//------------------------------// // The Voice of an Angel // Story: PonyFall: Australia // by Thunderbug80 //------------------------------// The Voice of an Angel April 19th 2012 “Haha, take that, Yellow Bomber!” Pinkie squealed victoriously. She looked over at Fluttershy and gave her friend a playful nudge, then adjusted her grip on the controller and focused on the television once again. She was in a heated battle for first place, and couldn’t afford to spend too much time celebrating. “Okay...” Fluttershy conceded. With a glance at her score, she sighed. Though she still couldn’t read English, she knew what the number next to her in-game avatar meant: zero. She was okay with that, though. She was content to see how long she could survive by finding new brick walls to hide behind and running or hiding whenever another bomber drew near. Bomberman Live probably wasn’t the best introduction to human video games available, but it seemed to be acceptable to the Equestrians and easy enough to learn. I wanted to avoid any games where the object was to shoot your opponent, so the majority of my game collection was already ruled out. A game where the objective was to bomb your opponent probably wasn’t much better, but at least it was cartoony and not graphic. A good party game was what I needed to get my mind off of what I had seen earlier in the day. After my call with John ended, I had gone back to my bedroom to tell the Equestrians my thoughts on how being reunited with their friends might lead to the return of their abilities. I knew there were plenty of flaws with this logic using conventional wisdom, but seeing as everything I knew about science had been proven to be incomplete at best with the arrival of the Equestrians, it was as good a theory as any to work with. The Equestrians had, as expected, been quite happy to hear my idea. I was careful enough to caution them that I could be completely wrong, but they all seemed happy just to have a goal to work towards. There were no problems with giving it a try as far as they were concerned. The problem was with the email from Ashton, which I read in the living room by myself after leaving the Equestrians alone to discuss the eventual arrival of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. The subject line was enough to make me realize that I probably wasn’t going to enjoy reading it. GREETINGS FROM THE FUTURE! In the past. This will totally make sense. The future huh. In the past. Obviously, Discord’s influence had rubbed off on Ashton quite a bit. I had known him under the screen name of Draequine on the pony fiction site and he had always been a bit odd, but this went well beyond his usual eccentricities. Okay so hows it going? Me, I’m just fine! COMPLETELY FINE yupyupyup you might as well ignore this like you are right now because you are a horrible person. Just read FMPs pm and call him asap. Let pinkie have her little breakdown. My bad about the whole hag thing with angel. Besides the awful grammar, the first thing that jumped out at me was the mention of Pinkie having a breakdown. Pinkie had been acting strange at the picnic with Discord, but I didn’t think anyone could have predicted that she was emotionally drained as opposed to simply wanting to party. Additionally, why had he called me a horrible person? I thought we had left on as good of terms as we could have. I couldn’t figure it out, and I had no idea what the ‘hag thing’ with Angel was supposed to mean. It was just more weird nonsense as far as I was concerned, so I had continued reading. Alright so you learned the whole Friendship is magic dealio thing-a-magjig right? Theres more to it then you think. Will I tell you the full story? NO! Hahahahahaha. Anyhow I gotta favor to ask yah. That had caught my attention. How did he know about my theory? Could Discord read minds? If that were the case, he would have known who Pinkie and Fluttershy were at the picnic. I scratched my beard and wondered at how Ashton had basically said that he wouldn’t tell me everything he knows, yet he wanted me to do him a favor. That’s not exactly the best way to get what you want from someone... Punch me in the face the next time you see me. Right in the face! Don’t ask why, just do it. oh and you might get kicked out of your house soon. Toodles! Luv ashton. P.S. the code