Stepping forth into a new world for the first time after being shaken awake brought a smile to her face. It was so bright and colorful and the music was cheery and you could hear it as if it were being played by tireless professionals. Screwball looked to Kazooie who pointed out a house nestled into a small corner of the world; soon Screwball was galloping down the Spiral Mountain taking in everything around her excitedly.
Kazooie just stood there watching and sighed sadly thinking back to what she said to Pinkie a long time ago.
“Look kid… we’ve found a way to get you home… I know you don’t want to leave. Even I find it hard to leave Spiral Mountain for my excursions, now get your party things and we’ll go see if Humba has the magic portal thing working. Goodness knows she and Mumbo will beat the tar out of each other before we get there.” After a moment the faded image of a ghost of a little filly faded away as the words she had said to little Pinkie a long time ago floated on the wind. “As long as you keep someone in your heart they never really leave you, so buck up Pinkitty you just need to reach out to others with an upbeat personality and always remember that laughter is the best medicine for what ails a sad heart. Just keep working on your party’s kid; you’ve got a real talent for it.”
“…I Pinkie Pie promise…”
Kazooie’s wings tightened into a closed grip before they relaxed, she started whistling a slow version of Green Greens as she slowly walked down the spiral trail in a melancholy manner. She made it to the house just in time to see Screwball get slightly intimidated by her brother Banjo opening the door and look down at her with his ever present goofy smile. The breegull thought she should probably take Screwball on down to the Diddy Kong Racing courses for a fun tour of video game combat racing, the N64 race tracks were classic and where Banjo started out as a game character with no back story needed.
Other than that Kazooie had a more serious thought on mind to call up a few characters to help her out when she ventured forth to Equestria again.
In Equestria things couldn’t be more normal; Twilight had quickly forgotten the embarrassment of kissing Princess Celestia and was back in her library that had become her home away from Canterlot. However she would continue to remain ignorant to Fluttershy and Rainbow’s relationship, speaking of which...
“Spike!” Twilight yelled hoping for once the dragon wasn’t slacking off or knee deep in pancakes again.
“Yeah what do you need Twilight?” The dragon just waddled into the room, feeling slightly cross that his vacation from his bossy mother figure was over.
“Have you heard from or even seen Philomena recently?” It was a curious random thought; Twilight had seen a single feather or heard a squawk from her in recent days.
“Can’t say that I have, why? Now that you mention it I haven’t seen Owlowiscious all week either, huh guess he must have gotten tired of us.” It was around this point that Peewee flew in and landed on Spike’s head chirping merrily, it was soon followed by two other birds landing on his head. Talk about bird brained.
“Never mind, Celestia told me to make sure Philomena was comfortable living here and she seems to be doing perfectly fine. Also they don’t look tired to me, well except Owlowiscious mostly because of the nocturnal thing. I don’t understand how he can manage a friendship with diurnal creatures like phoenixes so well if he’s asleep half the time, then again I’m one to talk since I drag him to the pet play dates. Maybe I can make it a lesson on friendship interaction between species… with possibilities of Gilda making up with Rainbow and how old friendships can be rekindled.” Shaking her head Twilight decided to see if she could snag some breakfast with Applejack, Pinkie seemed to be doing it all the time so she just wanted to share the experience given how much her friend expunges the virtues of vittles before noon at Sweet Apple Acres. “I’m heading over to Applejack’s don’t forget to mind our companions before you go over to Rarity’s. If I remember right Fluttershy and Rainbow are also having breakfast at Sweet Apple Acre’s today.”
At this moment Applejack was in fact preparing breakfast and at the table sat six ponies looking at her, her family, the two flying snuggly ponies almost attached at the wings at this point and Pinkie.
“Ugh… now you got our other friends doing it too Pinkie. We should just open a bed and breakfast at this point.” Sighing Applejack went back to work on the multiple fixings she had going on at once with Big Mac offering assistance every now and then.
