The second session of Camp Little Moose had officially started with three human campers and three pony campers.
It was a small group, but better than nothing.
And it would give the Mane 6 and Mystery Incorporated enough time to work out this whole Woodsman business.
The Pippsqueaks couldn't be more excited to get to have one last summer together before they may be forced apart.
And the first activity that would be a real changing experience? Zip-lining through the tree tops.
However, Deacon was so nervous about the situation, leaving Misty, Pipp and Daphne to try and calm him down before he had a panic attack. “It's okay, Deacon,” Daphne said, patting the ground with her foot. “You're on the ground.”
“Daphne’s right. See?” Pipp stomped the ground with her hoof. “The ground isn't going anywhere.”
“I'll fly up and see if the others need help at the top,” Misty said, levitating off the ground and lifting toward the platform at the top of the tree. Along the way, she passed Zipp, who was carrying Peach Fizz on her back, and Velma, who were just behind Trudy. “Keep going, Trudy,” Velma said encouragingly. “You're going to love the zip line.”
“What’s a zip line?” Trudy asked boredly, waving her phone around. “I'm just trying to get cell phone reception.”
“One, keep both hands on the ladder unless you wanna plummet back to the ground,” Zipp said, nudging her. “Two, I think you're gonna love soaring through the forest if you just give it a fair chance.”
“And if Princess Zipp says it'll be fun,” Peach Fizz agreed, “then it'll be fun!”
Trudy only shrugged and continued to climb up the ladder, only to meet Izzy and Hitch at the top of it. Seashell, on the other hoof, was watching Ferd harness Luke in so he could go on the zip line first. “Okay, Luke,” Fred spoke up. “Whenever you're ready, just step off the...”
“Whooooo-hoo-hoo!!!” Luke cheered before sailing off of the platform and into the treetops. “...platform,” Fred finished, watching Luke fly out of his sight, cheering wildly. After a moment, Fred turned to Seashell with a smile. “Okay, Seashell... you ready for your turn?”
“I think so,” Seashell nodded, stepping onto the platform. “I always wanted to go zip lining back home, but my mom, while she can be amazing all the time, she can be a little bit... worrisome when it comes to stuff like this.”
“Not to mention... it's kinda high,” Peach Fizz gulped nervously, looking down from their treetop position. “Hey, I have an idea to help with that,” Pipp said with a smile as she flew next to them. “What if me and Zipp fly beside you for a little bit? Until you feel ready to do it on your own?”
“Hey... I'd like that. Thanks, Pipp,” Seashell said happily, letting Fred finish harnessing her in before she jumped off the platform, with Pipp flying beside her.
And to Seashell's surprise... the zip line was way more fun than she ever imagined!
Now she could only wonder how Glory was doing cooking with the others.
XXXXXXXX
Glory sniffed the pudding cooking on the stove, the sweet aroma making her mouth water. “Mmm... this pudding smells really good, Sunny! What kind is it again?”
“Razzleberry surprise,” Sunny said as she stirred the pudding. “It's the perfect topping with vanilla ice cream to go with dessert tonight. My dad jsed to make it all the time when I was a filly and we would go camping together.”
“Well, I'm glad dessert is going okay for you girls,” Shaggy said after tasting what he was cooking. “But I feel like something's missing from my Five-Alarm Chili.”
“My dad always made chili at home,” Glory spoke as she flew over. “Can I have a taste?”
“Sure, but I got to warn you,” Shaggy said as he got a spoonful of chili, “it's my spiciest recipe yet.”
Glory took a bite of the chili, and to the surprise of the remaining trio, she was able to swallow it without any kind of reaction. And after swallowing it, Glory hummed in thought. “If my dad was here, I would have him put in more Zephyr Heights reaper peppers, but... we don't have those here, so I'm not sure what exactly it might need.”
Scooby then glanced off to the side where he saw a few peppers laying on the counter, and without thinking much of it, he plopped one in its mouth and swallowed it. “Oh-ho, man, Scoob!” Shaggy said, clearly impressed. “Those are some of the hottest peppers known to THIS world!”
