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// Chapter 5: Welcoming Committe 
// Story: Spike's Teacher 
// by Richer19 
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I hope you all enjoy the next chapter.

Chapter 5: Welcoming Committee

“Oh…my,” was all Fluttershy could think when she was facing Spyro. She knew that she wasn't as brave as Rainbow Dash or as tough as Applejack, but even still she couldn't remember the last time she felt this nervous before. There was something about him that just seemed to cause her legs to be turned into jelly and her breathing to rise in tempo.
The only conclusion that she could think of was that she was in awe of this stallion. She noticed that he was an Earth pony that was actually slightly smaller than Big Mac. However, Fluttershy could almost visualize the well toned muscles that appeared to flex with each breath he took. His coat was a shade of purple that was darker and richer than anything she had ever seen before, and the way his golden mane appeared to crest upon his head like a crown while still maintaining a sense of freedom and form would have easily made Rarity jealous. His purple eyes showed not only strength, but also compassion and understanding, giving her the sense that he was the kind of pony that would support her no matter what.
She also noticed the dragonfly that her butterfly friend told her about hovering next to a Pegasus mare. Unlike Spyro, she felt like she had something in her throat whenever she looked at Cynder. Her black coat looked as well kept as Spyro's, but it also had a kind of rugged feel about it, and the alternating red and silver mane gave her the impression that the red was dyed in something she didn't want to think about. Her green eyes, unlike Spyro, showed aggression and misery under a strong sense of will.
“Are…are you alright, Fluttershy?” Spyro asked refocusing her attention back on him. She liked the way he was talking to her, using a tone that was both cautious but understanding. In fact, she liked a lot of things about this stallion. He wasn't a bad looker and he had such a gentle voice and charming personality that made her heart grow their own wings and fly in her chest. She nodded and waited for Spyro to talk some more, if nothing else than to hear him speak.
Spyro was now starting to understand why Sparx was scared of this…horse creature. She had those large cyan eyes practically glued on him, almost like he was the only thing she cared to look at. It certainly caused a bit of nervousness inside him. Trying to fight back whatever that nervous reaction was, Spyro asked, “Excuse me, Fluttershy, but could you tell us where the nearest town is located?” Fluttershy nodded, gesturing with her hoof to her left. Spyro said a quick thank you before making his way in that direction with Cynder and Sparx quickly closing the distance.
Once Fluttershy could no longer see Spyro, her mind was able to register the heat that was on her cheeks. Feeling both confused and funny, she decided to go and talk to her friend Rarity and ask her if she knew anything. With that in mind, Fluttershy took off and made her way to Rarity’s shop, making sure to keep her distance from the stallion.
The conversation had remained silent between the two dragons and dragonfly as each of them tried to understand what they had seen. Spyro was still kind of shaken up by the way Fluttershy had looked at him, and why he was having such a weird reaction. Cynder was thinking about the fact that they ran into a horse-thing and not a dragon, and started to question what the dominant species was here. She was also feeling a hint of anger and jealousy after she saw the way Fluttershy was looking at Spyro with such large, innocent eyes. Sparx, meanwhile, was just glad that they were able to get away from that crazy horse before she tried to use her hypo-eyes on him again.
Eventually, Spyro said, “Well…that was certainly…interesting.” The others nodded in agreement before Spyro continued. “I must admit that she did live up to her name.” Once again it was responded with the same nod and the trio fell back into accepted silence.
It didn't last long before Sparx suddenly pointed out, “You could have asked her if she knew Twilight.”
Cynder was quick to counter, “I don’t think that would have worked. She looked like the kind of horse that prefers isolation rather than interaction. We should be at least thankful that she knew of a town that was nearby.”
Spyro added, “I agree with Cynder on this one Sparx. She didn't look like the kind of pony to have many friends, especially considering the fact that she was out here all alone.”
Sparx was forced to admit that they did have a point. However, he couldn't help but recall the annoyed look that Cynder was giving that yellow horse and couldn't resist the chance to get under her scales.
With that thought in mind, Sparx casually floated over to Spyro and said, “So man, what you thought of that mare?”
Spyro looked back at his brother with a confused expression and replied, “She seemed nice…if a bit on the timid side.”
Sparx nodded in understanding before adding, “What about how she looked?” That caused a mild reaction from Spyro by evidence of the stunned expression on his face.
Spyro looked back at Sparx and replied with a slight hesitant tone, “Wh…why do you care, Sparx?”
Sparx gave a knowing look at stated, “Come on, man, I saw the way she was looking at you. She was clearly eager to spend time with you.”
“Sparx…in case you haven’t realized it, she’s a horse and I’m a dragon.”
“So…you know that and I know that but did you forget that cloak is supposed to help you blend in? To her, you were probably a very attractive stallion.”
Cynder couldn't take listing to what she was hearing any longer and moved herself between Spyro and Sparx. She shot a disgusted look towards the dragonfly who merely chuckled on the inside, happy that he was able to get such a reaction. Spyro, however, was feeling slightly flustered by the implications that Sparx had presented and he hoped that he wouldn't run into any more mares anytime soon.
Eventually, the group reached the forest edge and saw the large town that was in front of them. However, there was one thing that Spyro noticed that managed to put a lump in his throat.