“You know I tried eating breakfast in bed and it ended up getting it all crumbly and stuff on my sheets and then I kept getting attacked by these bed bugs. So in conclusion I don’t think bed and breakfast go too well together… especially when your bed gets all sticky from the maple syrup. I tried making a bed of cupcakes, but that only made things even worse, bed and desserts don’t work either!” Chuckles all around, Pinkie didn’t seem worse for wear after the strange battle and some would say she’s even perkier then she’s been in a while. Sugar Cube Corner would take a while to rebuild and the Cakes insurance definitely paid for it without issue and until then Pinkie needed a place to crash. No better place than on a farm where you were honorary family right?
“Excuse me for dropping on by as I’ve finished preparing for the worst... I believe I may have worked up quite a thirst.” Zecora came into the house without preamble and noticed all the ponies at the table; she also noticed how Big Mac’s eyes lit up somewhat at her presence. She was flattered by his sudden rise in attention, what pony or zebra wouldn’t be? In any case Kazooie’s hint at future problems made her prepare all kinds of alchemic potions that do various things from breathing water to night vision sight, even a fast acting poison joke mixture. “Do you mind if I join in with this bunch, might I even ask if I can stick around past lunch?”
“I don’t see why not…” Applejack stated slowly, when a knock on the door was heard and in walked Twilight as soon as Apple Bloom got the door, she sighed and started working on making a bigger meal. “Take a seat Twilight if you can find one. The only pony not here is Rarity, then again I think she’s too busy feeding Spike a meal made by Sweetie Belle.”
“Huh, no wonder Rarity said she needed Spike today.” Twilight had heard that Sweetie Belle was a horrible cook, even managing to burn juice and that should be physically impossible as pouring juice only required one action if it’s bought fresh off the market. However the charcoal that was breakfast made by Sweetie Belle was perfect for Spike since dragons could eat almost anything without getting sick and she never heard Spike ever complain about coming back from there as he even complimented the food, not that Rarity always fed him gems.
“Can I help?” Pinkie said immediately getting up from the table, moving to Applejacks side.
“It’s going to be a while guys if everyone keeps showing up here and yes you can Pinkie. Just don’t touch the sugar and we’ll all be fine, just get to work on the hash rounds.” Applejack sighed as Pinkie took up position next to her.
“So… Applejack… I think I have an idea as to how long you have liked her and you do realize she’s completely straight right? I mean like a ruler for drawing lines with!” In mid pancake flip the farmer stopped and turned to Pinkie who had whispered to her as she got out her own frying pan and sidled up next to her.
“I know and I’m still coming to terms with it. I might honestly take you up on that offer for a date some day, but don’t push your luck Pinkie.” Applejack continued to work on the food as Pinkie continued to merrily hum next to her and prepare the potatoes with some salt and pepper.
“Still what is it about Rarity that you like so much, that’s she pretty, her posh accent or is it that she’s stubborn like you are at times?” Idle quiet conversation was not something Applejack was expecting from Pinkie.
“Most of that stuff sure, but one thing for certain is that she’s a rarity and that’s the kind of a thing all my friends have. There’s no other pony quite like you or any of the other gals. I have nothing against you Pinkie; it’s just a personal preference.” Applejack flipped a pancake onto a plate and started work on another one.
“So what do you like about me again? I still like you because you’re a silly pony even if you won’t like me back in the same way.” Pinkie said leaning towards Applejack with a smile.
“Well you’re perky, wild and you’re always willing to cheer a pony up when they need it sugar cube, you’re the best friend a pony could ask for. Also don’t let her hear me say this, but I tend to think you’re a bit more reliable then Rainbow in some occasions especially considering your senses. Never did get to give that crazy Kazooie feller her party huh?” Talking with a friend was easy enough even if they were always doing things for you and treated you all sweeter then the apples you grow, but it was about time for a change in subject.
