//------------------------------// // 7. Bridlewood, Where Sadness Rules // Story: Sonic The Hedgehog x My Little Pony: A New Generation // by BronySonicFan //------------------------------// As the sun rose above the horizon, its rays of light shone brightly on the sleeping ponies and startled Sunny awake. She confusedly surveyed her surroundings before remembering why she was there in the first place. She quickly began waking up the others, but with non-morning ponies like Pipp and Hitch, it took a few tries before they got up. Sunny was about to wake Sonic up, but she noticed the hedgehog wasn't where he was last night. "Ah, great, here we go again..." Zipp groaned. "Where could he go? He doesn't know Equestria, so there's no way he could leave just like that," Pipp said. "I mean, he was trying to find a way to go home, so maybe he already did?" Hitch suggested, only to receive glares from the mares. "But he wouldn't leave without saying goodbye... right?" Izzy asked, worried about the possibility that he may have left. "I... I don't know," Sunny simply replied. "You know, maybe you should ask him instead of jumping straight to conclusions." The group whipped around to find Sonic with his arms crossed and his foot tapping, with the same smile they’d come to recognize. "Sonic!" The mares joyfully exclaim, but Pipp says his name with a little more enthusiasm than the others. "Sup, party ponies. What did I miss?" "Oh, not much, just wondering where you went," Hitch replied. "Well, you weren't far from the truth, Sheriff," Sonic revealed, and the gasps from the rest, minus Hitch, made him continue. "I'm not planning on leaving without saying goodbye if that's what you think." The mares sighed in relief, but Hitch needed clarification. "But you did find a way to go home?" He asked. "Yes... and no. Remember the Emeralds I talked about last night? The ones that also came across the portal that brought me here?" He asked, and the group nodded. "Well, I didn't find them, so I guess they aren't here, or they are, but I don't know where exactly. It's a lost cause, so I'll stop looking for the moment." "What?!" Sunny yelped. "What do you mean 'it's a lost cause'?!” "Well, they're either in Equestria or they aren't. Plus, even if I find the Emeralds, I'm still stuck here because Eggman's machine drained all of their power, so they're nothing more than fancy paperweights. In other words, I'm still far from finding a way back home," He explained, calm as usual. "But that's not the actual reason I left. As I said before, I'm not the kind of guy who likes to stay in the same place for too long, so I went to stretch my legs and run at hypersonic speeds. I just passed by the tree and decided to investigate, that's all." "So, you're not leaving yet?" Izzy asked with a smile. "Are you kidding? I'm not leaving this place anytime soon, at least not until we restore magic to everypony!" He assured with a smile. "Anyways, with that cleared up, I think we have a Unicorn Crystal to find." The rest of the group cheered in agreement, and a few minutes later, they headed off to finish the last leg of the trip to Bridlewood. Sunny, however, decided to stay close to Sonic as they walked. "Hey, I know you're worried about your friends, Sonic. And I promise that, once we have restored magic, we'll find a way to get you home," She assured with a smile. It caught Sonic off guard, but he slowly smiled back and looked at Sunny. "Thank you, Sunny. Thank you so much." Hours later, the six friends find themselves at the edge of Bridlewood, where several signs of danger are posted on the trees, telling potential visitors to turn around. "Remember when I said a unicorn forest sounded magical?" Hitch asked. "I take it back." Most of the group had neutral expressions about how dark and scary the woods looked, while Sonic and Izzy smiled. "Come on! My place isn't far from here." Izzy exclaimed excitedly. Sonic followed the mare without hesitation, while the others held back briefly before catching up with the two. Izzy was farther ahead, jumping happily while the others followed closely behind Sonic. He whistled, looking around. "Now, THIS is what I call my kind of place," He said with a smile, making the ponies, minus Izzy, give him questionable looks. Soon after, they arrive at a house built into a colorful tree, the wood and leaves popping brightly in the morning sun. "Welp, here we are, guys!" Izzy announced before opening the door. "La Vila, Izzy!" As they walked in, the group looked around the home in amazement. Hitch spotted a portrait of colorful macaroni and was startled when the eyes turned to look