“I’m telling you, it was just like the story I told you!” Luffy said as he stuffed five fried eggs into his mouth. “Except for the meat! It wasn’t fair!””
“Ah have plenty of dreams where Ah’m working on ma farm.” Applejack paused to eat her own eggs. She only ate two at a time though. “Why are ya making such a big deal out of this?”
“‘Cause, usually my dreams are just me eating or being the king,” Luffy replied.
“Oh! I know!” Pinkie popped up beside Luffy and actually managed to swipe a strawberry from a nearby plate. While she munched on the sweet fruit, she rested a leg on Luffy’s shoulder. “Maybe being a pony makes you have different dreams. Then again, you could just be having normal dreams too, ya know. Like this one time, I dreamt everypony was having an awesome party, but that was right after the Summer Sun Celebration. Then, this other time, I dreamt I ate a cake as big as a mountain!”
Luffy’s eyes lit up at the mention of such a monstrous treat. “That sounds good!”
A little further down the table, Applejack turned and looked at Fluttershy, who was watching Luffy and Pinkie eat and talk. Fluttershy then stared at Applejack and they both gave a silent thanks to Pinkie for distracting Luffy long enough for them to get a proper meal in their bellies. They both quickly started eating their food.
The reprieve from Luffy’s stealing also allowed Applejack to note that the seat next to her was empty. She left a half eaten biscuit on her plate to lean over to her right where Fluttershy was seated. “Rarity Ah can understand, but where’s Twilight?”
Fluttershy put down the fork of fruit salad she was about to eat. She turned her head left and right, acknowledging that only four ponies were at the table. “Oh... I don’t know... maybe she wanted to sleep in a little.”
Applejack nodded in agreement. “Hmm, Ah’d believe that. Ah ever tell ya about that time Rarity and Ah slept over at her house? After Ah thought we all fell asleep, Ah got up a little later to use the bathroom and Twilight was pouring over some old lookin’ book.”
“Maybe some extra sleep is good for her then.” Fluttershy and Applejack then resumed eating their meals. Unfortunately, they both returned to empty plates. Applejack glared at Luffy while Fluttershy raked a hoof against her empty plate and frowned.
~~~
“No.” Celestia’s vision was concentrated on a stained glass window a few feet above her. Unlike those in her throne room, this one was only composed of simple simple reds, purples, and yellows and depicted no epic deeds. Sunlight glimmered down on her face and through her now wavy mane. A good top portion of it was still pink, but it was at least back to its normal flow.
Celestia kept her gaze on the stained glass, ignoring the pony to her left. Twilight stood a respectful distance away with her head stretched out as if there were an invisible line separating her from Celestia.
Twilight’s eyes glistened a little in the morning light. Celestia knew the look well and had silently sighed when Twilight walked into her room with it on this morning. Twilight only wore it when on a learning quest.
Twilight nervously bit into her lip as hundreds of different sentences danced across her tongue. Her words came out rushed and choppy. “Please! Why can’t you just teach me the basics?”
“Because haki is something nopony should learn how to use!” Celestia raised a hoof to her mouth as soon as she spoke. She lowered her shoulders and head and turned over to Twilight. “Haki is a violent force.”
“So are the Elements.” Twilight practically gasped after the jab escaped from her mouth.
“The Elements were designed to purify and, if not that, neutralize any ill-bearing or disharmonic force. Haki can be used on anypony and it can kill!” Celestia rested a hoof against her brow and shook her head back and forth. “I shouldn’t have said anything as soon as I woke up. Twilight, I’m telling you this for your own good. Do not pursue haki training.”
“But you already said we’ve accessed it. Dash’s Rainboom, Fluttershy’s Stare, even my own magic.”
Celestia sighed. “There is no way to stop haki from leaking out at crucial moments in one’s life, but honing it is an entirely different story. You’d be making a weapon out of your body. I won’t do that to anypony else.”
Twilight looked to the floor and stayed silent for a moment. Her next words came out of her mouth slowly and hesitantly. “When you first started teaching me, you taught me how to control my magic. It wasn’t enough though. I always worried it’d go out of control again, that I’d hurt somepony.”
Twilight brought her head up, her eyes now focused on Celestia. “I don’t want to use haki as a weapon, I just want to know how to handle it. I’m sure Fluttershy could tell you something similar about her Stare as well. The rest of my friends probably feel the same way as well.”
