Cold was the air as it billowed through the dark, damp cave system deep underground. The only sounds were the occasional dripping of water from the stalagmites hung around the cave. Suddenly, the wind picked up as a portal from Equestria opened. Stepping through the portal and into the cave were the Dark Order. led by the Dark One and the Mysterious Benefactor, the group consisted of the Legion of Doom, the Dazzlings, King Sombra, Darth Andromedis, and Demittria. The evil syndicate stepped into the dark cave passages as the Equestrian portal closed behind them. Looking about through the caves, a majority of the Order merely grimaced over their new surroundings.
“Isn’t this just grand?” Chrysalis voiced disgust. “We go from a cave to a village, then a castle, and now… back in a cave.”
“You’re a Changeling!” Cozy Glow pointed out. “You literally spent your entire life in a huge beehive and you’re complaining about caves?”
“Watch yourself you little cretin!” Chrysalis hissed back. “At least my hive provided comfort for myself and my changelings. What’s your excuse?!”
“For the love of me, will you two shut up?!” Tirek said agitated. “Hearing you screech is worse than listening to those ponies!”
“I agree with the centaur,” Sombra spoke up. “If I knew I must listen to you talk, I’d rather be stuck in my corporeal state where it’s quiet.”
“Stick it up your chitin, lobster boy!” Adagio snipped at Sombra. “Consider yourself lucky you’re even here in the first place. After all the trouble to get you a body, you basically disappeared on all of us. I forgot you were even part of this whole thing.”
“How dare you speak to me that way you tone deaf fish?!” Sombra growled. “I’ve been scouring Equestria for magical artifacts the Dark One personally requested. It’s obvious I’m a more valuable asset than you are.”
“More like making excuses for no one including you in anything!” Aria retorted.
“You’ve been around longer than I have, and they had me doing far more than you’ve ever done in a thousand years!” Zoe chuckled.
“Why you insolent little—”
CLANG!!!
The sudden banging from something loud and metallic against the hard stone floor ceased the inevitable scuffle between the Dazzlings and Sombra. They turned collectively toward the Dark One, who slammed the bottom of the Staff of Hermes upon the cavern ground. The staff itself glowed with the mystical golden light of ‘Those Who Came Before’ and the entire Order felt its power resonating from the mysterious device. They found themselves wondering just how the Dark One managed to get their hands on such a powerful artifact… a story for another time.
But for now, the Dark Oen merely stood with their usual frozen demeanor behind that dark mask while the Benefactor stepped forth to serve as their mouthpiece.
“ENOUGH!” The Benefactor yelled loudly. “Your petty squabbling is going nowhere. If we are to stand with even a slim chance at achieving our end goal, this disdain for one another must cease. Once we’ve achieved what is needed, we could care less if you killed one another. For now, never forget that the Dark One and I keep you alive when ‘we’ decide.”
The Benefactor slowly turned their heard toward Sombra.
“Were you able to secure what we sent you to find?” They asked.
To which Sombra merely waved his giant claw and a small ball of red light appeared, which floated toward the Benefactor. When the ball dissipated, the only thing remained in mid-air was… a small black book?
“This wasn’t easy to procure,” Sombra informed them. “Celestia and Luna kept this hidden under lock and key buried within the vaults below Equestria, under constant supervision by a garrison of guards. Destroying them was easy; getting into the vault required time.”
The Benefactor grasped the book with their magic. Seeing this within their hold formed a wicked smile upon their face, showcasing fangs.
“Excellent,” They spoke venomously.
“Hold up!” Cozy Glow piped in. “You’re saying Sombra’s spent months breaking into some secret vault and that’s all there is to show for it? A stupid book?”
Rather than taking offense over the filly’s choice of words, the Benefactor merely turned to her with that same wicked grin.
“Trust me child, this is no ordinary book,” The Benefactor replied. “It’s a weapon. Powerful enough to resurrect the most powerful dark wizard this world has ever known. When he rises again, so too will our days of glorious victory.”
“One book can do all of that?” Adagio asked skeptically.
“Not just the book.”
The Benefactor turned heel as they, along with the Dark One, strolled through the caves with the remainder of the Order following behind. After a period of walking, they stumbled upon the most peculiar sight: A large circular iron vault door adorned with snakes.
Everyone gazed upon the giant door with fascination, especially the Benefactor. It had been a thousand years since anyone laid eyes upon this ancient place, and what lies within. The Dark One took a few steps forward, standing right in front of the door before bringing a gloved hand up to touch the cold iron. The figure began to whisper a strange language of sort.
“Hesssssh ha sssssssaaaah”
All of a sudden, another iron snake slithered out of nowhere and circled the door. In doing so, all the other snakes receded into the door as the iron vault unlocked. Stepping back in front of the group, the Dark One watched as the giant door slowly swung open. Once fully opened, all eyes looked inside, and they noticed a giant long chamber with large stone snakeheads lining the sides. At the end was a giant stone statue of the head of Salazar Slytherin.