“I wouldn’t worry about that, she’ll be back… and I got to start training my skills, the element of laughter can’t fight without her gags being up to snuff! Then again Snuff wasn’t a very nice pony to begin with, so I’d probably want to be at least twice his level by the time she gets back. It’ll be my playing field next time you know, I really have got to get the classic special Pie family special pie throwing trick down. Granny Pie was a believer in the classics. I will beat Kazooie next time and without the incidental collateral damage we totally didn’t see coming from a mile away!” Pinkie’s determination as she pumped a hoof was kind of contagious.
“I believe you will, but can we get through breakfast first?” Applejack noticed Pinkie fall down to the floor face first comically at her insight, the pink pony quickly stood up with a blush before she continued working on the potatoes in her pan that she had almost been ignoring for the last thirty seconds. Applejack chuckled at that, they might not always understand Pinkie, but she was a good pony deserving of the best she could get in life and Applejack didn’t think that was her.
Twilight sitting at the table had been chatting admirably about her recent research into dimensional portal magic, so far she’s been unsuccessful and that the magic in and of itself was banned for one reason or another. Why she wanted to pursue Kazooie was anyone’s guess. Maybe for revenge about whatever happened between her and Celestia, maybe to understand what drove the world traveling creature from Equestria so fast or any number of things like learning what the world Kazooie came from was like. The truth was it was much simpler than that, she wanted to explore her horizons and if she did actually explore a certain horizon, she’d find it really wants her to explore it sensually.
The fact was that dimensional traveling magic was kind of a taboo subject. This is why Celestia didn’t help her on the excursion of looking into such possibilities, so long as she promised not to publish her findings or actually try to jump dimensions she was completely fine. There was also the thing about time travel magic, which Twilight admitted was actually an interesting lesson in being careful with what you could achieve through magic. She still had to study Ponyvilles Lake for any harmful side effects of the water being breathable by all creatures, it didn’t bother the native kraken population any and they in fact have inducted Rarity’s sister into their society or at least that’s what Sweetie Belle tells every pony she meets.
“Hey why are your wings locked together like that?” It was about time Twilight finally noticed that Rainbow and Fluttershy’s wings were almost irrevocably tangled by their feathers. It took a moment for Fluttershy to realize that Rainbows wing was clutching her own before she let out a tiny squeak and fell out of seat blushing up a storm. Fluttershy hadn’t even been aware her wing was clutching to Rainbows.
“Eh, it’s just something for close pegasus friends to do. Are you okay Fluttershy?” Rainbow really hoped she could write that off in Twilights mind, she had just been telling Fluttershy about her a possible invitation to the Wonderbolts academy in a few months. She was going to go, it would be really cool as the Wonderbolts were still her thing even if she didn’t want to be a part of them nearly as much as she used to, she’d rather be a leader then a follower.
Fluttershy gave a pitiable squeak from the floor. Sure she was a little braver around Rainbow, but she was still the fluffy, cute and shy pony Rainbow knew and loved.
“Well if you say so, it’s kind of like what Unicorns do with their horns. My mom always used to rub horns with me, I really should write to my parents more often. My last visit made them really happy to see me.” Twilight smiled cheerily, not that she knew how intimate the mixing of feathers with another pegasus actually was. Scientifically she knew of the birds and bees, reality wise she had nothing on romance. Now if only Kazooie had stuck around to teach her about the bears and what they could do with female bees their size, that would have been an interesting discussion.
“Excuse me, but do you think I can be bothered to… oh… well.” Rarity poked her head through the door and saw her friends all sitting around the table, including Rainbow and Fluttershy cuddled up next to each other, Zecora and Big Mac silently sitting next to each other with a faint smile. If she didn’t know any better she’d swear all her friends were starting to pair off on their own, that actually disappointed her somewhat but she let it drop. At least Applejack wasn’t dating any pony yet as far as she knew, but she knew who Apple Bloom was snuggling up to in her spare time in a bout of innocent filly love. Why was it so hard to keep track of one farmer when she could keep tabs on said farmers little sister anyway?
Twilight kind of noticed something was going on, but didn’t question it as anything other than good friendship at the table… so why did her heart beat faster seeing them like that? Maybe she was just tired, why wouldn’t she be after spending all night studying strange and esoteric things that her friends weren’t likely to understand.