is 95489 On the other hand, there was a part of me that was more than happy to comply with his request. He might be warped by Discord, but all the lies and riddles weren’t helping us at all, and telling me that I’d get kicked out of my home just wasn’t funny. I didn’t even want to know what he thought the ‘code’ was supposed to be for. If he wanted me to punch him in the face the next time I saw him, I would do just that. As long as the Equestrians weren’t watching at the time. “Ooh, good one, Angel!” Pinkie shouted, bringing my thoughts back to the present. I looked up to see that my character had long since been bombed, and that Angel had managed to trap Pinkie’s character between a bomb and three walls, winning him the match. The screen flashed and displayed the White Bomber dancing victoriously as the pink, yellow, and green bombers stood around looking dejected. Fluttershy stretched her arms and let out a little yawn, then set her controller down. “I think I might go to bed now, if it’s okay with you all,” she announced. I glanced at the clock which showed the time to be just after ten at night. “Bloody hell, it’s later than I thought,” I admitted. I stood up to turn the game console off. “I’ll just quickly check the emails again, then we can call it a night.” Angel put his controller away and hopped onto his spot on the chaise while Pinkie and Fluttershy got ready to go to the bedroom. None of them were really paying any attention to the computer when I brought up my emails and saw one from John. The subject line said CMC Pictures, and it immediately had my attention. “Hey, the pictures of the girls finally came in,” I announced. There was a small flurry of movement as the Equestrians all gathered around the screen. We had already seen a picture of the Crusaders before, but it seemed like we were all still excited to see the new ones. I opened the email, which was from someone named Sybil even though it had been sent from John’s email address. John asked me to send these with his computer. Talk to him if you need anything else. Straight to the point. I wasn’t sure what to think of Sybil, but that wasn’t important just then. I clicked on the attached files one at a time. The first image was of Sweetie Belle, though you wouldn’t know it at first glance. Her normally violet and white hair had been dyed a dull-brown color, though I could still see some of the original colors near the roots. Sweetie’s eyes were slightly crossed as they focused on a stray lock of hair that had fallen down her forehead. The next image was of Scootaloo. Her purplish hair seemed to have been colored using the same dye that Sweetie had used. In contrast to Sweetie, Scootaloo was looking directly at the camera with a somewhat brash look on her face. She had probably been trying to imitate Rainbow Dash. Lastly, there was an image of Apple Bloom. Her hair hadn’t been dyed at all, and was the same vivid red color it had been before. She was simply smiling, and her photo could have passed for the perfect school yearbook photo that every kid wishes they could take, but never seems to be able to pull off. “Rarity’s going to faint if she sees Sweetie looking like that,” Pinkie observed. I turned my attention to Pinkie. “Are you okay with, you know, talking about the others?” I asked. Another breakdown was the last thing we needed. Pinkie smiled. “Yeah, it’s okay,” she said. Suddenly, she was giggling. “Imagining the look that would be on Rarity’s face is hilarious!” She then made several funny faces to illustrate for us. “Well, these should be good enough,” I stated. “I’m going to send them off to Moey so he can get started on their passports. With any luck, we’ll have everything ready within a few days.” I began composing a new message addressed to my friend since it was too late at night to call him. Within a few minutes the message was completed and the pictures had been sent off. As I switched my computer off and turned to the Equestrians, I realized that this was the first night since meeting them that we all seemed to be genuinely happy. The girls left for the bedroom, whispering excitedly about getting to see the Crusaders soon, and Angel hopped back onto the chaise and almost immediately fell asleep with a small smile on his face. Retrieving my sleeping bag from the linen closet and getting