The Dark One stared through the eyes of their mask at the sight of the chamber within. A sickening smirk spread from their face beneath the mask.
“Soon… you will be unleashed.”
<>
A beautiful orange red glow blanketed the suburban domain of Surry, England as the sun began to set over the horizon. A sudden gentle wind picked up in the front yard of Number 4 Privet Drive as the portal from Equestria opened up, allowing the Mane and Student Six, including the CMC and Sunset Shimmer, to step through. As the portal sealed behind them, the group’s eyes explored the very familiar row house most of them had been to on their last journey. Quite frankly, they weren’t happy to see this part of the world… again.
“I can’t stand this place,” Rainbow Dash sneered. “Don’t get me wrong, I love Harry, but his relatives are stuck-up jerks.”
“No need to tell us twice, darling,” Rarity agreed. “I for one don’t even know how such a sweet boy like Harry still remains with such horrid people.”
“Horrible as they may be, they’re the only family he has,” Twilight replied sorrowfully.
Of course, a majority of the group merely scoffed at the statement.
“Some family,” Smolder rolled her eyes.
“After what we done saw from the theatre, we know these varmints ain’t no true family tah Harry,” Apple Bloom objected.
“I live with my two aunts while mom and dad are away and they’re way better than these people,” Scootaloo nodded.
“Was adoption out of the question?” Sweetie Belle asked.
Rather than answering Sweetie Belle’s question, Twilight Sparkle’s eyes turned toward the second floor window. The alicorn princess could see young Harry Potter himself, sitting at a desk in his room. It appeared that he was flipping through the very photo album Hagrid gave to him at the end of the previous school year.
“I suppose we should go up and say hi,” Twilight suggested with a smile.
Nodding in agreement, the Equestrians gathered around Twilight Sparkle. Making sure not a moving car was in sight nor any wandering eyes from the neighbors, Twilight Sparkle took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Channeling her magic all around the group, concentrating on the location where Harry Potter was, the group could feel her magic aura wrap around them. This went on for a few seconds until… POOF! They vanished.
<>
In the meantime, Mr. Harry Potter sat quietly by the second floor window of his aunt and uncle’s house looking through the album. It was a change of pace from having spent his childhood in the downstairs closet, cramped, confined, and covered in dust whenever his cousin or someone else climbed up or down. At that moment the boy was lost in his thoughts reminiscing about his time at Hogwarts and other heartfelt memories of his youth.
All of a sudden, his train of thought was interrupted by a bright purple flash and the thumping of several feet. He quickly turned his gaze from the window and what he saw made his eyes brighten. There in the center of his new bedroom were none other than some familiar faces: The Equestrian Heroes themselves, among them his young friends that made up the Student Six.
“Hiya Harry!!!” Silverstream waved excitedly.
“Hello Harry!” Twilight Sparkle greeted gently.
“Guys!” Harry gasped with a smile.
The collective group of friends gathered together for a warm embrace, for a moment not even minding if they were drawing any attention from downstairs. Even the CMC and Sunset Shimmer, not as familiar with Harry, joined in the hug as they basked in this tender reunion. After a few seconds, they finally separated so Harry can have a moment to see his friends as though they were truly real, and this was no mere dream.
“I can’t believe you’re all here after all this time,” Harry Potter spoke. “What’re you all doing here?”
“Pardon us for the sudden arrival,” Applejack apologized. “We reckoned we’d come and visit ya before the school year starts.”
“And some of our friends were utterly delighted to meet you,” Rarity added.
“That’s correct,” Twilight Sparkle nodded, approaching Harry. “Those three girls over there are Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle. Together they are known as the ‘Cutie Mark Crusaders’, but that’s a long story.”
“Mighty fine tah meet ya, Harry!” Apple Bloom shook Harry’s hand excitedly. “Ah saw yer adventures at the theater back home and Ah’ve been beggin’ mah sister tah introduce me to ya.”
“It’s true!” Applejack nodded.
“I’m pleased to meet you too!” Harry nodded politely, facing Sweetie Belle. “And you must be…”
“Sweetie Belle, Rarity’s sister,” Sweetie Belle confirmed.
“Oh yes. I can see the resemblance. And… Scootaloo… you are…?”
“Oh, I don’t have a sister,” Scootaloo shook her head. “But I look up to Rainbow Dash and we hang out often.”
“And she’s an awesome little buddy,” Rainbow Dash complimented. “I just know you guys are going to get along.”
“And before I forget, Harry this is Sunset Shimmer,” Twilight introduced Harry. “She’s one of my former students from out of Equestria, even though she ‘lived’ in Equestria previously. She’ll be joining us to attend Hogwarts this year.”
