejack asked. "I'm not very pleasant right now!" "That mouse poked me in the eye..." said Rainbow angrily. "I'll show this flak rat by bucking off his fingers for that!" In the meantime, Tom and Jerry were already lit up in front of a bunch of ponies, and every minute something unbelievable was going on. For example, a gray pegasus with a yellow mane and tail, a couture mark of bubbles, and slanted eyes had the carelessness to crash into Tom, and so that all the mail she was supposed to be carrying crumbled, and Jerry took one of the envelopes to disguise himself. Jerry knew about the saying "curiosity is a big pig," but still he opened the letter and its contents were too personal, and in fact, so personal that the mouse blushed at what he read. Quickly returning the letter back to its place, he threw the envelope and ran on. Tom was amused to see the embarrassed mouse, and he grinned evilly. Fluttershy continued to chase her friends' abusers, and those, seeing her catch up, decided to hide in one of the clothes baskets. The pegasus immediately checked the basket where they had hidden, but they were no longer there; instead, she saw a large hole. Fluttershy was amazed that the cat had dug the hole so easily. However, she wanted to teach the two animals a lesson, and she knew how. In the meantime, Tom had already dug a huge hole, and soon he decided to get out. Jerry was not very comfortable because he was holding on to his tail and had to swallow most of the ground. Finally, climbing out, Tom bumped his head against something hard and wooden. The cat began to wonder how to get out of this trap as suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his tail, and with a strong scream, punched himself through those planks. After landing, Tom grabbed Jerry, as it's not hard to guess that he was the only one who could bite his tail, but he gestured for them to get out. Now they were both in a house that looked more like a candy store, as there were all kinds of cakes, cupcakes, and other sweets on display. Jerry, like a cheeky little mouse, walked over to one of the cakes. He licked his lips, in anticipation of this sweet cake. But before the cake was bitten by the mouse, it was removed from the shameless teeth. Because Tom took it away. The cat himself had just wanted to eat the cake when it was taken away again by the same mouse, and he, resenting his enemy, shoved it in the cat's face. The cat and mouse feud came to mind again, and they didn't even care that they were being chased by three ponies already, so they started the chase in this house/café. Another pogrom began and everything was trashed: furniture, tables, edibles, and everything else. Jerry was in the kitchen and he decided to remember the old pie and something heavy. And that "heavy thing" turned out to be a clock-timer. Jerry put the "stuffing" in the pie and launched it at the damn cat. He was looking for ammunition, so he didn't see the projectile flying at him, and it flew right into his mouth. Tom swallowed the pie along with the clock, and so his stomach began to rattle loudly. Then the cat grabbed a stick, which used to be a table leg, and chased the mouse. Tom tried to hit perfectly accurately, but you have to try to hit, because the target is small. However, Jerry wasn't going to get hurt that easily either, so he grabbed the poker for self-defense. Reflecting the blow with the poker, Tom and Jerry got into a fencing stance, although the mouse was funny to look at the cat, who was now completely hairless. However, the cat kicked the poker out of his paws and now the mouse was unarmed again. Then he ducked into another room and then ran to the second floor. Tom followed the mouse, but there was a barrier in the form of a stretched rope, and Tom flew back like an arrow from a bowstring, piercing the wall with his head. His head was sticking out, and the ponies who saw this shot laughed hard. Tom immediately got out of the trap and immediately continued his pursuit of the cursed mouse. The cat was approaching one of the rooms and he saw Jerry with a feather standing next to a pink pony asleep on the bed, with a mane and tail of dark pink and a couture mark of three balloons. This wasn't the first time Tom had been threatened like this, but even though it wouldn't be like with his mistress, the pelt was still more precious. So he asked with a look not to do it. And Jerry smirked gloatingly in Tom's face. So the lull stood for three seconds when suddenly someone bit Tom's tail again. This time it was a little green crocodile. Tom really didn't want to do it, but he had to... He cried out in pain, and flew out the open window leading to the balcony, leaving the crocodile at home. And the scream woke up the pony herself, who reacted instantly. "Half-Flanks! The meanies are coming! Throw pies and cakes at everyone!" The Pink Pony said. Really, the only "enemy" around her was a little brown mouse. And Jerry was somewhat alarmed, as he didn't really want to wake her up, only to scare Tom, because