Celestia said nothing. She turned her back and faced the stained glass again. Twilight’s head dropped again and she was about to say her goodbyes when Celestia spoke up. “Hit me.”
Twilight swiveled her ears around. “Um, Princess, could you repeat that? I thought you said you wanted me to hit you.”
“I do,” Celestia said, her focus still on the glass. “Hit me once and I will teach you.”
“I... I can’t hit you!”
“Then we are done here. You can go join your friends at breakfast. You’d best hurry before Straw Hat eats up everything.”
Rather than leaving for food, Twilight just barely lit up the end of her horn. A tiny violet dot then shot out of her horn and straight for Celestia. “Forgive me, Princess.”
Celestia casually swung neck to the left, leaving the speck to strike the stone below the glass instead. It made a soft fizzle and disappeared. “You’ll need to do better than that.”
Twilight bit her lip and winced as she unleashed a small beam instead of a dot. It traveled much faster than her previous spell as well. Celestia dodged to the right and Twilight’s attack left a black mark on the wall.
“Hmph.” Twilight concentrated her magic into her horn and sent another beam at Celestia. Like before, the Princess dodged. However, right as Celestia moved her head to the left, Twilight sent out another shot, sure that Celestia would move right into the beam’s path.
Celestia gracefully swerved her neck around and the two shots both missed. “Come now Twilight, you know it will take more than that to strike me. Surely I taught you better than that?”
Twilight huffed and gritted her teeth. Sparks flew out of her horn and sputtered to the ground. A volley of violet beams then raced out of her horn towards Celestia, flying in all directions. Celestia’s body moved back and forth like a snake, avoiding each and every attack.
Sweat trickled down Twilight’s face while she continued weaving her spells. Celestia proceeded with her dodging dance as more beams came at her, but none managed to hit. With a spin, Celestia faced Twilight, who was so focussed on hitting Celestia that she didn’t notice that the Princess’s eyes were closed.
She did notice when the Princess started to step closer to her though. Taking this as a greater challenge, Twilight breathed heavily and concentrated her magical volley into a single strand of energy. It stuck to the stone wall and smoldered where it made contact. Tensing up her neck muscles, Twilight heaved her spell around like a great sword, aiming to stop Celestia’s advance.
Celestia didn’t react to Twilight’s new tactic and just continued on her way. When the strand swung at her, she either jumped or dodged, all while her eyes were closed. Twilight took a few shaky steps back when Celestia was only a few feet away from her.
The retreat didn’t get past Celestia and she lunged forward. She bent her head down and used her horn to unbalance Twilight. Twilight’s spell left a black trail along the wall as she fell. When she hit the ground, the spell stopped. She buried the bottom half of her face in her legs to hide her gaping mouth. “How... how did you know?”
Celestia reached out and lifted Twilight’s head up with a hoof. Her eyes were open now. “Observation haki. Not my strong point, but any skilled user can apply it to avoid an enemy’s attack without even looking at them. Mixed with magic it has some... interesting effects.”
“Like what?” Twilight dared to ask.
“Normally, it can only pick up living beings. Apply it to a gem seeking spell though...”
“Rarity...” Twilight stuttered. “Her story makes a bit more sense now. The magic necessary for a spell of that range would never normally be possible for a filly.”
“Neither is artificially aging a dragon.” Celestia helped Twilight up and then lit up her horn. A faint golden aura appeared between herself and Twilight. Three objects appeared within: a stylized and cartoonish eye, a toy-like spear, and a crown fit for a doll’s head. The spear floated up above the other two and became a little bigger. “I think armament haki is your forte. It seems you have taken after me in more ways than I thought.”
“So does this mean...” A thin grin traced its way across Twilight’s face. Her eyes glimmered with excitement and her legs quivered, ready to jump at the slightest provocation.
“Yes, Twilight, I will teach you the basics.” Before Twilight could happily prance around, Celestia raised a wing to quiet her. “However, you must promise to never ever use haki unless your life is in danger. Can you promise me this?”
Twilight stared at Celestia, noting the unfamiliar fire in her teacher’s eyes. The hairs on her neck stood up. This was different from learning how to control her magic. The room was deathly quiet when Twilight’s words echoed, “Yes... yes princess.”