“It’s good to meet you Harry,” Sunset shook Harry’s hands.
“Me too… although…” Harry paused, peering closer. “Do I know you from somewhere? I feel like I’ve seen you before.”
“Uh… you must be mistaking me for some pony else.”
“Nice pad you got here,” Spike remarked, looking around. “Seems your aunt and uncle finally decided to give you a real bedroom for once. That’s a nice change.”
“Not the only thing that’s changed,” Harry Potter spoke up, measuring Spike. “You’ve grown much taller since I last saw you.”
“I’ve had a bit of a growth spurt these past few months.”
“We did try to keep you informed with all the letters we’ve written, with Professor Twilight’s permission of course,” Ocellus acknowledged. “Did you ever receive them?”
“Now that you mentioned it… no, I never got any letters,” Harry shook his head.
“Huh… weird,” Smolder scratched her head. “Guess the Hogwarts delivery service must be really slow.”
“No… that doesn’t sound right,” Spike spoke confused. “I’ve puffed every letter we’ve made for Harry, and he should’ve gotten them. Though I was wondering why we never got any responses all that time.”
“Well… I’m sure you’ve kept in touch with the rest of your friends,” Sandbar implied.
“Actually… no, I haven’t heard from Ron or Hermoine either.”
“Seriously?” Gallus raised his brow. “A whole year apart from your friends, and they haven’t tried to write a letter to you? Not even a phone call?”
“Yona don’t think Harry has phone,” Yona spoke up.
“I’m sure they must have had their reasons,” Sunset Shimmer assured. “Ponies or in this case people tend to get busy on other things during a whole year.”
“Or forgetful… I have been away for so long,” Harry sighed, eyeing the book. “I’ve been away for so long. I’m worried they’ve forgotten all about me.”
The group turned toward Harry as his focus returned to the book. Aside from the photo of Harry with his parents, back when he was a baby, the boy turned the page toward another picture. Like the last one, the moving photo displayed an image of himself, along with Ron and Hermione, back when they were first starting school together. But they weren’t the only ones, as the Student Six was gathered amongst the trio in their Gryffindor outfits. Seeing this image made the group’s faces smile with warmth.
“That was quite a school year Harry,” Sandbar sighed. “One minute we’re all learning how to use magic, next thing we know we foiled a whole conspiracy involving a magic stone.”
“I don’t really think your friends mean to forget about you, just as we wouldn’t,” Silverstream added. “Maybe they just ‘forgot’ to remember you. But true friends are those who always keep you in their hearts.”
“Maybe you’re right…” Harry nodded. “I guess I just thought…”
Just then, their attention on the photo album was interrupted suddenly by loud screeching. They turned their heads toward the white owl, Hedwig, pecking against the lock in her cage. It was only then they finally acknowledged the poor owl and were shocked to see her trapped in a cage.
“Oh Hedwig!” Pinkie Pie smiled, gazing toward the cage. “I’m so sorry, we didn’t mean to ignore you. You must be anxious to see us.”
“I can’t let you out Hedwig,” Harry told Hedwig. “I’m not allowed to use magic outside of school.”
“Not allowed to let Hedwig out!” Fluttershy gasped, sighing sympathetically. “Aw, poor dear. No owl should spend an entire life in a cage.”
“Yeah, she should be stretching her wings and flying,” Rainbow Dash agreed. “Whose idea is this?”
“Uncle Vernon locked her in that cage at the beginning of summer vacation,” Harry informed Rainbow Dash. “He never lets her out.”
“That’s horrible!” Silverstream added. “I couldn’t imagine being locked up for that long.”
“How does letting out an owl even count as using magic?” Pinkie Pie wondered. “I mean I do remember they are in charge of handling the mail within Hogwarts. But would it really spoil some pony’s party if she got some fresh air?”
“I wish I could use magic to let her out,” Harry replied. “Unfortunately, you all know students under the age of seventeen aren’t allowed to use magic outside of Hogwarts.”
“No need to remind me, I’ve read the entire Hogwarts handbook,” Twilight Sparkle replied.
“Twice… but thrice for good measure,” Spike corrected.
“And besides, if Uncle Vernon—” Harry began.
“HAR-RY POT-TER!!!”
At the sound of the name, along with the terrible uncle’s yelling toward the stairs, every pony cringed in disgust while Hedwig squawked again… louder.
“Now you’ve done it,” Harry sighed, looking at Hedwig.
Harry quickly shut the album and proceeded to make his way out the door of his room. This left the rest of the group in the room with the caged owl.
“Sure… great idea,” Rainbow Dash spoke. “We’ll hide up here, while you go downstairs!”
“He’s already left hon,” Applejack stated the obvious.
“Well, ‘students’ may not be allowed to use magic outside of Hogwarts,” Rarity smirked. “But nothing was ever said about ‘us’.”