at him. Sunny cranked the lever of an instrumental object with colorful glass bottles hanging by strings, and it played a familiar tune courtesy of spatulas and spoons attached to the roller. "Subarashī!" Sonic exclaimed. "You speak Japanese?" Pipp asked with a bit of blush, which her sister noticed and frowned a little. "It's my native language. I learned English eventually," He replied, then looked at Izzy. "Did you make all of this?" "Yup!" Izzy nodded. "Unicycling. Isn't it funky?" "Unicycling, huh?" Zipp asked with a raised eyebrow. "It is gorgeous~" Pipp sang, flapping her wings. "I also made friendship bracelets!” Izzy said, pulling out a bowl with various bracelets. At the mention of bracelets, Sonic remembered he still had Chip's, a little gift he gave the hedgehog after sacrificing himself to save the world from Dark Gaia. Sonic was about to pull it out when Izzy spoke again. "Oh wait, wait, watch this, hold everything!" She yelled, then grabbed some gimmick. "I never got to use this with actual friends!" Izzy set down a flower gadget on the table, and it opened to reveal six teacups; everyone except Sunny was impressed. "Izzy, you're officially smarter than half of the human population I know," Sonic smirked. "I so wished I had live-streamed that!" Pipp said with a smile. "We don't have time for that right now," Sunny said, disappointing Izzy. Sonic noticed this, wrapped his arm around her neck, and winked, making the unicorn feel a little better. "If we're going to get the information we need on the Unicorn Crystal, we can't stick out like sore hooves. We need to look like unicorns," Sunny explained, causing Pipp to get excited. "Yay! Makeovers! I love makeovers!" She exclaimed with joy. Her sister, however, laughed nervously. "No, no... This is not what I signed up for..." "I mean, you're still a pony," Sonic says. "Just cover your wings, put on a horn, and that's it; you're a unicorn. The actual problem here is getting a big blue hedgehog with no hooves to pass unnoticed around the crowd. In other words, there's no way I'm getting out of here without being noticed." "Nah, I wouldn't worry too much," Izzy said, confusing the others but piquing Sonic's curiosity. "The other unicorns won't notice you too much since they're always sad. I'll just put a horn on you, and we're ready to go!" "That... is the dumbest thing I have ever heard since I came here... and I LOVE IT because of that!" Sonic excitedly replied. "Okay..." Sunny said, confused but keeping a smile. "So, Izzy, can you do it?" "A glow-up?" Izzy asked, drinking some tea and putting her cup down. "Honey, you came to the right cottage.” Izzy: I thought Earth ponies were the pony ladder's bottom rung I heard that pegasi were brutes you'd hate to be among You smell like fishes (you're vicious) I bet you eat your young Meet any one of you, the thing to do is run away But although I know we're all a bunch of different breeds Take away our wings and horns, and we're just frightened steeds So, let's put aside our differences, ‘cause what we need's a win Oh! Come on, rip out all the pages of your history books Just because we're undercover doesn't mean we're crooks When we walk, you through the crowd and give your brand-new looks a spin You're gonna fit right in Hitch: This is a new low Izzy: You're gonna fit right in Hitch: It's never gonna work! They taught us unicorns were super scary maniacs With horns like razors and tongues like tasers and teeth like tacks They take your hooves and then they grind them into midnight snacks The basic gist of it is unicorns are not okay Sunny: Look, I know we're risking everything for this endeavor But look at us, we're brave and strong and weird and clever We're running out of options and we're desperate to begin Izzy: You're gonna fit right in Hitch: Ha-ha, if you say so! Sunny and Izzy: You're gonna fit right in Izzy: I know you will, now watch and learn This is how a unicorn walks (Walks) And this is how a unicorn talks (Talks) This is how a unicorn hoops (Hoops) This is how a unicorn–– Hitch: Oops! Sunny Oh! Zipp: Geez! Izzy: Stop! This is how a unicorn struts Oh, watch us shake our unicorn butts Now you're in the unicorn know Sunny Whoa! Izzy: Soon, you'll be a unicorn pro! Oh, a unicorn horn makes a unicorn stride It's the more-head on your forehead, it's the source of your pride Every unicorn who's born has worn a horn that's unique So we'll whip them up as we speak You be lookin' très magnifique Sonic: We'll fake a phony protrusion To make a bony illusion (It's not the perfect solution, but the world's not big on inclusion) Izzy and Sonic: And with those rocks