For the longest time, Featherweight looked at the pictures before him. Just a few minutes ago, he was ready to dash out of my lab with them to be used as evidence that I was up to no good. He was more than willing to drag my name through the mud, just because he was scared of me, and my secrets. But when I look into his eyes, I see the uncertainty of his situation. The choice he makes now will not only affect me, but all of Ponyville, possibly, all of Equestria. I wonder if he understands the burden of the decision he has on his shoulde-
“What did you do to Ms. Pie?” He questioned.
I shook my head. “Say again?”
“Pinkie. I saw you carry her in, and set her on your bed. What did you do to her?” He was getting his accusing glare settled on me again.
“What did I do to her, you ask?” I smiled. “Well, if you must know…” I paused for dramatic effect, watching Featherweight get ready to pounce at me. “…I fell in love with her.”
Featherweight blinked. Was such a thing beyond his comprehension, I wondered? He was young, but he seemed old enough, or at least, mature enough, to understand the concepts of his elders. He looked at me, and asked, “Does she…love you?”
“Well, yes.” I replied. “If the dozens of kisses she gave me earlier are any indication.”
He suddenly had a look of disgust on his face. “Blech. You didn’t get cooties, did you?”
It was all I could do to keep myself from laughing. I guess he wasn’t quite as mature as I thought. In response, I merely shook my head.
“Well, if somepony loves you, that must mean they trust you.” Featherweight reasoned. “And if Ms. Pinkie Pie trusts you, then so do I.” I watched him take the photos, and tear them to shreds in his teeth. I exhaled, relieved that I can continue my work once again. This time, though, I doubt Featherweight would be bothering me. When he was done, he spat out a piece of his photo, and said, “Just promise me one thing. If Ponyville does get attacked, promise me that you’ll do everything you can to defend everypony in Ponyville.”
I nodded, and pointed a finger. “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” All the proper motions made, I smiled. He, in turn, seemed satisfied. “Now run on home, Featherweight.” I said. “Your mother must be worried sick. If she wants to ground you, tell her to speak to me, first. You’ll not regret it.”
Featherweight smiled, and waved goodbye, before exiting my lab. I went back to work, muttering various numbers and equations to myself.
*******
It had been months since Featherweight’s visit. Months of me building up my force of Mine-bots. I’m glad I wasn’t run out of town. I got to enjoy my time with friends, especially Pinkie. Those months seemed to go by fast, and now, it’s close to Nightmare Night. I had something special planned for it. It was a secret, and a very fun one, at that. Rarity was now dropping off the last piece of the surprise.
“Oh, Doctor~!” The sing-songy voice of Rarity called down. “I have your special order for you~!”
“Come on down, Rarity!” I shouted up at her. “I’m kinda working right now, and I can’t drop anything.” I heard her trotting down the stairs, my parcel sticking out of her saddlebag. She took it, and set it on a chair near the doorway. My hands were in the ‘guts’ of my newest creation, which happened to be the Nightmare Night surprise. She looked over to what I was doing, looking disgusted by my efforts.
“Eww!” She said, seeing the grease and oil covering my hands. “Doctor, how can you stand to have such filth on your hands? Even Applejack would be disgusted by that black gunk! It smells positively foul!”
“That is the smell of progress, dear Rarity!” I exclaimed happily, as I continued to adjust fittings. “Once I finish working on the innards of my new friend here, this coming Nightmare Night will be one to remember!”
Rarity looked at the machine. It was a tall, humanoid shape, easily beating my height by about three feet. It had long, lanky limbs, and was thinner than a human. “That…thing, is your surprise for Nightmare Night?” She asked.
“You haven’t told anyone that I had a surprise for Nightmare Night, have you?”
Rarity shook her head. “No, I’ve kept mum, as you requested. A lady must keep her word after all.” She looked at the parcel, then back at my work. “Is that…machine, going to wear the wonderful suit I’ve created? The measurements you gave me weren’t exactly your size.”
“Very good deductive reasoning, Rarity.” I replied. “I’m modeling this bot after an urban myth from my world. Don’t worry, this’ll be a lot of fun.”
Rarity looked at my bot, uncertainty in her eyes. “If…you say so.” She said. “In any case, I need to head back to my boutique. Sweetie and her friends are coming soon, and you know what a Nightmare Night they cause whenever they stay over.”
I rolled my eyes. I had to babysit them once or twice, and I had to build two bots specifically designed for helping me with children after that. “Tell me about it. Good luck, Rarity!” I just finished what I was doing, and turned to her, remembering something. “Oh, and, don’t tell anyone about my new bot here. I’m going to be revealing him later today.”
“Alright.” She smiled. “Good day, doctor.” I watched her leave, and then wiped my hands on a rag on the table. My bot was ready.
“Alright, buddy.” I said, closing the panel I was working on. “Let’s get you suited up.”
*******
I had my nose in a ‘myths and legends’ book, and was walking around Ponyville later that day. I was looking for Geo, and I found him sitting at a bench with Twilight, happily enjoying a sunny day in town square. I smiled, raising my PDA. “Alright, buddy. Appear in position one when I say the word ‘tragedy.’ Then disappear when I say the word ‘symptoms.’” I couldn’t help but grin, hiding it behind the book I was reading. “This is gonna be great.” I strolled by Geo, and he took notice of me.