“Rarity, I really don’t think we should…” Twilight began to object.
“Ah, let’s give the owl some air, Twi,” Sunset interrupted. “A few minutes out of solitary confinement won’t hurt.”
“I like her style,” Gallus smirked.
Satisfied, the marshmallow colored unicorn lit her horn with her light blue magical aura and encased the lock of the cage with the very same magic. With one quick ‘click’, the lock fell from the cage and the little door swung open. This permitted the little owl to leave her cage and stretch her wings. She flapped her wings and flew over to land upon Fluttershy’s back.
“Now isn’t that better, Hedwig?” Fluttershy smiled, stroking the little owl’s feathers.
“That was a really nice thing to do, Professor Rarity,” Sandbar smiled at the unicorn.
“I couldn’t very well let the poor dear suffer in that cage any longer,” Rarity replied.
“Speaking of poor dears, what’ll we do about Harry?” Ocellus asked nervously.
“I suppose we should check on Harry before he really ends up suffering,” Gallus suggested, heading toward the door.
“Now hold up a moment,” Rainbow Dash flew in front of Gallus. “I can’t believe you kids would actually sneak out of hiding to spy on our friends…”
Gallus and the remainder of the kids slumped as though they were about to be lectured, until…
“… Without us!” Rainbow smirked.
To which every pony else nodded in agreement, even a rather reluctant Twilight Sparkle. They soon proceeded to leave Harry’s room and sneak as quietly as they could downstairs so as not to alert anyone of their presence.
<>
Soon, all eyes peeked toward the living space and the nearby kitchen. Harry had just entered as he saw his Aunt Petunia busily making dessert. From what they could tell, she was putting the finishing touches to a pudding of whipped cream and sugared violets. By the way she was preparing the dish, it was though she were preparing for a dinner for some special guests. Petunia, in her Salmon Colored Cocktail, saw the boy and decided to call out to her husband at once.
“He’s in there, Vernon!” Petunia called out.
Harry made his way into the living room where Uncle Vernon was wearing a dinner suit with a bowtie. He was struggling with putting on a similar bow tie upon his son, Dudley, who wore a dinner suit as well. All the while, the pair glowered towards Harry the moment he entered.
“I’m warning you,” Uncle Vernon threatened. “If you can’t control that bloody bird, it’ll have to go!”
“She’s bored,” Harry argued. “If I could just let her out for an hour or two—”
“And have you sending secret messages to your freaky little friends?” Vernon scoffed. “No, sir.”
“But I haven’t gotten any messages. From any of my friends. Not one… all summer.”
Hearing the tone of Potter’s voice, the hidden group of friends couldn’t help but sympathize for the boy. It seemed as though this mystery was more serious than they imagined. Vernon, however, paid little attention. He had finally pieced the bowtie on Dudley’s suit, patting his son’s shoulders with approval.
“Who’d want to be friends with you?” Dudley mocked, rudely bumping Harry’s shoulder.
“Who’d want to be friends with you, fatty?!” Scootaloo whispered, hiding. “Wait, I remember now… no one wants to be your friend!”
“You said it squirt,” Rainbow whispered, as the pair hoof bumped.
“I should think you’d be more grateful,” Vernon told Harry. “We raise you since you were a baby, give you good off our table, even let you have Dudley’s second bedroom… purely out of the goodness of our hearts.”
To which Sunset gagged at Vernon’s words.
“Kindness of your hearts my foot,” She scoffed.
“I thought he got the second bedroom because mum was afraid he’d turn us into dung beetles if you put him back in the cupboard under the stairs,” Dudley spoke up.
“Well ain’t that one no good blatant lie ya’ll just made up,” Applejack glared.
“Not buying it, buddy,” Silverstream nodded.
“Pathetic!” Sweetie Belle commented.
“What she said!” Apple Bloom concurred.
Aunt Petunia merely stopped cold, exchanging a dark look toward Uncle Vernon. But then she saw Dudley extending a finger for the cherry on the pudding which she stopped with a slap on the wrist.
“Not yet, popkin,” Aunt Petunia spoke gently. “That’s for when the Masons arrive.”
“Which should be any moment,” Uncle Vernon remembered.
It was then Vernon beckoned his wife and son to come forward to rehearse the plan on how they would act during this dinner meeting with the Masons.
“Now, let’s run through our schedule one more time,” Vernon offered. “Petunia, when the Masons get here, you will be—”
“In the lounge, waiting to welcome them graciously to our home,” Petunia smiled.
“Oh please…” Spike rolled his eyes, annoyed.
“Good,” Vernon nodded. “And Dudley?”
“I’ll be waiting to open the door,” Dudley answered.
“Excellent.”
Then all three Dursleys scornfully eyed Harry Potter, who stood silently during that time.
“And you?” Vernon asked, suspicious.