“Very well then. I will offer this teaching to your friends as well, but only if they seek it.” The room seemed to brighten a little as Celestia smiled at her student. “Now, let us begin with what haki is. To start, there are three main types...”
~~~
“I don’t think he ever stops eating.” Rarity pushed back a curl of her purple mane with an exaggerated flourish. “Oh, what I wouldn’t give to have a metabolism like that. I mean, I go on good walks to make sure I stay fit, but there are just some things you’re born with.”
“Rarity,” Rainbow Dash sighed, “I really don’t care.”
“Oh but you should, dear. Before Mr. Luffy arrived, I was always saying the same thing about you. True, you’re very active in your daily activities, but to not have even an inch of fat on you. Oooh, it just makes me so jealous.”
Dash blew up a piece of her mane that had fallen in front of her left eye. “Well, I’m gonna be a skeleton if you or a nurse don’t feed me.”
“Oh...” Rarity blushed a little. “My apologies. You know how I am sometimes.” Rarity levitated a spoon over to a bowl of oatmeal and then moved the full spoon over to Dash. Luckily, her burns weren’t bad enough around her face that she couldn’t eat properly, but movement was out of the question.
Dash was covered in bandages from head to hoof, save for the area allowed for her mane. Her legs were hitched up above the bed to restrain Dash’s movement. Under the bandages, her skin was recovering, but needed to be still in order to heal properly. Only her head and tail distinguished her from a pony-shaped bundle of gauze. “Yeah, yeah. Still, thanks for coming by. It’s creepy when the nurses give me food.”
“Not a problem at all, dear. Honestly...” Rarity’s brow slumped and the luster fled her eyes. “It’s better than watching Mr. Luffy and Pinkie stuff their faces. If they didn’t steal my food, I’d be too disgusted to eat anyway.”
Dash snickered at Rarity turning a slight shade green. “Everypony else is doing okay?”
“Oh yes, everypony is fine.” Rarity recovered from her momentary nausea and pushed her mane back again. “I am a bit worried about Mr. Luffy’s exploits into the city. Everypony in the castle has been talking about him. Half the city thinks he’s one of Discord’s creations.”
“Darn it Rarity! Don’t tell me that, I’m gonna laugh!” Dash was trying her hardest to keep her teeth clenched. Her whole body shook a little and she winced as a chuckle escaped her mouth. “Ow!”
A knock then came at the door of Dash’s room. It opened and Luna’s flowing mane slipped into the room, followed by her head. “Fair Rarity and Dash, may I come in?”
“Sure Princess,” Dash replied.
“Certainly your highness,” said Rarity the same time as Dash was speaking.
Luna smiled at the tangle the two pony’s words had made and let herself into the room. The only part of her that remained light blue were her wings and even parts of them were darkening. Her mane had fully recovered and she now stood a good head over normal ponies. “I am glad to see you are in such a talkative mood. I take it your recovery is going well?”
“The sooner I can fly, the better.” Dash paused and turned her eyes up. “Wouldn’t mind trying that flame stuff again though. Think of all the cool tricks I could do with that!”
“And wind up in the hospital again?” Rarity balked.
“Hmm...” Luna clasped her chin with a hoof and her sight became unfocused.
“What’s up, Princess?” asked Dash.
Luna removed her hoof from her face and waved it at Dash and Rarity. “Well... my sister already told your friends, but you might be able access something akin to that power.”
“How?” Behind her bandages, Dash’s expression glowed with curiosity and delight.
Luna didn’t instantly respond and instead moved over to the chair next to Rarity. She looked at Dash and gestured to the empty seat. “May I sit here?”
“No problem, Princess.” Dash slowly twisted her head around so that she was directly looking at Luna and Rarity. “So how can I do something like what Princess Celestia did?”
“Well, it concerns Straw Hat a bit as well,” Luna explain. “Perhaps we can share stories to explain it best. It all comes back to a power few posses. A power called haki...”
~~~
Firelight lit up the night sky. A monstrous flame clawed the heavens while giant spits of meat sizzled under its heat. Shadows danced on massive trees while their owners celebrated on the ground. Laughter, roughhousing, boasts, jests, jokes, and relieved sighs filled the air.