“Doctor.” He nodded with a smile.
I looked up from my book. “Oh hey, Geo!” I replied, stopping. “I heard about what happened. You alright?”
Geo nodded. “I’m fine. If John wasn’t there, though, things could’ve got real bad.” He sighed. “I’m just glad I’m still around.”
“I think we all are.” I replied. “Right, Twi?”
Twilight nodded, rubbing her head along his arm. “I know I am.” She took notice of my book. “What are you reading?” She asked.
‘Perfect.’ I thought, causing my smile to become only slightly mischievous. “Oh, this is a book on legends and myths from our world.” I said. “I got it a long while back, but I’ve never actually read it, until now.” I suddenly looked inquisitive. “Hey Geo, have you ever heard of Slenderman?”
He shook his head. “No, I haven’t.”
‘Hook, line, and sinker.’ I thought. “He’s an urban legend where we come from, though I think I have some evidence that he actually exists.” I told him. “In fact, I have my suspicions that he’s found my portal, and entered this world.”
He blinked. “Should we be worried?” He asked.
“I don’t know. Here, let me read you a passage from the book, and see if you think so.” I raised my book up to my face, and began reading out loud. “Slenderman generally appears as a tall man in a black suit, with a black tie, and white shirt.” I read a bit louder than necessary. “He has no eyes, mouth, or clearly defined facial features. He has no hair, and generally has normal-looking bare hands. Slenderman typically is depicted in imagery and literature as between six and fifteen feet tall, depending on the situation, and in video as around six to seven feet tall.” A small crowd began to form.
“He is shown to behave in a very passive aggressive manner, stalking targets for years at a time, torturing his target mentally for various unknown reasons. He is rarely ever shown in a benevolent light and is typically shown as a malevolent force. While a description in words can be given, human language lacks the ability to truly define the entity until such a time as when humans can interact with him.” I had him. They were all listening in on my reading, and Geo was paying special attention.
“What’s most disturbing about him is his Modus Operandi. Slenderman will find interest in a victim for reasons unknown. He would then contact the victim, if it is a child, presenting himself as friendly. The adults he stalks have a common trait: they have all been through a terrible tragedy in their life…” I saw him jump in shock, paying attention to something behind me. “…even if the tragedy was made by Slenderman directly.” Geo was paying attention to me, now, a look of concern on his face. “If an adult, he would stalk the victim for long amounts of time causing what is known as ‘Slender sickness’ causing massive paranoia, nose bleeds, nightmares, hallucinations appearing to only the sick person, and many other dangerous symptoms.” He looked back at whatever was behind me, and gasped. “Eventually, he would abduct the victim into nearby forests, where they would be killed. In 'messy' cases, he may remove evidence of his existence by causing fire of their home, place of work, or school.” I looked down at him. “So, Geo. I don’t know if he actually exists, but to answer your question, it would be bad if he were here.”
“Did you see that?” He asked me, his face twisted in disbelief.
I shook my head. “Sorry, I was reading.” I told him, keeping a straight face. “Is something wrong?”
He stood up, and walked in the direction he saw something in. “I swear, I saw something peeking behind the corner.” He pointed. “Over there, then it just disappeared.”
I looked over, and shook my head. “Well, it’s not there now. It was probably a pony or something.”
Geo shook his head vigorously. “No, no, it looked more like that thing you were describing. Slenderman? It looked like him.”
I shrugged. “I didn’t see anything.” I said.
“But I’m telling you, he was there!” Geo insisted.
“Geo, are you alright?” I asked. “You’re not getting ‘Slender Sickness,’ are you?” I stifled a quiet snicker.
“I’m not sick, I’m…” He looked up, then turned to me. “Wait…” I snickered, and then burst out into laughter. Geo was astonished, to say the least. “You cheeky bastard!” He shouted, as I continued to laugh. “Who did you get to help you?! John?!”
I shook my head, caught my breath, and looked over near the corner. “You can come out now, Slendy!” I called. Just then, an eight foot tall Slenderman look-alike appeared out of nowhere, giving everyone a start. I strolled over. “Everyone, this is Slender-bot!” I announced with a smile. “I created him specifically for Nightmare Night! He has many of the same traits and abilities as the real Slenderman, but he will not harm you. He’s only there to make the coming Nightmare Night a little more fun! So when you see him, Nopony panic! He’s alright!” I looked over to Geo, and started laughing again. “Oh, you should’ve seen the look on your face.” I told him.
Geo shook his head in disdain, but I knew he was teasing. “You’re gonna get yours one day, you know that?” He told me, pointing a finger.
I chuckled. “I’ll be waiting. Oh, by the way, if you REALLY want revenge, stop by the lab this weekend. I got a surprise for you, and you'll not regret it.” I stayed with Slender-bot a while, and answered the various questions that got brought up about him. After which, I dismissed Slendy, and went to Sugarcube corner to tell Pinkie about the awesome prank I just pulled. She’d love to hear about it.