“I’ll be in my bedroom,” Harry answered casually. “Making no noise and pretending I don’t exist.”
“That hit way too close to home,” Gallus sighed.
“Too right you will,” Vernon replied to Harry. “With any luck, this could well be the day I make the biggest deal of my career… and you will not mess it up!”
Suddenly, the doorbell rang signaling the Masons’ arrival. Instantly, Uncle Vernon shoved Harry out of the kitchen and into the hallway.
“Upstairs! Hurry!” Vernon ordered.
Harry proceeded to make his way up the stairs as the Equestrians quickly ducked back before the Dursleys saw them. From below, they could hear Vernon greeting who they assumed to be the Masons.
“Mr. and Mrs. Mason!” Vernon called out. “Do come in!”
It was then Harry ran into the group waiting for him at the top of the stairs.
“Well, your family is certainly charming as always,” Rarity replied, sarcastically.
“Who’re the Masons?” Fluttershy asked curiously.
“Mr. Mason is my uncle’s boss, Fluttershy,” Harry explained. “He’s come to visit the house with his wife.”
“And they done force you to hide in bed upstairs because…?” Apple Bloom wondered.
“Apparently, my uncle’s never told them I’ve been living with them for years and wish to keep it that way.”
“Of all the darn cheap ways to save a bit…” Applejack shook her head.
“Let’s not let them sour our visit now,” Twilight advised. “We’ll just hang out upstairs, while they entertain these Mason folk.”
“But Twilight… they got pudding!” Pinkie Pie pouted.
“Maybe some other time Pinkie,” Sunset patted her back. “Besides, we got more important matters to figure out before we get to Hogwarts.”
“… Cake?”
To which Sunset didn’t bother to answer, but merely looked toward Pinkie Pie with a patient shake of the head. Soon the Equestrian Heroes, along with Harry, climbed the rest of the way upstairs toward the small bedroom. Nearing the door, the group heard Vernon chatting away with his clients with such a phony joyful voice to which Rainbow mocked his jabber. Her friends chuckled silently over it as Harry opened the door. Just as they made their way inside, however, he and his friends were shocked to see someone already inside.
This creature was by no means a human, but rather a small, male impish creature with bat-like ears and bulging green eyes standing at a height of only three feet and six inches.
Or at least, he would be standing if not for the manner of jumping on Harry’s bed like a trampoline. The minute he saw Harry and the Equestrians, he stopped and decided to politely greet his guests staring at him in shock.
“Harry Potter! Such an honor it is,” Dobby bowed respectively. “And Princess Twilight Sparkle! An honor to meet you and your friends.”
“… Hi…” Princess Twilight Sparkle spoke awkwardly.
While the rest of the group stared in shock, Harry closed the door to prevent someone looking in. So many questions entered the boy’s head, but for now he only needed the answer for one.
“Who are you?” Harry asked.
“What the heck are you?” Rainbow added.
“Dobby, everyone,” The creature introduced himself. “Dobby the House Elf.”
“You’re an elf? Wow, this wasn’t what I was expecting…” Pinkie studied the creature. “I thought you’d be the kind who either bake cookies or make toys for children. Or maybe you cobble shoes—”
Pinkie Pie never got to finish as Twilight Sparkle summoned a speech bubble to cover Pinkie’s head, the Earth pony obliviously chatting away while no sound emerged.
“Not to be rude or anything, but this isn’t a great time for me to have a house-elf in my bedroom,” Harry explained.
“Oh, yes, sir, Dobby understands,” Dobby nodded. “It’s just that, Dobby has come to tell you… it is difficult, everyone… Dobby wonders where to begin.”
“Why don’t you sit down and tell us?” Spike suggested.
“S-s-sit down?” Dobby stammered.
All of a sudden, Dobby burst into tears… very loudtears. Harry and the others panicked as they attempted to calm the little stranger down.
“Shhh! I’m sorry, he didn’t mean to offend you or anything—” Harry assured.
“What did I even say that was offensive?” Spike raised his arms.
“Offend Dobby!” Dobby gasped, lowering his voice. “Dobby has heard of your greatness, sir, as well as you Equestrians. But never has he been asked to sit down by a wizard, nor an Equestrian, like an equal…”
“You can’t have met many decent wizards then,” Harry assumed.
“Nor any Equestrians too?” Apple Bloom inquired.
“Like us, Mr. Dobby?” Ocellus asked curiously.
“No… I haven’t…” Dobby answered, his voice lowering. “That was an awful thing to say.”
Dobby shook his head, then without warning, he leapt off the bed and started to bang his head furiously upon the dresser.
“Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby! Bad!”
“Stop! Dobby! Dobby, please!” Harry begged silently.
“Dobs! Stop! His uncle will kill him!” Smolder hissed.