in our pocket, we'll reap the reward And folks'll be floored, we'll strike a new chord, our magic restored Sunny and Izzy: Lately, all of Equestria has lost its heart But if we can help to find it, we should play our part Hitch: If we fail, we'll go to prison Sonic: But if not, we'll start to grin Izzy: So, let's begin! Sunny and Izzy: We're gonna fit right in! Izzy: This is how a unicorn walks This is how a unicorn talks Now you're looking unicorn strong This is how a unicorn... Sunny and Izzy: Ends this song! After their little makeover session, the group walked towards the village, enjoying the change of scenery from the misleading entrance earlier. The ponies giggled at how funny Sonic looked with a fake unicorn horn on his head. "This isn't the weirdest thing I've done, yet I feel really uncomfortable. Anyway..." He said with a neutral expression. While they walked, Hitch approached Sonic to talk with him. "Hey, uh, partner," Hitch said hesitantly. "Can I talk with you? From one stallion to another." "Sure. Let it out, Donut Lord," Sonic replied jokingly. "I heard you talking with Pipp last night, and... I want to apologize for the way I've been treating you. You came to Maretime Bay for help, and... well, we could have taken it more nicely than we did. I'm sorry for how I acted," The Sheriff apologized. Sonic was surprised by the sudden apology, but he smirked and spoke. "Hey, no hard feelings, Sheriff. You were doing what you thought was right to keep everyone in town safe. Trust me, I know that feeling as well. But don't you worry, like I said, there's no hard feelings," Sonic smiled. "You're too trusting, aren't you?" Hitch smirked. "You forgave Pipp last night, and now you're forgiving me. You know it's bad to immediately trust somepony you know nothing about, right?" "It's not that I'm too trusting. Let's say that I can tell when someone has bad intentions, and both you and the princess right there are anything but bad ponies," Sonic explained, surprising Hitch. "You were taught the other pony races were bad, but that's not your fault. Just because you had the wrong perception of others doesn't mean you're bad people, or ponies in this case. So cheer up, Hitch. What do you say if we just put the past in the past and restore the magic?" "Deal!" Hitch exclaimed, smiling at the hedgehog. Soon, they finally arrived at the village and came across large, glossy crystals. They dot the area in small clusters, "Ta-da! Crystals! Crystals! Crystals! Cryyystals!" Izzy exclaimed as she hopped around the nearby clusters, enthusiastically showcasing each one. "She does know we’re looking for just the one, right?" Zipp joked, making Sonic chuckle. Walking deeper into the village, they noticed that Izzy wasn't kidding when she said the other unicorns were depressed. "Ow. Ow," An old mare said, getting hit in the head by apples repeatedly. A few foals 'played' with horseshoes while two other unicorns spoke emotionlessly. "Hey," Said one. "Hey," Replied the other. There were also three foals on a slide, a swing, and a sandbox, but they just sat still, bored out of their minds. "Well, this is cheerful..." Hitch said sarcastically. "These other unicorns seem so different than you," Sunny pointed out. "Yeah, I get that a lot. My sparkle is a little too sparkly for Bridlewood," Izzy responded. "Heck, if Shadow were here, he would stay and call this place his dream paradise," Sonic said to no one, but he did get a giggle from Pipp. "How can you tell which ones are magic?" Hitch asked, gesturing to a small cluster of crystals near the playground. Suddenly, the foal on the swing gasped and pointed at Hitch. "Oooh, you said a bad word!" He said dramatically. "Hurry! Before we get jinxed!" The other two foals stood up, joining the first one in... the strangest dance they'd ever seen. They lay flat on the ground before pulling their backs up, blowing raspberries, and hopping from their left and right hooves while chanting. "Bing Bong, Bing Bong, Bing Bong, Bing Bong." The ponies, sans Izzy, watched the strange... dance in confusion, but Sonic was mentally telling himself not to burst out laughing, holding a fist to his mouth in a desperate attempt to keep it together. "Okay... I'm gonna need some context," Zipp requested. "Unicorns are very superstitious," Izzy whispered. "If a pony ever says a forbidden word, we have to do a ritual to ward off the jinxes." "Jinxies?" Pipp questioned. "Bad luck." "Forbidden words?" Sonic asked, barely holding a chuckle back. "Magic, wing, feather… oh, and mayonnaise," Izzy listed, leaving the rest confused. "What's wrong with mayonai––?" Hitch tried to