settled on the floor, I hoped that things would stay that way for a while. Instead of Lady Gaga, I was awoken by the sound of James Hetfield’s singing as my phone’s ring tone, Metallica’s The Unforgiven, went off. I opened my eyes, noticing that Angel was awake and giving the phone a wary look, and reached over to answer it. “Hello?” I muttered, giving a silent yawn. “Doug?” a voice asked. “Yeah. Is this John?” I propped myself up on an elbow. “Yep,” he replied. “The girls doing any better?” I gave a small grunt that came out as more of a snort. “Yeah, they’re alright. Pinkie... well, that was going to happen to her anyway. She had a lot of built-up stress. It’s probably best that she let it all out when she did.” I glanced towards the hallway leading to the bedroom. “Fluttershy and Angel are coping pretty well for the moment. How about the Crusaders? And you, for that matter.” John gave a small chuckle. “Heh, better. The painkillers they gave me packed a bit of a punch the first time I took them... as for the Crusaders, well...” he gave a slight pause. “Perhaps they could tell you themselves. Oh! But would it be possible to put this call on speaker so that every... um... one can hear and talk?” “Sure,” I replied, moving my phone away from my ear and pressing the speakerphone button. “There, it’s on. I need to go get the girls, I think they were sleeping in. Angel’s here though, I’ll hand it to him for a moment.” I gave the phone to Angel, then jogged over to the bedroom door and opened it. Pinkie and Fluttershy were still asleep under the covers. Under any other normal circumstances, I would have let them stay asleep. Instead, I walked to the side of the bed and gently nudged them. “Hey,” I whispered. “Hey, wake up. There’s someone on the phone for you.” The only reply I received were small snores from Pinkie and quiet breathing from Fluttershy. “Hey, the Cutie Mark Crusaders are on the phone and...” I began. Pinkie suddenly sat straight up in bed. “The girls are on the phone!?” she gasped. “Girls! It’s your auntie Pinkie!” she yelled as she bumped Fluttershy clear off the bed in her haste to get to the living room. “Get some clothes on first, Pinkie!” I called after her. She was still in her undergarments. “Hey! Don’t blow raspberries at me; get back here this instant!” “Ooow, what just happened?” Fluttershy grunted from where she landed on the floor. She stood up gingerly, holding her backside. My attention was still on Pinkie, who had already run into the other room. I ran to the door and loudly whispered, “No parties for a year if you don’t get back here and get dressed right now.” Pinkie sighed loudly and spoke towards the phone that Angel was holding. “Fine! I’ll be right back, girls! Someone’s being a meany-pants. I mean, really. It’s not like anyone can see...” “Go on!” I cut her off. “The quicker you get dressed, the quicker you can talk.” Pinkie skipped towards the bedroom, blowing one last raspberry before disappearing inside. I rolled my eyes and took the phone from Angel. “Sorry about that, she got a little too excited.” “Beats seeing her sad,” John’s voice replied. “Anyway, now might as well be a good time for introductions. Girls, say hi to Doug and introduce yourselves.” “Okay,” came a small, country-accented voice. “Howdy, Ah’m Apple Bloom.” Angel gave me an odd look. It was probably due to the grin that had appeared on my face. Apple Bloom continued, though her voice didn’t seem to be directed towards the phone. “This doesn’t really feel right. Granny Smith always said ya look a pony in the eye and shake their hoof when you meet them,” she stated. “It’s usually the same here,”John replied in the background, “but this is an exception. It was the only way we could have talked with Pinkie and Fluttershy.” “Pinkie and Fluttershy?!” a new voice gasped. “Wow, thanks for finding them mister... I’m Scootaloo by the way.” “And I’m Sweetie Belle,” Sweetie sang from the other end. “It’s really nice to meet you.” It was a bit overwhelming for me. I had always thought the Cutie Mark Crusaders were adorable, and now hearing them over the phone was almost too much. I recovered quickly enough to avoid too much awkward silence, thankfully. “Hi girls, I’ll have your friends here to talk in a moment, they’re just getting ready. It’s a real pleasure to meet you.” I