<>
Back downstairs, Vernon poured some champagne into the glasses of his guests, Mr., and Mrs. Mason. As Dobby’s head was banging from above, Vernon, along with Petunia and Dudley, looked toward all the sounds against the ceiling. Seeing the Masons were confused over all the noise, Vernon knew he needed to say something convincing to address the noise happening upstairs.
“Oh, don’t mind that,” Vernon chuckled nervously. “It’s just the… cat.”
“Cat? What cat?” Dudley asked, confused.
“Our cat, tiger.”
The Masons eyed Vernon with raised eyebrows, but decided to shrug it off as their client breathed a sigh of relief.
<>
Back upstairs, Dobby continued to self-punish himself via banging his head against the dresser. Harry and the Equestrians tried desperately to get him to stop, all while eyeing the door in case Vernon tries to come upstairs to lash out at them for all the noise.
“Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby!” Dobby bereted himself.
“Stop! Stop, Dobby! Please be quiet!” Harry begged silently.
“Bad Dobby!
Finally, Dobby stopped banging himself against the drawer. He stood wobbly on his thinly legs, his eyes spinning dizzily. The group proceeded to regard him with a mixture of concern… and wariness.
“Are you… all right?” Harry asked concerned.
“What did you do all that for, darling?” Rarity questioned.
“Come on, Dobby,” Scootaloo insisted. “Tell us why you did that.”
“Dobby had to punish himself, ma’ams,” Dobby explained. “Dobby almost spoke ill of his family, everyone.”
“Yer… family?” Applejack asked, suspicious. “What in Celestia’s name are ya talkin’ about, Dobby?”
“The wizard family Dobby serves, ma’am. Dobby is bound to serve one family forever. If they ever knew Dobby was here… Ooh!”
Dobby shuddered in fear, then looked up while whispering urgently.
“But Dobby had to come. Dobby has to protect Harry Potter. Dobby must tell Harry Potter, along with Twilight Sparkle and company. To warn them.”
The house-elf beckoned them to come closer, and all heads leaned forward so he could whisper to them.
“Harry Potter must not go back to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry this year!”
“WHAT?!” The Equestrians quietly gasped, with shock.
“But why isn’t Harry allowed to go back this year?!” Silverstream asked. “What did he even do?”
“It’s not what Mr. Potter has done,” Dobby explained. “There is a plot.”
“A plot? But to what, Dobby?” Gallus asked. “Who is this plot even for?”
“A plot to make most ‘terrible’ things happen!” Dobby looked around nervously. “If Harry Potter goes back to school he will be in great danger.”
“What terrible things?” Harry asked. “Who’s plotting them?”
“He… can’t… say!” Dobby gasped, talking through his teeth.
Dobby started making a funny choking-and-gagging noise, with an expression so painful to watch the Equestrians cringed. It was though the house-elf was arguing with himself while trying to remain calm at the same time.
“Okay! I understand,” Harry assured. “You can’t say—”
But it was too late. Dobby leapt onto the desk and grabbed Harry’s bedside lamp. He proceeded to beat himself about the head and yelped loudly.
“Dobby? Dobby, put the lamp down!” Harry demanded quietly.
<>
Back downstairs, Uncle Vernon was in the midst of telling a joke regarding some golfers.
“So, when they arrived at the ninth hole…” Vernon began.
But Vernon didn’t get a chance to finish, as Dobby’s yelping interrupted him, and he looked upstairs again. His face turned into a seething yet quiet rage of fury knowing his ‘nephew’ was causing noise.
“Sounds as if that ‘cat’ of yours has dragged something in with it, Dursley,” Mr. Mason replied dryly.
“Not to worry,” Uncle Vernon assured nervously. “Dudley must’ve left the telly running again. I’ll sort it out.”
“… Did I?” Dudley wondered, cluelessly.
<>
Back again in Harry’s bedroom, a struggle took place as Harry tried to wrestle the lamp away from Dobby. The Equestrians were eyeing the scene nervously when they heard footsteps coming towards the door.
“Stop! Stop!” Harry demanded silently. “Give me the lamp!”
“Yona can hear Harry’s uncle coming!” Yona gasped.
“Great… we’re so busted,” Sandbar sighed.
“Dobby, stop!” Harry demanded.
Vernon’s footsteps thundered on the landing. Quickly, Harry grabbed Dobby by the pillowcase and carried him toward the wardrobe.
“Let me go!” Dobby hissed.
“Get in there and keep quiet!” Harry instructed, pitching him into the wardrobe.
Harry quickly threw Dobby into his closet and shut the door. Quick as a whip, Twilight used her magic to turn her and the other Equestrians invisible… just as the door flung open and Vernon burst into the room.
“What the devil are you doing up here?!” Vernon demanded.
“I was just—” Harry began nervously.
“You’ve just ruined the punchline of my Japanese golfer joke!”