People garbed in fine tunics and robes joined hands with others dressed only in rough loincloths. They spun and twirled around the great bonfire, large smiles on their faces. Those that didn’t dance shared food and clanged glasses together. A few also carried shell-like tools that shot out jets of flame, air, and thick cloud.
The people were not alone in their celebration, the entire forest had joined the celebration. Birds with massive beaks larger than their heads sang a deep throaty chorus in the canopy and snatched away food from any unaware party guests. Wolves happily ran through the crowd, snatching up scraps of food no one else was touching.
Towering over everyone and everything was a great serpent. Its head extended to the tips of the bonfire and its forked tongue licked at the flames. It swayed back and forth, dancing just like the people below it. Despite a lack of teeth, save for two sharp fangs, its gaping jaw was easy to mistake for a smile.
Luffy was currently taking a break from dancing. He was chewing on a large skewer of meat that he needed both his hands to hold. This left him vulnerable to children and curious adults that pulled and stretched his skin. They’d hold it for a few seconds before letting go and it would snap back into place. All of them had wide eyes and fascinated expressions as they studied the unfamiliar rubber man.
Someone grabbed Luffy’s cheek, pulled it, and let it slap him in the face. Bits of meat flew out of his mouth before he turned and glared at the puller. “That’s it! I’m trying to eat!”
The person in question fell to her knees and hid her face behind her thick dark hair. She was dressed in Shandian clothing: a simple dirty brown dress. “I’m sorry! Your friend said you were made out of the stuff that stopped god Eneru. I just wanted to see what ‘ruebar’ was. I’m sorry!”
“Just don’t pull my face again,” Luffy pouted.
“Okay...” The girl traced a foot around the circle. “Your with the long nose said it’d be fine as long as you were eating.”
“Huh...” Luffy then stuffed the rest of the skewer into his mouth and pulling out a clean wooden stick. His face turned red as the food went down his throat, but he managed to swallow it. “Ha! Now no one can annoy me anymore!” A gurgle then erupted out of Luffy’s stomach. “Aw, but I’m still hungry.”
The girl continued tracing circles in the earth and kept her eyes to the ground. “Well... there was some ham and melon close by.”
In an instant, Luffy grabbed the girl’s shoulders and his grin filled half her vision. “Really? Awesome! Where is it?”
The girl squirmed out of Luffy’s grasp but held onto his left arm. She tugged at his arm and was shocked for a moment when it extended. She quickly recovered and raced off with Luffy’s arm. “It’s this way!”
Luffy pursued her through the crowds. The sounds of the party grew fainter as did the scents in the air. Crickets and rustling replaced the loud boisterous yells of men. The girl had disappeared into the forest but still held Luffy’s arm. He raced through a thicket of trees and bushes and found his arm back at his side. “Huh? Where’d the girl go?”
He surveyed his surrounding and found himself on steep stony shore. Clear blue water lapped at the rocks and a bit of spray went into the air. Luffy spotted something on a cliff that jutted out into the sea. “There!”
He sped toward the object, hoping it was the ham and melon he’d been promised. He didn’t take notice that the forest had thinned immensely behind him and the bonfire’s glow was much smaller and joined by other minor flames as well. He raced to the edge of the cliff but stopped when he could fully make out the object.
It was two pieces of wood, one piece perpendicular to the other to form a simple cross. Luffy stared at the cross and twisted his head at it. “It’s just a grave. Darn, Usopp must have told that girl to play a prank on me.
A wind suddenly blew at Luffy’s back. A voice was carried on. “No...”
“Hmm?” Luffy spun around and was greeted with the moon. It was full and larger than he’d ever seen it before. It was so close that it almost seemed touchable. “Whoa! When’d the moon get so huge?”
“No, no, no!” came the voice again.
Luffy looked around but saw no one around. It was only him, the moon, and the grave. “Hello? Is someone there?”
“I... I shouldn’t have! I just thought that...”
“Hey! Are you talking to me?” Luffy yelled.
“Next time... I’m sorry Straw Hat.”
“Ah ha! So you are talking to me! Show your-” Luffy pounced at the moon and went flying into the air. “-se— ow!”
Luffy had managed to ram his head right into one of his bedpost. He slumped down, leaving a sizable imprint in the wood. He gave an annoyed huff but didn’t move. “When did dreams start to hurt?”