Scooby didn't feel the heat for a moment, but suddenly, it felt like his mouth was burning, and turns out... it was literally doing just that.
After a moment of running around with smoke emitting from his mouth, Shaggy grabbed the hose device from the sink and blasted Scooby in the mouth to cool him down, and after a moment, the heat went away... even if Shaggy was splashed with water during the process.
After Sunny turned the water off, she handed Shaggy a towel before turning to check on Scooby. “You okay, Scooby-Doo?”
“Delicious!” Scooby said before he burped a large mass of smoke from his mouth, allowing Glory to fan it away before it ruined the food. “Thanks, Glory,” smiled Sunny gratefully. “With the food and with helping out around here.”
“You're welcome,” Glory smiled before sighing to herself. “At least it makes me think less of our problem... I wonder how Peach Fizz and Seashell are doing.”
XXXXXXXX
At the same time, Peach Fizz and Seashell, along with everybody else, were trying their best to build a fire while Fred led an entire demonstration. “I don't mean to brag, but I was Little Moose Fire Starting Champion six years running,” Fred spoke as he managed to get a small fire going. “And with a little practice, you too can learn to master this skill.”
Suddenly, there came a roaring of flames, and over with the remainder of the Mane 6, Daphne, Velma and the human campers, Luke had managed to get a huge fire blazing, causing him to excitedly laugh. “Check it out!”
“All right, Luke!” Zipp laughed. “And it was your first try too!”
“Ooh ooh ooh!” Izzy levitated a bag of marshmallows over to the group. “I have the marshmallows ready for roasting!”
Fred sighed in disappointment before he glanced to the side and saw something disheartening...
...Peach Fizz, sitting beside her fire-making supplies, looking extremely down and out.
That's when Fred took the chance to approach her. “Hey, Peach Fizz... is everything all right?”
“Well... Mama and I never went camping before, since we already lived in Bridlewood,” Peach Fizz hesitantly explained. “And besides, she always said that she was too dignified to 'rough it'. She... always says stuff like that. It's like I can't do anything right for her.”
“Hey, just cause your mom thinks a certain way doesn’t mean you do everything wrong,” Fred told the filly comfortingly. “Besides, making a fire takes a lot of practice. Why don’t I do it with you this time?”
“Really?” Peach Fizz asked with a smile. “Thanks, Freddy!”
“Okay, I’ll show you what to do,” Fred spoke, grabbing the materials, “and then you follow after me. Got it?”
“Got it!”
XXXXXXXX
Peach Fizz, with Fred's help, managed to build her fire perfectly, and Peach Fizz couldn't help but giggle happily when the excitement rushing through her made her cutie mark glow.
However, a few hours later is when the trouble would really start.
The fire was going out, and it was getting more difficult for Sunny to stir the pudding she and Glory made. “Shaggy, how’s your chili doing? The pudding is thickening, but not too much.”
“Well, let me put it this way,” Shaggy said, checking the fire under the stove. “Like, if we don't get more firewood, my chili's gonna be too chilly to eat.”
Suddenly, the sound of Scooby sobbing caught their attention. “Oh, don’t cry, Scooby,” Glory said comfortingly. “Yeah, dude,” Shaggy nodded. “There's plenty of wood in the woods.”
“Uh… guys?” Sunny pointed at Scooby again, revealing that he was chopping onions, and that’s why he was crying. “Oh… onions,” Shaggy realized sheepishly. “Good thinkin’, Scoob.”
“Glory, I had an idea. Why don’t you go and help Scooby gather some more firewood?” Sunny suggested. “Shaggy and I can handle the rest of the food prep here, and it might be good for the two of you to keep one another company, especially with that whole ax-wielding maniac still out there.”
At first, Glory didn't like the thoughts of going into the woods at night with the Woodsman out there too, but once realizing that Scooby would be with her, she took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay… I think we can do that, right, Scoob?”
“Uh-huh,” Scooby nodded with a smile. “Be back soon!”
And so, Scooby and Glory set forth into the woods to find the firewood they needed.