the mouse likes it when the cat begs for mercy, especially in situations like this. Awkwardly and shyly, and with a smile all over his face, Mousey greeted the mare. Jerry was afraid this pony would nail him, but she looked at her guest cheerfully. "Wow, mice in my house! This is so great! Hi there! I'm Pinkie Pie! I really love new friends and cupcakes! You are so funny! What's your name?" Jerry couldn't answer her without a pen or pencil and paper, however... "Your name is Jerry! Hi, Jerry!" Pinky greeted her. The mouse marveled at how she recognized his name. "My Pinky Sense can easily predict some accidents for me. Are you from another world? How did you get here? Do you remember anything?" Jerry had a hard time listening to this Party Pony, she was too hyperactive. And how can he explain to her if he doesn't speak? "Oh... Looks like you can't talk... But that's okay because I know what you are thinking about..." Pinkie said as she stretched out some letters, driving her hooves in front of the mouse's eyes. Jerry couldn't seem to listen to the filly anymore... But she amused him, and so he tried to put up with her questions. "Are you hungry? Come on, I'll feed you! I have vanilla muffins, with chocolate chips! They're delicious!" Jerry just now remembered that there was a terrible mess in the house, so he stroked the mare's hoof with his paw and looked at her asking: "Please don't!" "What are you so upset about?" Pinky did not understand the mouse's fear. "Don't be afraid! Everything will be fine! I swear, and if I lie, I'll stick a cupcake in my eye!" After these words, Pinky put a hoof in her eye. Jerry, on the other hand, wasn't so sure. And when they came down to the first floor, there was a real mess before the pink pony's eyes. Tables were broken, furniture was torn, kitchen utensils were scattered, and sweets were destroyed. Jerry swallowed, and Pinky's eye twitched. "I think we're going to have to do some work around here, though..." After these words, a shelf of dishes collapsed. Tom was flying like a bird in the sky. The only downside was that Tom was not a bird. So he had to put up with a painful collision with the ground. Tom was flying toward a huge oak tree, which seemed to be home after all, but Fluttershy got in the way, and she was very stern. She wanted to catch the cat, but he grabbed her tail with one paw, and so he flew forward with the pony, while she just flew helplessly through the air. "Let go of me, kitty! Or I am not responsible for the consequences!" The pegasus demanded that he let her go. It obeyed, but Fluttershy lost control from such speed and now flew into a booth with advertising, which depicted a purple unicorn mare with a mane and tail of dark blue and pink and the couture mark of a pink six-pointed star, on a white one and surrounded by five small white stars. The one held a book in her hoof, and beneath it a slogan, "Books are the best tool for learning!" Fluttershy rammed her whole body into the booth, creating a new slogan. "Books are the best way to learn!" And Tom flew through the window of that oak tree. With a painful collision with the window, he flew this way to the stairs, and knocking over every step, came down to the first floor. The cat was lying face down and would not raise his head for anything. Before him, however, stood the mare he had seen on that stand. She was looking at the cat with a troubled face as if she was worried about him. "Sir, are you all right?" the mare asked. Tom couldn't answer, so he just shook his head. He sat down already on his heel to get some sense of what was going on. Tom was in the library, which had a lot of different books, and it surprised the cat. Especially since he didn't mind reading. Then a purple dragon showed up, which was kind of too small. "Wow." The dragon was surprised. "Cats come flying in from the sky!" "Very funny, Spike, but not funny now! We've got to find out what's wrong with him. By the way, mister, my name is Twilight Sparkle. What's yours?" Tom didn't answer again, instead with a gesture of his fingers and facial expressions, he showed that he didn't speak. "Do you speak sign language?" Twilight asked. Tom shook his head, he tried again to show his inability to speak. "Are you mute?" Twilight asked, already tilting her head to the side. The cat slapped himself on the face, and with a sterner face, tried a third time to say the impossibility of speaking. "Don't you understand me?" Twilight didn't understand what this cat was trying to tell her. Tom put his hands on his face. After sitting like that for three seconds, and comparing this mature, and seemingly intelligent, filly to the three little mares, he gestured for a sheet of paper and something to write with. Dragon Spike brought a quill and a piece of parchment. Tom began to write on the paper: "I'm trying to tell you that I can't talk! Because Nature hasn't given me that ability!" "Aha..." It was only now that Twilight realized what the cat meant. "Then please excuse me, and who are you? "My