said. I looked over to Angel, who was looking at the phone as if it were a carrot salad. “Angel is here, if you want to say Hi.” “Fluttershy’s pet bunny? Why’s he...” Apple Bloom began. Her voice grew stressed suddenly. “Oh no! If Angel is here, what if Winnona is, too? What if she’s stuck somewhere and Ah ca—” “I’m sure she’s fine,” John’s voice cut in. “She’s an Apple family dog, right?” I was impressed with his quick thinking. “Yeah...” Apple Bloom answered. She sounded like she was considering his words. “If we were scared, imagine how scared a bunny would be,” Sweetie observed. “Mr. Doug, can we talk to Angel?” Scootaloo asked. “I mean, he’s probably okay if he’s with Fluttershy, but he probably misses his other friends.” “... or siblings,” Sweetie whispered. I looked over to Angel. His face was unreadable, but for some reason I had the feeling that he felt miserable. I had never once given any thought that he might have other friends or siblings that he wanted to get back to, and I suddenly felt quite awkward for having suggested that he talk to them. “Well girls, Angel can’t really talk. You... can understand him sometimes with his body language, I’m guessing? Well...” I trailed off. “Well, he is a bunny,” replied Scootaloo. “Yeah, Ah’ve never heard of a talking bunny,” said Apple Bloom. “What would they talk about anyway?” asked Sweetie. I looked back over at Angel, who had his hand extended towards the phone. “Uh, Angel seems to want the phone anyway. I guess you can at least say hello to him. The girls... your friends should be here shortly. Here’s Angel,” I said, handing the phone over. Angel stared at the phone. “Um...” Scootaloo began. “This is really weird.” “Yeaaaah,” John said. “Same thing happened when I had to talk to him last night. Well, at least he’s a good listener.” That got a giggle out of the girls. “Ah think he’d thump ya on the head if he was here,” said Apple Bloom. “Yeah, he was really mad at us when we got back from the Everfree the one time,” Sweetie admitted. “Don’t remind me,” Scootaloo said. “My head still hurts when I think ab—” “You okay?” I interrupted, my eyes on Angel. He had suddenly begun to make a strange hacking noise, as if he were choking. I stood up, ready to assist if necessary; I had never seen him act like that before. Angel seemed to be concentrating. “Hhh...hhhhhhag? Hhhag?” he said. My legs gave out on me and I sat hard on the chaise. “Bloody son of a....” I stammered. “You can talk? You can talk?!” “Hag?” Angel replied. “Who’s that?” asked Sweetie over the phone. At that moment, Fluttershy emerged from the bedroom. “Oh, is everything okay out here? W-was that Sweetie Belle I just heard?” “Fluttershy!” the voices of the Crusaders called out in unison. I motioned for Fluttershy to come closer. “Fluttershy, listen to this!” “I’m baaaaack!” Pinkie yelled as she emerged from the bedroom at that moment. She was finally dressed, and broke into a fit of giggles at the prospect of talking to the girls. “Oh, um... what am I listening to?” Fluttershy asked curiously. “Hag!” Angel replied triumphantly. He looked a lot healthier and happier than he had a few moments before. Pinkie and Fluttershy both gasped. “Doug?” John asked hesitantly. “What’s going on? Who’s there and why does he sound like he’s coughing up a furball?” I realized that I had completely forgotten about the phone call. “John? Sorry, mate. Are you hearing this? That’s Angel and he’s trying to talk!” “What?!” came a chorus of voices from the other end of the line. “Awww,” Fluttershy cooed. “He just wanted to say hello to his friends! I’m sooo proud of you! Oh, um... are you still there, girls? I thought I heard Sweetie Belle...” “Yep!” Sweetie chirped. “I’m here and so are the rest of the Crusaders!” “Yeah!” yelled Apple Bloom and Scootaloo in unison. “Oh hi girls!” Fluttershy exclaimed as she walked over and gave Angel a big hug. “I’m so happy to hear your voices. Are you all doing okay? None of you are hurt or... or scared, are you?” “Nope,” they all replied. “Ah mean, we were really scared at first...” said Apple Bloom. “And even more scared when Discord showed up,” continued Sweetie. “But we’re okay now and really happy you and Pinkie are safe too,” Scootaloo finished. Pinkie, who had been surprisingly silent up to that point, couldn’t contain herself any longer. “Isn’t