XXXXXXXX
At the same time, Zipp and Hitch were helping Fred with a wildlife lesson, where Fred found a strange set of pawprints in the dirt. “Yep, no doubt about it. These are moose tracks.”
“Uh... I've never seen a moose in Equestria before, Fred,” Hitch said as he inspected the tracks, “but these seem a little more... canine than what a moose's tracks would look like.”
“Yeah, and those look a little small for a moose,” Luke nodded. “Are you sure?”
“I'm a camp counselor-- of course I'm sure. Those are moose tracks,” Fred spoke before a rustling sound caught his attention. “Shh. I think the moose is on the other side of these bushes.”
Seashell and Peach Fizz nervously whimpered at the fact that a large moose might be on the other side of the bushes, and hugged Pipp and Izzy tightly in order for protection.
Then, when Fred moved the bushes, he revealed that the pawprints belonged to Scooby, who was carrying firewood while Glory flew around and collected it.
And seeing everyone staring at him made Scooby blink in confusion. “What?”
“Huh... it's funny, Freddy,” Zipp said smugly. “That moose and it's bird friend look AWFULLY familiar-- like we've seen them before.”
The group giggled at Fred’s little mess-up, just before Fred gestured the group away. “Okay, guys, back to camp.”
“Oh yeah! Let's go!” Izzy chirped, prancing ahead of the group. “It’s arts and crafts time!”
Glory and Scooby watched their friends go out of sight before they shrugged at each other and continued on their way. However, after a few moments of silence, Glory sighed and turned to the Great Dane. “Scooby, can I talk to you? About the problem we have back home? I would talk to Peach Fizz and Seashell about it, but... I don't wanna upset them more than they already are now.”
“Sure,” Scooby nodded and set his load of firewood down. “What's on your mind?”
“My dad... he really is amazing,” Glory began the conversation. “He's taken care of me in the best possible way ever since my mom left when I was really young. But... even though I'm happy in Maretime Bay, I think Dad was happier in Zephyr Heights for some reason.”
“Did you ask him about why he feels that way?” Scooby asked. “...no. He doesn't like to talk about what's bothering him,” Glory shook his head. “He doesn't want me to worry, but... then again, moving me away from my best friends really DOES make me worry. I wanna figure out how I can change my dad's mind, but... I'm just not sure how to do that.”
Scooby whimpered softly as Glory hung her head in sadness, and nuzzled her head tenderly in an attempt to cheer her up.
Glory giggled at the Great Dane's Gentle touch, feeling a lot better now that knowing she had all of that heartache off her chest. “Thank you for listening, Scooby. That really makes me feel better. Now I think we need to get a few more sticks, just so we can make sure Shaggy doesn't have chilly chili for dinner tonight.”
Scooby giggled at the pun, gathering the wood he had set down again. “Chilly chili... that's a good one, Glory.”
But as they began to get moving again, there came a rustling in the woods, making Scooby a bit nervous. “Fred?” he called out, shaking. “Velma?”
“D-D-Daphne?” Glory called out, stammering a bit. But then, the rustling sound coming from the woods was revealed to be just a young moose, causing Scooby to sigh in relief. “So that’s what a moose looks like?” Glory asked in a whisper. “Huh… it looks a lot bigger than I expected.”
Suddenly, something caused the young moose to run off into the forest, and what was that something?
As you may have guessed, it was the Woodsman himself.
Seeing the Woodsman's ax glittering in the evening light, Scooby and Glory began to carefully back away, Scooby stammering until the Woodsman threw his ax at them, thankfully hitting a tree, but causing their fear to be thrown into overdrive. “WOODSMAN!!”
“SCOOBY, RUN!!!” Glory screamed and bolted away as fast as she could, with Scooby dropping the wood and following behind immediately. From there, it was a full sprint until they got back to the kitchen, where Scooby boarded up the door to prevent the Woodsman, who might have been following them, from coming inside.
Shaggy sighed when he saw that the two of them only came back with the small twig latched in Scooby's tail. “Oh, Scoob. When you and Glory went for wood…” he said, “I didn't know you were gonna bring it back one piece at a time.”
“I don’t know, Shaggy,” Sunny shook her head with a frown. “They look more scared than anything. What happened out there?”