“Sorry…”
All the while, the wardrobe door kept threatening to open as Harry struggled to keep it closed. All the while Vernon kept scolding his nephew with great fury, lifting a finger at the boy.
“One more sound and you’ll wish you’d never been born, boy! And fix that door!”
“Yes sir,” Harry nodded, closing the door.
Vernon grumbled as he stomped flat-footed from the room and slammed the door. Once they could determine that Vernon was returning to his guests, Harry opened the closet door to release Dobby. Twilight and her friends also quickly reappeared after hearing everything.
“Some pony should really teach that old fat man some manners,” Rainbow spoke through gritted teeth. “If it were up to me, I’d hit him so hard his fat will be rolling for years.”
“Thank you so much for putting that image in my head,” Rarity voiced disgust.
“See why I’ve got to go back?” Harry told Dobby. “I don’t belong here; I belong in your world—at Hogwarts. It’s the only place I’ve got… friends.”
“Friends who don’t even write to Harry Potter?” Dobby inquired.
“Well, I expect they’ve been—”
“Wait a minute!” Sweetie Belle interrupted. “I smell something fishy here, Dobby.”
“How do you know my friends haven’t been writing me?” Harry asked, curious.
“Tell the truth, Dobby,” Applejack warned. “I know yer hidin’ somethin’.”
Dobby, eyes widened with guilt, proceeded to reach through his pillowcase to reveal… a stack of letters.
“Harry Potter mustn’t be angry at Dobby—” Dobby spoke feebly. “Dobby hoped if Harry Potter thought his friends had forgotten him… Harry Potter might not want to go back to school, sir…”
“Wait… those are OUR letters, guys!” Silverstream pointed out. “LOOK! I even put the stickers on my envelop so Harry would know it was from me!”
“Gee… we’d never would’ve figured that out,” Smolder replied sarcastically.
“It was YOU… you were tampering with our mail!” Spike pointed accusingly. “That’s a violation of our friends’ privacy!”
“A federal offense we might add!” Twilight added. “Lemme guess… you read all the letters too?”
“Oh no, Princess Twilight, Dobby would never,” Dobby shook his head. “Please understand. Dobby was desperate; Dobby did it for Harry!”
“Give me those… NOW!” Harry spoke impatiently.
Dobby frowned sadly, then…
“NO!”
Dobby dashed for the door in a panic.
“GET ‘IM!” Apple Bloom called out.
With the letters back in his clothes, Dobby opened the door of Harry’s bedroom and raced downstairs. Harry and the Equestrians flew desperately after the house-elf, who bounced like a ping-pong ball down the stairs and into the kitchen. As the group raced in, trying not to make much noise, they stopped at the stairs and found Dobby on the counter.
The house-elf soon spotted Petunia’s pudding, which she made for the Masons. The Dursleys, on the other hand, were too distracted with entertaining the guests. All at once, Dobby thought of an awful idea which caused Harry and his friends to widen with shock and realized they needed to coax him back straight away.
“Dobby, get back here!” Harry demanded quietly.
With a shake of his head and a snap of his finger, somehow Dobby was able to lift Petunia’s pudding magically into the air. Harry’s eyes widened with horror, but not as gravely as Pinkie’s.
“No… no… not the pudding!” Pinkie cringed, clutching her heart.
“Dobby… please… no…” Harry begged desperately.
“Don’t do this, Dobby!” Spike waved his arms.
“Don’t do this him, Dobby!” Ocellus pleaded. “We beg of you; there must be another way!”
“Harry Potter must say he’s not going back to school,” Dobby silently demanded.
“I can’t,” Harry shook his head. “Hogwarts is my home.”
“You do this, I’ll make you regret it!” Rainbow threatened, waving her hoof.
“Dobby must do it, ma’am,” Dobby spoke tragically. “For Harry Potter’s own good.”
Dobby snapped his fingers again, only this time Petunia’s pudding started to float across the living room. The group gasped silently, realizing disaster will soon spill… literally. Harry pushed Dobby aside and made his way toward his aunt’s pudding with slim hope of saving it before the inevitable disaster. Rainbow and Spike silently raced forward to help their friend. Fortunately, the magic bubble surrounding the Equestrians prevented the Dursleys, specifically the Masons, from seeing them.
The two magical beings, and their human companion, slowly made their way toward the living room while Vernon was chatting up a storm with his guests.
“… It was this deep and one plumber said, ‘Look at all that water’,” Vernon told his story. “And the second plumber said, ‘Yes, and that’s just the top of it’…”
Petunia released a false laugh and was about to ask the Masons a question. Suddenly, she noticed her pudding floating toward them, and hastily she tried to keep her guests distracted.
“Mr. Mason… Vernon tells me that you’re a wonderful golfer!” Petunia smiled anxiously.
“I play… occasionally,” Mr. Mason answered bluntly.
Petunia’s eyes remained locked upon the pudding floating in the air. But worse still, her nephew was trying to catch it. She knew she had to keep her guests distracted.