“Come on in Rarity, figured you be on by after Sweetie Belle cooks up another threat to Ponyville.” Applejack wasn’t lying, Spike saved Ponyville from Sweetie Belles cooking whenever it decided to come to life. Rarity didn’t even need decency to blush as she looked behind herself out the door and saw Spike already gnawing on the large spindly creature as it rose up in Ponyville. It was another flying pasta monster again, how many times did Rarity warn Sweetie Belle not to add strange ingredients to her food? The ponies were already running and screaming for the monster attack shelters they had started placing everywhere for just such an occasion as it happens often enough to warrant it.
It was just another day in Ponyville, where weird things happen.
Celestia and Luna sat there staring at each other blankly, Celestia wasn’t letting go of the fact that Luna was hiding something from her. Something that had to do with Kazooie and Celestia really wanted to know what as much as the why, because her sister seemed entirely flustered about it. There was no backsliding into an evil or jealous disposition on her watch; much less Luna didn’t seem the type despite what Kazooie said about facing her past.
“Sister it is a private matter, but to be frank with you… I did see why the adventurous shape alteration creature would say such warnings to me as well as give me instructions for a something special that should only affect me. Otherwise I’m as the ponies nowadays would say… cool? Is that the expression for calm demeanor? In any case I seriously doubt I’m going to relapse into that ghastly state, just because I took a look in the mirror and accepted what was there.” Luna trotted off with a chuckle. “Although I must admit that your plans for Twilight seem to be almost geared to personal endeavors as well, I wish you would let us intervene on her behalf but it’s your personal issue so I’m willing to drop it entirely if you drop mine.”
Celestia couldn’t say anything for once Luna had one on her and she couldn’t think up a calmingly insightful smarmy retort without coming off as a sore loser in this conversation. She just tilted her head downward to concede the point that whatever was Luna’s business was her business alone; they did like their privacy even if they were together again after all.
Luna trotted off hoping that Twilight could find the pony Kazooie made note of, she was a well traveled and even bright individual. Still the thought of finding a pony in a similar downward spiral like her did make her feel like she wanted her own apprentice to lavish her teachings and affection upon. Hopefully it would not be to the levels her sister has seemed to reach if it involved sealing off parts of her heart to try and keep up appearances.
Celestia’s mind wandered as she sat upon the throne… was she doing the right thing by putting Twilight through multiple thinly veiled special challenges? There was nothing stating Kazooie being a part of any prophecy she’s ever heard of. She really couldn’t stop thinking of her faithful student and that banana peel stunt Kazooie pulled, stupid sexy purple pony that she just had to take in when she was a little filly that always adored her presence and looked up to her with a heart full of love, just not the right kind of affection. She’d have her guards import chunks of ice from the north immediately as she needs a royally cold shower! It’s not like the Crystal Empire was back yet anyway.
Yes, just about everything had gone back to normal in the land of Equestria, except that some things had inexorably changed. A gang was broken up and one of the members was dating the stallion of his dreams. A DJ knew that all kinds of magic were possible, even for earth ponies including one she was sweet on that was magic with an instrument. A hoof boxing title was lost to a light weight heavily drunken pony that made the headlines from obscurity. A giant crab was fought and slain back to its own sealed dimension by a simple farmer with a lot of help. Some new music was introduced to the world; music of a different kind was also being made between many a pony and possibly a griffon. A sea king made a few new friends including a river serpent and was getting out more. Cancer was the only incident of a zodiac monster being free in a long time, but Celestia got news that it might not be the last and hoped that they stay sealed. Interestingly enough Ponyville’s lake would be the foremost drown proof place in the world and neither Twilight nor anyone else knew how to remove the enchantment, in fact it was not sure even Discord could if he had the ability to and wasn’t stuck in stone dreaming of long scary tunnels of ludicrous speed.
There was one thing left to say until Kazooie decided to return to Equestria and for a first visit it wasn’t all so bad, but when she came back…
Game Over, YEAH! (Cymbal clashing noise was heard.)