As far as he could see, the entire town was populated with mares. They all had various color coats and manes and moved around like any normal town would. What surprised them was seeing the ponies with wings managing to move actual clouds around all by themselves. Cynder was truly interested in this concept in particular and started to get curious if she was able to perform a similar feet.
Spyro looked to the rest of the group and said, “Well… let’s hope this ‘Twilight Sparkle’ lives here, or at least find someone who can point us in the right direction.”
Cynder and Sparx nodded and made their way to the town. When they got there, they were surprised to find themselves treated with a friendly atmosphere and with no trace of suspicion. Cynder was slightly surprised by this rather open-arm demeanor of the town, and secretly welcomed the fresh and bright atmosphere. However, she couldn't help noticing how almost all the mares had their eyes locked onto Spyro with an almost trance-like state. It caused her to start to think that Sparx might have been on to something, and started to imagine what Spyro must have looked like in their eyes. No doubt it was something akin to what a hero would look like. Sparx was enjoying the attention they were getting, even though it was more to his brother, and was waving at all of the horses and sometimes giving a sharp whistle at random mares in an effort to embarrass his brother and annoy Cynder. Spyro, however, was feeling pressured under all of those eyes and wished that he could hide himself deeper into his clock.
Eventually, the three made their way to what appeared to be a market place. All along the stalls, they saw a rich variety of fruits, vegetables and other various items one might need for a comfortable living. Upon looking at some of the food, a growl came from the two dragons and they both decided to go and get something to eat. However, the lack of meat in the market meant that they would have to settle for something else and it didn't take long before they both agreed to get an apple from a nearby cart.
The cart was occupied by an orange mare with a blonde mane. She had a rather strange hat and her green eyes seem to speak truth in them. She saw the stallion and the mare looking at her and seeing that they might be customers, waved them over and gave them a cheerful smile. When the two stopped in front of her stall, she said in her best selling voice, “Howdy, y’all. Names Applejack, farmer of Sweet Apple Aces home of the best doggone apples you’ll ever taste. What can I get for you?”
The stallion looked at her and she couldn't resist the small rise of heat forming on her cheeks. His eyes seem to speak of a pony who was also a hard worker, but at the same time caring and honest. She also had to admit that his appeared to be quite strong, maybe as strong as Big Mac. Applejack managed to shake off those thoughts when the stallion said, “I would like two of those red apples, please?
Applejack nodded and placed the two Red Delicious’s in front of them. The stallion reached into his saddlebag and pulled out what appeared to a small nugget of gold. Her eyes widen as she saw the size of that nugget, already imagining how much that was worth. So it came to her surprise when the stallion place the nugget on her stand and said, “Will this be enough?” He spoke with a slight hesitant tone in his voice that sounded like he was worried that he might offend her. It was something that almost caused Applejack to feel guilty about taking the nugget.
Her honesty wouldn't allow it and she replied, “Shoot, partner, that there nugget could be enough to buy everything I have in stock.” It caused a mild shock from the stallion and his cheeks also gained a slight red, though it could have been from embarrassment.
Before the stallion had a chance to respond, the mare next to him added, “Then perhaps we could buy something… else, perhaps some… information.” The way that pegasus mare was talking caused the farmer to get a bad feeling, and she eyed the mare with a suspicious gaze before asking her what kind of information. The mare merely smile and said, “Not much; we were just wondering if you would happen to know someone by the name of Twilight Sparkle?”
Of course Applejack knew Twilight. It wasn't a big secret that they were friends and on any other day, she would have been more then happy to point them in the right direction.. However, there was something about this mare that just gave her a really bad vibe about it. In fact, looking at her reminded Applejack of what she felt when her and her friends confronted Nightmare Moon. All in all, she didn't trust this mare the slightest and said, “Sorry, I don’t know nopony by that name.”
Spyro notice that when Applejack was finished talking, her eyes started to shift in a rather weird way and her muzzle was scrunched up as if she was chocking on something.Realizing that the farm pony wasn't telling the truth at the moment, he said, “Please, any information you can give us would be greatly appreciated.” It was then that Applejack notice his eyes lighting up a bit and he reached into his saddlebag while saying “We need to speak with her so we can give this to her.” ‘This’ was a scroll that looked like any scroll that she had seen. However, her eyes widen when she saw the wax seal that looked like Princess Luna’s Cutie Mark. If this stallion and mare had business with the Princess, then she had to help. With that thought in mind, Applejack told the two where to find Twilight and gave them directions. The stallion and the mare thanked her before leaving with their snacks.
Spyro and Cynder were walking over to the location of the town library when Sparx showed up yelling, “Spyro, buddy, you've got to help me!”
Spyro looked at Sparx before saying, “What is it…”
Wham!
Spyro felt something crash into him, causing him to fall and roll around on the ground before landing with his back on the ground. His vision was suddenly covered in pink and he heard a high pitch voice say, “Hi there!”
Hope you all enjoy the chapter.

Editor: Sorry, the delay was my bad. This has been ready for my proofing for over a week, so... Yeah... If someone else wants to help too, feel free to drop a PM or comment! Can never have enough help!