name is Tom." "I see now." The unicorn said. "I'm going to have a look at you now, do you mind? It was as if Tom was at a hospital examination. The pony was examining the patient, taking blood pressure, and pulse, checking muscle function, reaction to light and sound, and the cat clearly did not like this examination. It felt like she was some kind of cat lady who needed to check on how fresh the cat was, for "cat soup." "Mr. Tom! If you want me to help you with your problem, let me examine you normally!" "The problem is that I've fallen under the influence of a certain 'Poison Joke' and I'm looking for a cure for it!" Tom wrote with a nervous coloring. "Is that so? You should have said so right off the bat, Mr. Tom!" Twilight ran off to the bathroom. "I have a cure for such an ailment. You should have known what happened to me and my friends... The horror. Just have to warn you, as far as I know, cats do not like the water, and you will have to bathe in the water!" Tom didn't care as long as he got his gray hair back, or he'd be ashamed to show his face like that. Spike looked at the cat with some chuckles, but Tom paid no attention. After a few minutes, Twilight said it was ready and the cat quickly ran to the bathroom to wash up as well. Twilight was surprised by the cat's eagerness and desire to bathe, and he gestured for her to leave the solitude zone. Tom really wanted to bask in the tub, but suddenly there was a knock on the door and a very aggressive voice. The cat immediately climbed out of the bathroom, and with a pleading gesture asked Twilight and Spike not to give him away. They didn't understand what was going on, and Tom was uncomfortable getting stranger ponies involved. But come on, lying for good was always appreciated by many creatures. Twilight opened the door, and a very angry Fluttershy flew in with a black eye. "Holy Celestia..." Twilight marveled at the gift she'd given the unfortunate modesty. "Fluttershy, what's wrong?" "There's a... Oh-Oh-Oh-Oh-Oh nasty cat..." Fluttershy looked like a bull in a bullfight. "I'll strangle him... I'll ram over with my hooves...!" "Wow," Spike interjected, "you're so mad right now..." Then Fluttershy looked at Spike with a furious face and Spike felt his soul run away in his heels. "Fluttershy, calm down..." Twilight slowly soothed the angry pegasus. "Take a deep breath... and exhale..." "If I don't find him now, it's going to hurt somepony here..." Fluttershy muttered but takes a deep breath. Fluttershy was in a real frenzy; she wasn't going to back down, and now she wandered through Twilight's house to find her future marter. She inspected every shelf, every drawer, corner, and aperture, looked up the second floor, even looked in the refrigerator, and even checked one of the books, which was called: "The Feline Family." Fluttershy roared and tore the book to shreds, accompanied by Twilight's cries and pleas for mercy, but there was no limit to her cruelty as she stomped on the book and chewed on several pages. The flow of anger overwhelmed the pegasus from her brain to the tip of her tail, she really wanted to rip the damn cat's claws off. As she walked into the bathroom, she noticed that it was full. "TWILIGHT! COME HERE!" Fluttershy yelled. "What?" Twilight was already mourning the death of one of the books. "What is that!" Fluttershy asked, pointing to the bathroom. "What do you mean?" Twilight looked at the filled tub. "It's just water. I was going to take a bath." "Friday. In the afternoon. When all the ponies were at work. Are you sure?" Fluttershy asked angrily. "I don't understand why you're so angry?" Twilight asked, to which Fluttershy stood very close and pointed at the black eye. "GUESS WHERE IT CAME FROM!" Fluttershy asked furiously. "Bumped it?" "BANG! ON YOUR STAND! RIGHT ON SCHEDULE, JUST WAITING FOR ME!" "I'm sorry, but what does this have to do with my booth?" Twilight turned to her friend in an official tone. "Hello, we're here! It was your initiative to put it up?! And it was your initiative that I'm going to show off with this black eye! Look how pretty I look with this blue black eye!" Fluttershy sterned, as if she was about to go for another breakdown. The water was already down from the bathroom and the cat was no longer there. "Tell me honestly, was he here?" Fluttershy asked. "No?" replied Twilight. "Do you Pinkie Swear?" "I swear, and if I lie, I'll stick a cupcake in my eye!" "I'll shove a cupcake in your eye if you lie! If you see it, let me know!" Fluttershy stormed out of the house. Twilight was shocked... her friend was a beast in every way. Now she would never piss her off again. She wondered, though, where Tom had gone. And he had somehow cleverly hidden behind the door. Tom exhaled and noticed that he was now a normal cat, with gray hair, white paws, and a tail. He was about to get excited, but Twilight hoofed the cat against the wall. "WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?!" Twlight angrily looked at Tom, "DID YOU AND FLUTTERSHY HAD A FIGHT?!"