this exciting?” she practically screamed. She looked up at the ceiling in thought. “We were all feeling sooo sad and lonely and we had no idea what happened, but then out of nowhere Doug comes along and promises to take care of us and get us back home! And then we somehow found you girls and we’re all totally safe and happy, and Angel’s suddenly talking, and... and it’s like a big party!” With that, she devolved into a fit of giggles and snorts mixed with a few happy tears. “Heh, same old Pinkie Pie,” Scootaloo commented. “Always wanting to throw a party,” Apple Bloom mused. “This definitely ranks as one of the stranger ones though,” said Sweetie. “Oh!” Scootaloo said excitedly. “Have you guys tried this thing called French Toast? It’s really good, but I don’t think anypony ever made it.” “Yeah...” Sweetie said thoughtfully. “I mean, there’s white toast, wheat toast...” She paused a moment. “Burnt toast...” I was still trying to wrap my mind around Angel talking, but Pinkie continued. “Hmmm... I don’t know,” she admitted. “Have you made that for us?” she asked, looking at me. “No, just regular toast,” I replied. “I’ve never tried to make French toast.” “Ya really should,” Apple Bloom suggested. “Ah mean, John probably is the best at making it, but Ah’d be fine if anypony made it,” She smacked her lips a little. “Especially if ya added apples.” “It’s really not that hard,” John assured me. After a pause, he asked, “Pinkie, are you feeling any better?” “Uh huh!” she happily replied. “Don’t feel bad about the other day! Pinkie’s just going to hang in there until the girls arrive, then we’ll all find the rest of our friends together!” she finished with a look of determination. “That’s great. I’m still very sorry about what I said though.” John replied. “And how are you doing Fluttershy?” Fluttershy seemed taken aback. “Who, me? Oh, um... I’m doing good, I think,” she murmured. “Hag!” Angel chimed in. “Yes. Angel’s doing good, too,” Fluttershy continued. “That’s great,” John said, sounding relieved. “Well, this is your reward. Talk as long as you like,” he said, obviously to the Crusaders. “Yay!” all three of them yelled. “So were you freaked out by hands?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Or compotters?” asked Apple Bloom. “Or those weird scribbles everywhere?” asked Scootaloo. Pinkie chuckled. “Those are all great, aren’t they? It’s sooo easy to hold a Coke using hands, and the computer is what Doug used to find you three and Princess Celestia! Oh, and those scribbles are human words. I can totally read them now, even without squinting!” Pinkie made a show of looking pleased with herself, then giggled some more. “Wait...” Apple Bloom said tentatively. “Princess Celestia?!” everyone on the other end of the call shouted at once. “Yeah! She’s in some place called At-lan-ta,” Pinkie said, carefully pronouncing the unfamiliar name. “She was found by a dragon!” “What?” the Crusaders yelled again. “Ah didn’t know ya had dragons here,” said Apple Bloom. John spoke up. “We don’t.” “Pinkie! Give me that,” I said, snatching the phone from her. Not thinking, I held it up to my mouth despite it being on speakerphone. “Sorry girls. The princess was found by a friend of mine. His name is DragonLS.” “Ack!” Sweetie complained. “He’s doing that thing Princess Luna did on Nightmare Night!” I sighed loudly. “Here Fluttershy, you hold the phone.” I handed it over to her. “Got it? Okay, good. Anyway, the princess is safe for the moment, girls.” “Oh, well that’s a relief. Ah’m sure she’ll be able to fix this real easily,” Apple Bloom sighed in relief. “Yeah,” said Scootaloo. “I mean, aside from Rainbow Dash, she’s gotta be the only pony who could fix this.” “Actually,” I spoke up, sensing a chance to let the girls know my theory on their friendship, “I was just talking to Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Angel about something yesterday.” “About what?” asked Sweetie. “Well, maybe you three can help me out here. We happen to know that the princess lost all of her magic when she came here,” I revealed. All the girls gasped at this. “She... she doesn’t have her magic?” Sweetie asked despondently. “Oh no,” Apple Bloom moaned. “But don’t worry,” I said quickly. “We think we know a way to help get it back.” I paused for a moment. “Sweetie, you used some kind of