//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: The Everfree Forest // Story: My Little One Piece: Nakama is Magic! // by TimmayIsHawt //------------------------------// Luffy awoke with a start, quickly realizing he was falling. Out of nowhere he hit the dark soil below him. He laid on his back, unmoving, staring outwards into the vast blue sky. He spotted a few birds flying above him and focused his eyes on them as they slowly disappeared, hidden behind the clouds. Luffy sat up and sighed, not realizing the huge difference that beheld him. "I survived..." Luffy sat there, a somber expression on his face. "Doesn't seem like I survived just because I'm made of rubber. But what's this thing that looks like a bear's footprint?" Luffy asked himself, looking at the paw shaped mark engraved onto the soil. "I hope everyone else if safe like this, too." He got up and began examining his surroundings. He was in a dimly lit forest, an environment Luffy was accustomed to when he was young. "Anyways, I've gotta go back! Where is this place? And which way is Sabaody Archipelago...?" Luffy paused, trying to think of something. "Oh wait that's right!" Luffy smiled, remembering that he was given something very important, a vivre card. A vivre card was a special type of paper that move towards the direction of the creator of the paper, and also determined his or her's life force. The creator of the vivre card Luffy was holding was a man named Rayleigh, the Pirate King's first subordinate, and Rayleigh was located at Sabaody. "Right! With the vivre card, I can head back to Saboady along with everyone else! I'm glad everyone got one!" He said aloud. As he reached for his pockets, he finally realized something. He looked down at himself for a few seconds trying to process what he was seeing. "WHAAAAAAAAAAT!?!?!" Luffy gazed at himself in awe, his eyes sparkling at the amazing sight. "SO COOL! WHEN DID I BECOME A HORSE THING?" Luffy yelled aloud happily, clapping his hooves together. Luffy stumbled over to a small pool of water, not use to this new body, and began to look at his reflection. He was a red pony, with a black mane and tail. His trademark straw hat waved happily against the breeze, as it rested atop his head. His grin grew larger seeing the hat on his head, which made him think of Shanks. However, his burst of joy lasted only for a couple of seconds, remembering he had other important things to take care of. "I'm not wearing any clothes, so the vivre card must've fell when I was in that bear shichibukai's bubble. But... it must be somewhere nearby!" Luffy looked around desperately, searching for his one way ticket back to Saboady Archipelago. Walking around proved very difficult for him, but finally managed to get the hang of it after a couple of tries. Luffy, unable to find the vivre card, looked down at the dirt glumly. "I'll never be able to return..." Suddenly, Luffy heard his stomach grumble. "...and I'm hungry too... SANJI! MAKE ME SOME FOOD!" Luffy screamed, then remembered that his cook wasn't here. None of his crew mates were here. "Oh... that's right. I guess I'll look for an animal to eat. Also if this island has a town, they could probably help me search for the vivre card!" Luffy smiled and got up with high hopes. He began exploring the thick forest, hoping to find an animal of any kind or maybe even a town. He walked slowly around the dense forest for fifteen minutes, getting used to walking with this new body. However, his body was still ragged and weak from the battle, and walking was not helping his injuries. "If only Chopper was here..." Luffy thought as he walked in his slow, turtle-like pace. No animal or town appeared before him, and he was starting to get desperate from hunger. Luffy counted how many meals he missed during the three days and came up with fifteen. That was when he heard the sound of a bush rustling not too far from him. "Meat!" Luffy exclaimed in his mind, charging recklessly towards the direction of the sound. An hour ago, at the borders of the Everfree Forest. "Now, y'all sure you saw something flying into the..." The orange mare, Applejack gulped. "...the Everfree Forest?" Fluttershy nodded. Six mares stood outside the dirt road that lead into the Everfree Forest. The group consisted of Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Twilight, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie. "Now that we have a larger group, we will be safer in numbers." Twilight told the others. "I also, just before you guys arrived, received a message from Princess Celestia from Spike while we were waiting. She heard about the meteorite and was getting complaints from Ponyville about it, so she is asking us to investigate it." "Oh! Oh! I wonder what the flying thing is! Do you think it was some kind of alien space cupcake? I've never heard of anything like that before, but that still sounds super duper awesome!" Pinkie Pie bounced up and down happily. "Pinkie, I don't think it has anything to do with a cupcake." Rarity spoke. "If anything, I would want it to be some marvelous space gem! It would be perfect for my new dress design!" She squealed in delight. The five ponies began to giggle. "What? I'm being completely serious." Rarity frowned. "Well... whatever it is, the Princess wants us to investigate, so as I was saying, we should first visit Zecora. She knows the forest better than anypony, and would most likely help us search for this meteorite." Twilight said as she began walked into the forest. "Are you guys ready?" The other five nodded and quickly followed Twilight, forming a line as they walked through the dense forest. They walked along the dirt path for what seemed like eternity. However, it was a nice day outside the cool wind blowing against their faces, although the only downfall might be the silence radiating from the forest. The only sounds were the steps of the six ponies trotting along the path, and the occasional conversation that flies by every minute or so. The bushes rustled from time to time, startling Fluttershy. Rainbow was right behind Fluttershy in the very straight-forward line, and whenever she got scared she would always back up, bumping into her. "Cut it out, will you Fluttershy! That was the fourth time!" Rainbow yelled at Fluttershy, but than instantly regretted it seeing the frowning yellow face of her young mare friend. "Oh... I'm sorry... It's just-" the yellow pegasus began. "Look, I'm telling you everything is fine!" She said in a softer tone. "Nothing bad has happened to us, and you shouldn't worry, were almost there." Rainbow flew past Fluttershy, catching up to the chatting ponies. Fluttershy stopped and sighed, looking around at the nearby trees wishing she could be one, calm and still. That's when she heard the sounds of stomping. Fluttershy stood her ground for a couple of seconds, but than quickly lost her courage as the sound grew louder and louder. She then jumped into the nearest bush. As she leapt into the bush, she realized she went completely through it and quickly began to tumble down the now diagonal, dirt ground. She tried to get her footing and stop herself from rolling, but that seemed to make it worse. At last she finally managed to stop herself, however badly sprained her right hoof.. Panting heavily, she slowly regained her senses, looking at the surroundings of her new location. It was deathly quiet and Fluttershy was scared out of her mind. She looked about her, trying to figure out which direction she rolled from, but it was hopeless. The dizziness after effect was getting to her, making her sense of direction harder to determine. She finally realized something she was not prepared for, and squealed in fright. She was utterly and completely lost. A couple minutes after Fluttershy separated with the group. The group walked along, almost reaching there destination. The sun shined through the cracks of the branches and leaves, however the wind was beginning to die down. Twilight was talking about her studies with Rarity when she noticed something. "Hey, are we missing somepony?" Twilight asked, looking at the four others. They looked over at each other, until Applejack finally answered. "Now where the hay did that yellow pegasus go off too?" Applejack frowned. The four ponies looked around, trying to spot the missing Fluttershy hiding from something or possibly went off course. Rainbow Dash was immediately heart-broken when they couldn't find her. "Oh no! This is all my fault!" Rainbow Dash cried aloud. The four ponies looking at Rainbow Dash with a concerned glance. "Would yah care to explain, Dash?" Applejack eying Rainbow.