Scooby didn’t answer Sunny's questions right away but pulled the window shade down in order to prevent them from being seen through it. “Wood man,” he stammered fearfully. “Wood man!”
“Yeah-- wood, man,” Shaggy nodded, not understanding what Scooby was trying to say. “That's what we need. I guess I'll have to get it myself.”
“Shaggy, wait!” Glory cried out in panic. “Don’t go out there!”
However, while Sunny held the pegasus filly close, Shaggy opened the front door, revealing an ominous figure out there in the darkness. “WOODSMAN!!” Scooby shrieked before fainting in Shaggy’s arms. But then, Burt came into the kitchen with a handful of firewood. “I saw smoke coming from the chimney. Figured you boys and your friends could use some more firewood.”
“Like, thanks, Burt,” Shaggy smiled. “Dinner’s almost ready.”
Shaggy then set Scooby roughly on the floor, prompting him, Glory and Sunny to look out the door. “Well, I guess the Woodsman is gone now, guys,” Sunny said, patting Glory on the head. “We’re safe here for now.”
“...I hope you’re right…” Glory muttered as Scooby turned to close the door before the group got ready for dinner.
XXXXXXXX
A few minutes later, everyone sat in the large table in the dining hall (which was two tables pushed together), and Shaggy went around the table, pouring chili into everybody’s bowls. “Like, man, I hope you're hungry…” Shaggy told everyone, “because I'm about to serve up Shaggy's famous Five-Alarm Hole-In-The-Bowl Chili.”
Misty sniffed the air, her mouth starting to water at the warm aroma. “Mmm… it smells amazing!”
“But here’s the real kicker,” Hitch said, getting a spoon. “Does it TASTE amazing?”
Fred took the first bite of chili, then after a moment, it felt like his mouth was quite literally on fire. “Spicy…”
“Here, Scooby-- there’s still plenty more if you’re still hungry,” Glory said as she helped Shaggy pour some chili into Scooby’s bowl. After the chili was poured, Scooby took the bowl into his paws and began to slurp…
…but as it turns out, the chili was so hot, it burned a hole in the bowl, just like the name of the chili said it would.
Everyone laughed at this, even Scooby... even though it seemed like someone else was watching them from the outside. At the same time, Zipp wiped her mouth before turning to the campers. “Okay, guys-- we already told all of you about how we met Mystery Inc, so I think it’s time we told you a different story. Any suggestions, guys?”
“Ooh, ooh! I know!” Peach Fizz eagerly waved her hoof. “What about the story where you went to that town and defeated the evil witch ghost?”
“Ooh, that’s a good one, Peach Fizz! And it’s one of my favorites too!” Sunny said. “Okay, it all started late one night when we came through the portal. The gang was in the process of solving the mystery of two viking spirits, when we stepped in and tried to help. Fortunately, we had some unexpected help from some new friends-- Ben Ravencroft and Autumn Rain.”
“She was the earth pony who practiced different kinds of magic, right?” Seashell asked. “Right,” Zipp nodded. “They invited us back to their hometown of Oakhaven for the autumn festival that week, but we had no idea that this adventure was going to lead us down a whole new path…”
XXXXXXXX
Later that night, the Pippsqueaks were settled into their cabin right next to the Mane 6's cabin, so if they needed their older pony friends, they could just go right on over and speak to them.
Unfortunately... sleep was the last thing on their minds.
Seashell sighed sadly, causing Glory to look down at her from the top bunk. “You okay, Seashell?”
“Yeah… I’ve just never stayed in another world before… let alone a world away from my mom,” Seashell sighed. “I don’t think she was TRYING to hurt us by getting into that argument… I think she was just trying to protect us and our friendship.”
“...if only our parents understood that,” sighed Peach Fizz from the bed on the other side of the room. “We have until this mission is over to figure out how,” Glory told her friends. “And Sunny and her friends said they would help us. We just have to trust them.”
Seashell sighed, fidgeting under the covers a bit. “I sure hope you’re right, Glory… because with this Woodsman character outside… I think we need each other now more than ever.”