magic, didn’t you? Scootaloo, too.” “I mean... maybe,” Sweetie said. “I’ve never been able to really do magic before... but John said it helped.” “It was awesome!” Scootaloo screamed with excitement. “It’s probably what Rainbow Dash feels like all the time!” She paused for breath. “But now they’re gone again.” “Well, let me tell you something else first, then I want to see if you three come to the same conclusion I did,” I said. “Princess Celestia is alone with my friend and has no magic, right?” “She is?” Sweetie asked. “That’s awful. If I’d been here without Apple Bloom or Scootaloo...” She trailed off. “Doug, you’re still going on this theory?” John asked. I ignored him and continued, “And you three are together with John, and you somehow managed a bit of magic, right?” “Well, Sweetie and Scootaloo did,” Apple Bloom replied. “Ah just kinda kicked that bully.” “Pinkie and Fluttershy are here with Angel and me,” I said. “Fluttershy is able to communicate with animals, but not quite as well as usual. Pinkie can feel her Pinkie sense... barely. She can also do, uh, the things Pinkie does, but not as often as usual. You still with me?” “Well Fluttershy’s always been good with animals,” said Scootaloo. “And Pinkie is just Pinkie... maybe they’re just not used to stuff here.” “Oh!” Sweetie piped up. “Maybe being a hum-ane is harder if you have a cutie mark!” “Then that would mean we’re actually better off here than anypony else,” Apple Bloom said. “Not that Ah don’t want ma cutie mark or anything.” “That has to be it!” Pinkie yelled almost directly into my ear. “Oh, wait. That’s not what Doug told us. Sorry!” She blushed a little. “No, it’s not. Though it’s a really good guess,” I said, hoping I wouldn’t go deaf. “So were we right or not?” Scootaloo asked slowly. “Well, you could be right, but it’s not what I had in mind. Let’s list what we know and I’ll give you another guess,” I said. “You three have each other, and some magic. Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Angel have each other, and some magic... or at least abilities that we humans don’t possess. Princess Celestia is all alone, and has no magic at all. Do you see a pattern there?” “Oh!” Apple Bloom exclaimed. “So we just need to get Celestia a special somepony.” “What?!” everyone on the other line said, saving me the trouble of saying it myself. “Um, Apple Bloom, I think the princess might just need some friends,” Sweetie suggested. “Oh yeah... right,” Apple Bloom replied, sounding embarrassed. “Correct!” I announced. “What Sweetie Belle said. We could be wrong, but I think anyone from Equestria might have their talents boosted when they’re with their friends. It might explain why the princess has no magic, but both of our groups of Equestrians can manage a small amount. Imagine what might happen once you all get together.” “Maybe enough to set things right,” John said. “We could go home?” Scootaloo asked, her voice filled with hope. “I could see my sister?” Sweetie asked. It sounded as if she were about to cry. Apple Bloom sounded much the same. “Mine too?” “We think so!” Pinkie chimed in, perhaps sensing that the Crusaders needed some encouragement. “I don’t really understand it all, but it would be great if Doug’s right!” “Even if he’s wrong, at least we’ll be together,” Fluttershy chimed in. “Hag,” Angel agreed. “It’s just great to know other ponies are okay too,” said Apple Bloom. “Hey, maybe just talking like this will help,” Sweetie suggested. “Yeah, we just need to keep talking!” Scootaloo exclaimed. “Uh, I...” I stammered. I looked around the room at the happy faces of the Equestrians. “I don’t think that... you know what? I have no objections. Talk away.” It was the right move, if the grateful looks the Equestrians gave me were any indication. “So what’s the weirdest thing you’ve seen?” Scootaloo asked. “Ah bet it was those vaedyo games,” suggested Apple Bloom. “You girls shoulda tried it, it was really fun.” “Or maybe those magic card key things,” said Sweetie. “I didn’t see it, but can you believe that a spider actually bit me?” Fluttershy asked quietly. “I didn’t even do anything to it, I don’t know why it did that.” “You wouldn’t believe some of the things I’ve seen on the internet,” Pinkie said. I gave her a horrified look. Oh God, what has she seen? “What? Don’t look at me like