ask but couldn't finish as Izzy shoved her hoof in his mouth. The other unicorns perked up, but after a few seconds, they returned to normal while Izzy let go of Hitch's mouth. "About what I said earlier of Shadow loving this place if he was here... I take it back after whatever that was," Sonic said. "Come on, there's something I wanna show you!" Izzy told them, trotting down the path. The others followed and saw a building ahead with a teapot-shaped sign with steam rising out of the 'neck'. "'The Crystal Tearoom?'" Sunny asked no one in particular. "There's a pony inside who collects crystals. Maybe he can help us!" Izzy explained. "That's great, Izzy! Oh, and guys," Sunny leaned towards Hitch and Sonic. "I know, I know. No forbidden words," Hitch groaned. "Why are you looking at me as well?" Sonic asked with confusion. Sunny frowned, giving the hedgehog a bored look that screamed, 'Really?' "Okay, fine! I'll keep my mouth shut," Sonic huffed, crossing his arms. "Killjoy," He muttered. "I heard that!" "I don't care!" Entering the tea room, they spot depressed unicorns sitting around the establishment, one of them 'singing' on a stage. Earth pony jinx, something stinks, Pegasus neighs… They then found a particular unicorn at a table, all by himself. "That's the pony I was talking about," Izzy whispered. Sunny nodded and walked up to the unicorn. "So, word in the forest is you collect crystals..." Sunny spoke with a confident voice, and the unicorn perked up. "Yes! I do... Well, I mean, I did. I lost them all in a limbo contest with… Alphabittle!" The unicorn explained, sadness and fear evident in his voice. "Oh no..." Izzy groaned. "Yeah... No, sorry, I'm a little lost here. who's Alphabittle?" Sonic asked. Before Izzy could respond, a ring of a bell caught the group's attention, and they looked at the bar counter. "Time's up! Pass it over, Jasper!" Said a gray unicorn with a beard. In front of him was a unicorn trying to complete a 2x2 Rubik's cube, but seeing as he ran out of time, he gave up. He gave the cube to the bigger unicorn, who quickly completed it before plopping it back onto the counter. "Guess that makes me the winner again! Pay up," Alphabittle demanded. The group watched the scene, feeling bad for the unicorn, who had to give Alphabittle a glass jar with a miniature Christmas Tree inside. 'Now I get why my friends get annoyed when I start to get cocky...' Sonic thought. With his prize lost, the defeated unicorn took his leave. "You could always try winning it back!" Alphabittle called out as armadillos rolled up to him but got no response. "All right, suit yourself." As Alphabittle put the jar on the shelf behind him, the group spotted the Unicorn Crystal on the top shelf. "There it is!" Sunny exclaimed, and she turned to her friends. "I've got an idea: Maybe I can beat Alphabittle at his own game." "Wait," Izzy stopped Sunny to advise. "Alphabittle can smell fear." "Got it," Sunny replied, walking over to the counter while Izzy looked scared. While Sunny talked with Alphabittle, Sonic couldn't help but feel there was something... off. "I don't buy it," Sonic said quietly, loud enough so the group could hear him, but nopony else. "There has to be a trick here. Solving a Rubik's cube is too easy compared to anything else. This guy has some trick up his non-existent sleeve; I can feel it..." "That'll be pretty much something Alphabittle would totally do," Izzy said. "It's strange, but I gotta agree with Sonic on this one," Hitch confessed, looking over to the pair at the counter. "If we're not careful, he might pull some sorta..." He stops mid-sentence as Sunny puts the Pegasus Crystal on the counter as an offering in exchange for the Unicorn Crystal. "... trap," Hitch finished with disbelief. They pulled Sunny aside to have a little talk with her. "What are you doing?!" Zipp hissed. "Don't worry," Sunny shrugged. "I could solve that cube puzzle in my sleep." "But if he wins, we lose both crystals!" Pipp pointed out. "And I feel he has some sort of trap, ready to pull it out and catch you with your guard down..." Sonic tried to persuade her. "He won't. Trust me," Sunny reassured. "Izzy," Alphabittle called. "If your friend is finished stalling, do we have a deal?" Sunny started walking back to Alphabittle, but Sonic spoke up. "Fine," Sonic grunts. "But don't look at me if he pulls a trick out from under his hoof." Sunny considered for a moment if there was a chance to find another way... but she spoke before she could think of anything else. "Deal," Sunny stated, putting her hoof on the table. "Now give me that cube!" One of the critters was about to