“Mrs. Mason… where did you get your beautiful suits?” Petunia asked.
“Oh! All of my suits are tailor made,” Mrs. Mason replied.
It was then Vernon noticed the pudding floating, and especially Harry trying to catch it.
“U-Um… Dudley?” Vernon fumbled his words. “Is there… um… something you want to say?”
Dudley looked around and noticed the flying pudding. But that wasn’t all he saw. Seeing as these Equestrians were about to meddle, Dobby made another snap at his fingers and the bubble vanished making Rainbow Dash and Spike appear alongside Harry. All of the other Equestrians, especially those aiding Harry, were unaware that their cover was blown.
“Flying pony?” Dudley spoke.
“Pony? What pony?” Vernon turned, his eyes widening.
By the time Twilight Sparkle had realized what had happened, that their cover was exposed again…
“Oh no…” Twilight gasped.
SNAP! Another snap of Dobby’s hands and the pudding plummeted… straight onto the Masons messily. They stood blinking, both covered head to foot with whipped cream and sugared violets. This left Vernon profusely apologizing by concocting a lie surrounding Harry’s ‘condition’.
“I’m so sorry!” Vernon apologized. “It’s our nephew. Very disturbed. Meeting strangers upsets him, so we keep him upstairs…”
Harry, Rainbow Dash, & Spike turned toward Dobby with anger shaking their heads at him.
“You’re toast…” Rainbow mouthed a warning.
Dobby snapped his fingers and vanished without a trace. Meanwhile, unaware of the Equestrians, the Masons stormed out of the house with Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia racing after them.
“We have ice cream…!” Petunia insisted.
But it was too late. As soon as the Masons got into their car, they drove off hastily off the driveway and down the street. It was then a shrieking sound split the sky. An owl swooped down, dropping a letter at Uncle Vernon’s feet. He picked up the letter and opened it. As he read the contents, a mad gleam danced in Uncle Vernon’s eye. He turned and raced back inside the house, with Aunt Petunia following closely.
Inside the house, while Dudley was staring agape toward the Equestrians, Uncle Vernon raced back into the living room. For a moment he stared daggers toward the Equestrians, who stood awkwardly inside the man’s house. Not another peep was heard for what felt like an eternity.
“Mr. Vernon sir…” Twilight Sparkle spoke, breaking the silence. “We can explain—”
“Read it!” Uncle Vernon extended the letter. “Go on… read it!”
Nervously, Harry Potter cautiously took the letter from Vernon’s hand and proceeded to read the letter as the Equestrians looked on.
“’Dear Mr. Potter,’” Harry read. “’We have received intelligence that a Hover Charm was used at your place of residence at twelve minutes past seven this evening. As you know, underage wizards…’”
“’… are not permitted to perform spells outside school’!” Vernon finished, snatching the letter. “You didn’t tell us you weren’t allowed to use magic at home. Slipped your mind, didn’t it?”
Vernon quickly turned his gaze toward the Equestrians.
“And you… you knew about this all along, did you?” Vernon chuckled. “You come into my home uninvited, no doubt with some magic someone failed to look into. Next thing I know, you concoct one of your cheap parlor tricks to make a fool out of me in front of my clients… to embarrass me?!”
“Funny story about that,” Pinkie Pie spoke up. “Well, maybe not ‘ha-ha’ funny, but you see what actually happened was…”
“I’VE got news for you!” Vernon interrupted. “I’m locking you up! ALL of you! And if you try to magic yourself out, oh believe me I know you will, they’ll expel you! And the rest of you! YOU’LL BE FIRED! Now get upstairs!”
Vernon proceeded to drag Harry forcibly up the stairs, while the remainder of the Equestrians were forced to follow. Soon they were all thrust together into the small bedroom, to be locked away in retaliation for the failed dinner deal. He may have lost some clients tonight, but for right now he had the upper hand. And the worst part for the Equestrians, as they huddled together with Harry Potter, while they watched as the door was slammed against them, they were all comprehending what had occurred…
“How could we let this happen?!” Smolder grumbled. “We had the numbers; we don’t have to take the word of that bully! Why if I had my way—”
“No girls… I’m afraid this Mr. Vernon is right,” Sunset sighed. “We perform magic in any way… this will surely get to Hogwarts and we’re all in trouble, not just Harry.”
“Suddenly I’m worried if they send that letter about me letting Hedwig out for a second…” Rarity spoke worriedly.
“And all because that jerk of a house-elf got us all in trouble!” Rainbow clapped her hooves together. “What’s his beef with us anyway?”
“I have a bigger question,” Sandbar spoke up. “What did he mean about Harry being in danger if he went back to school, Headmare Twilight?”
“Who knows, Sandbar?” Twilight sighed, looking out the window. “Who knows?”