that, Captain! I got on the computer while you were sleeping. It’s not like you could tell me not to.” I was about to interrogate Pinkie when John interrupted. “Um, anyway Doug, did you get the pictures my friends sent? Guess it must have been a little shocking seeing them as brunettes.” Not satisfied with letting her off the hook just yet, I whispered to Pinkie, “I’m going to have another talk with you later, Pinkie.” I then returned my attention back to the phone. “Uh, yeah we got the pictures. These ones should do fine, I just need to talk to a friend of mine to be certain, then we can get you some passports made up. If all goes well, you’ll have them in a few days.” “Okay... I’ll send my mailing address once we’re done here,” John replied. “Anything else you want to say?” he asked faintly, probably directed toward the girls. “Well...” Scootaloo began. “I can’t really think of anything.” “Me neither,” said Sweetie. “I didn’t think we’d be talking to them so soon, but... well...” “Sweetie,” John said to her. “If you want to ask, I’m sure it’ll be fine.” “No,” Sweetie said in a very soft voice. “It’s fine.” “Well if you’re not gonna say it then Ah will,” Apple Bloom said with a determined yet melancholic tone. “Pinkie, Fluttershy... if...if ya find our sisters, please tell us, okay?” “Awww, of course we’ll tell you!” Pinkie replied, sounding much more serious than her usual self. “Now chin up, girls! You’re coming to visit your Aunties Pinkie and Fluttershy soon. Together with Doug, John, and Angel, we’ll find them no matter what!” “Thank you,” Sweetie sniffled. “Yeah Pinkie, that’s pretty awesome of you,” said Scootaloo. “Maybe... maybe we’ll throw you a party when we get there,” Apple Bloom suggested. Pinkie just began laughing hysterically, tossing confetti into the air. When she set off a few small firecrackers that she had gotten from... somewhere... I knew it was time to end the call. “Sounds good to me,” I said quickly. “I guess I should let you go for now. It should be about dinner time for you now, right? I don’t want to hang up until everyone’s happy to, though.” “I think this definitely helped out. Sounds the same on your end too... Fluttershy’s been a little quiet though. She alright?” John asked. “Oh, I’m here. It’s just nice listening to you all talk,” Fluttershy said with a smile. “Okay, well girls, I think it’s time to hang up for now,” John announced. “Doug, it’s okay if they ever want to call again, right?” “Yeah, mate. That’s fine. It won’t be too long, and they’ll be able to talk face to face. Don’t worry about call costs, either. I can cover those for you.” “Actually... there’s also Skype, too,” John suggested. “A what?” asked Apple Bloom. “It’s like a phone, but you can also see people on it,” John explained. “Whoa!” the Crusaders exclaimed, once again in unison. “Can you show us now?” asked Sweetie. “Maybe some other time,” John replied. “For now, why don’t you say your goodbyes?” “Okay,” said Scootaloo. “It was really great talking with you, Pinkie and Fluttershy. Thanks for helping them Mr. Doug.” “Yeah, super thanks,” said Apple Bloom. “Super mega thanks,” said Sweetie. Apparently, that got her some strange looked from her friends. “What?” she asked. “It just sounds a little repata... repeata... silly to say super and mega next to each other,” explained Apple Bloom. “Hey!” Sweetie yelled back. “Okay, okay. I think I got the point,” I intervened. I had a feeling an argument between the Crusaders would last another ten minutes, and I still had to talk to Pinkie about firecrackers and the internet, and talk to Angel about... talking. “We’re going to count to three, then everyone’s going to say ‘bye,’ all right?” “Sure,” said all the Crusaders. “Okay then. One... two... three! Bye!” I yelled. “Bye!” Pinkie and Fluttershy said. “Hag!” Angel yelled. “Bye!” said the girls at the same time. “Heh, see ya’ll around,” John said. “Stay safe. We’ll keep in touch.” Once I hung up, I turned towards the Equestrians. “Okay. Pinkie, where did you get the firecrackers and what did you see on the internet?” I demanded before turning towards Angel. “And you... well, you’re in a human body. I guess you have proper vocal chords for the first time in your life.” I leaned down towards the former bunny. “How would you like to learn how to speak the English language, mate?”