give Sunny the cube, only for Alphabittle to quickly snatch it away. "No, no, no, no, no," He shook his head. "A special prize calls for a special competition," Turning to the side, a spotlight shone on him as he declared, "Bring forth the ultimate challenge!" "The ultimate what now?" Sunny asked. The spotlight that turned clanked on answered her question, illuminating two platforms with nine horseshoes on the ground in front of two speakers underneath a scoreboard. Sonic facepalmed and growled. "I knew this was going to happen..." "A dancing game?" Sunny frowned. "Seriously?" "Did I tell you, or did I tell you?!" Sonic exclaimed. A unicorn took to the stage and announced the match. "Both ponies agree. Best out of three." Alphabittle and Sunny took their place on the machine before Alphabittle spoke. "Let's make this more interesting. You only need to win one out of three." Getting their game faces on, Sunny and Alphabittle began the game as the machine displayed a set of colorful horseshoes for Sunny and Alphabittle to dance on as music started playing. Sunny was off to a bad start, as Alphabittle was already ahead of the game, wracking up a huge score and moving the arrow on his score meter higher than Sunny's. Before long, a bell rang, declaring Alphabittle the winner of the first round. "Yeah!" Alphabittle hollered. "That's how you do it!" "Yay," The unicorns cheered dejectedly. "Great," Sonic said with a bored expression. "Can we give up now?" "Are you okay?" Hitch asked, worried because Sonic was acting more or less like him. "I'm good. Just a little pessimistic because your girlfriend didn't listen to me when I said there was a catch. I feel great…" Sonic said sarcastically. "S-Sunny's not my...!" Hitch tried to correct, his face red as a tomato. "I know, Hitch. I'm just messing with you," Sonic said with a smirk. "I-It's okay!" Izzy reassured to Sunny. "You're just warming up!" "What can you do?" The announcer asked as the second round was about to start. "Round two." With that, Sunny and Alphabittle went again. But like the previous round, Sunny could barely keep up with the senior unicorn's moves and fumbled behind until, once again, Alphabittle was declared the winner. "Yeah!" Alphabittle cheered. "Critters, get my crystal polish ready, would ya?" "Round three. Who will it be?" The announcer asked. "Ohhh. Here goes nothing..." Sunny moaned. Sonic closed his eyes and started to think of a solution. Eventually, something in his mind 'clicked', and he smiled, knowing what to do. However, it wouldn't be him to put the plan into action. "Hey, Pipp," He called to the pegasus, who looked at him curiously. "I think our friend needs advice from the best dancer we have here," He said, winking at her. Pipp immediately got the idea and nodded. "Hey!" Pipp called to Sunny. "You hear that, Sunny?" She gestured to the music playing in the background. "Feel the rhythm take you over. You feelin' it?" Sunny smiled, moving her body to the song's rhythm and improving her moves. "Oh, I'm feelin' it. I'm feelin' it!" "Yeah, you are, Sunny!" Pipp sang. "Yeah, you do this, Sunny! Whoo!" As Sunny felt the beat, she made an impressive comeback, matching and surpassing Alphabittle's movements, moving the arrow on her meter higher than his. "Yes! There you go, Sunny!" Sonic cheered. "Yes! She's doing it!" Hitch smiled. "She's doing it!" Pressured to win the crystal, Alphabittle struggled to dance as fast as he could, but the turned had tables on the senior unicorn as Sunny's renewed confidence and spirit put her well in the lead. Everypony watched in anticipation until the machine's bell finally rang, and Sunny was declared the winner. "We won," Sunny panted heavily while Alphabittle and the unicorns could hardly believe their eyes. "WE WON! WE ACTUALLY WON!" "YEAH!!!" Sunny and her friends cheered as they gathered together. "Yeah! That's how you do it!" Sonic hollered, and then he turned to Alphabittle. "Alright, ponyfied Gandalf, pay up!" "Oh, darn!" Groaned the unicorn stallion, walking over Unicorn Crystal to pay up. All was going well for the heroes as Sunny celebrated with her friends, but Sunny accidentally pushed Sonic, and both her and his horn fell off. "Uh oh..." Izzy moaned. All the unicorns in the room, except for Izzy, were shocked at the revelation. Sonic and Sunny froze as they looked at the unicorns, and the hedgehog tried to rack his brain for anything to get out of this situation. "Uh... meow?" He said, slowly shrugging and hoping they would think he was just a giant blue cat. He groans and facepalms. "I can't believe that's the first thing that came out of my mouth…"