Dousing the Flames
“Water...” was the only thought passing through the half-asleep mind of Twilight Sparkle as she headed down to the kitchen. She rarely ever woke up in the middle of the night, but when she did, she always found it necessary to quench her thirst before returning to the comforts of her bed. Twilight had lived long enough in the Ponyville library to consider it her home, and she demonstrated her familiarity by not even opening her weary eyes as her magic reached for a glass, filled it with the relief her dry mouth sought, and brought the wonderful tonic to her lips. Letting out a contented sigh, Twilight returned the glass to its proper place and was about to go back to her room when she squinted out her kitchen window at the faint orange glow that radiated from outside.
“Is it dawn already?” Twilight’s heart sank at the thought of not having much sleep left until she peeked at a clock that hung on the wall, which read 3 o’clock. “That can’t be right. It’s way too early to be dawn. So what could that-” A second look outside jolted the sleep out of Twilight. Her eyes grew large as she spotted a column of smoke rising from the direction of the Everfree Forest. Not believing what she saw, Twilight rubbed her eyes and peered out again. “I’m not dreaming. That’s a fire!” Twilight sprinted up the stairs to find her number one assistant. “SPIKE!! Wake up, Spike!”
Shaken awake, the baby dragon stood up and yawned before asking, “Is it morning already?”
“Spike, this is no time to be sleeping! Look out the window!” Twilight watched as Spike have the same reaction as she had moments ago.
“HOLY GUACAMOLE! Why is the Everfree Forest on fire?!”
“No time to think about that. Spike, you go alert the mayor that this is an emergency! And tell Pinkie Pie and Rarity while you’re at it. I’m going to go warn Applejack and Fluttershy since they’re the ones that live closest to the Everfree.”
“Well what about Rainbow Dash? We could really use some rainclouds.”
“Fluttershy will know where to find her,” Twilight answered as she raced off to accomplish her task. “And don’t forget my parchment!”
***
A hurry of hooves pounded the well-worn dirt road to Sweet Apple Acres as Twilight spotted the Apple sisters and their pet Winona staring up at the sky’s blazing colors in front of their home. “Applejack! Apple Bloom! Thank goodness you two are safe.” Running up to meet them, Twilight saw appreciation mixed with worry on their faces. “I’m heading to Fluttershy’s house next. It’s probably best if we stay together until we join with the others.”
“Thanks for coming around, Twilight,” Applejack said. “I woke up with Winona here barking up a storm and the feeling in my hooves that something just ain’t right. One look out my window and it looks like all hay has broken loose! Big Macintosh has already gone on ahead with our tools. We were about to head out ourselves, but sticking with you is just fine with us.”
“Wait! We can’t leave Granny Smith here by herself!” Apple Bloom protested. Before Applejack could say another word, the filly dashed to the old mare’s room. “Granny Smith! Wake up, Granny!”
Granny Smith sat up and looked with heavy eyes at Apple Bloom, who was by her bedside in a panicked state. “Eh? What’s all the commotion about?”
“The Everfree Forest is burning! We have to put out the fire before it destroys all of Ponyville!”
“Oh, is that all,” Granny Smith replied before she lay back down and began snoring again.
“Granny!” Apple Bloom pleaded before she felt the hoof of her big sister on her shoulder.
“Leave her be, Apple Bloom. She’s too old to be fighting fires at her age.” Applejack could tell her little sister was reluctant to leave their matriarch behind. “Don’t you worry! Granny Smith will be just fine. We’ll have that fire out before the rooster even warms up his lungs.” Seeing Apple Bloom’s fear being transformed into determination, Applejack matched her sister’s expression as they ran down the stairs and out into the balmy summer night. “So do you have any clue as to what in tarnation is happening, Twi?” Applejack asked as they galloped with urgency.
“The Everfree Forest is a place that is infamous for not being well understood by anypony. Wild magic runs deep throughout in a strange self-sustaining cycle, and I don’t have to tell you about the forest’s dangerous inhabitants. Even so, in all my research, I’ve never heard of the Everfree spontaneously setting itself on fire.”
“So what are you saying, Twi?” Applejack lowered her tone. “You’re thinking this was no accident.”
Twilight paused before answering, “I don’t want to jump to conclusions, but that is the most logical option. First things first, though. We’re going to make sure everypony is safe, and then we snuff this fire out before we start looking for answers to the how and the why.” Applejack nodded in agreement as Fluttershy’s house came into view. From afar off, they could see their gentle friend was outside rushing around her spacious front yard trying to gather up the vast variety of creatures under her care, most of which were in an understandable state of panic.
“Oh, I know you’re all scared, but please stop so you can let me bring you someplace where you’ll be safe,” Fluttershy begged a litter of baby bunnies while chasing them with a wicker basket. Her ears perked up as she heard the familiar voice of Applejack call out to her.
“Looks like you could use a helping hoof there, Fluttershy!” The pegasus turned to see her friends approaching and greeted them warmly before seeing the serious expression on Twilight’s face.
“Fluttershy, we don’t have time to lose! You’re the only one of us who can quickly find Rainbow Dash. Tell her and the other weather pegasi in Cloudsdale to bring as many rainclouds as they have available. Meet us in Ponyville Town Square afterwards. Once there, I can see what resources we have to fight this thing,” Twilight said as she pointed towards the blazing forest.
“But... but... the bunnies...”
“Winona and I will take care of the roundup,” Applejack reassured the reluctant Fluttershy. “Go find Rainbow and have her whip up a storm something fierce. We’re sure going to need one.”
“O- Ok. Bring all of the animals to Ponyville Park. They’ll be far enough away from the fire there, I hope.” While still not at ease, Fluttershy relented and flew off, but not before looking back and yelling, “Be gentle with them this time, please!”
Twilight gave Applejack a bemused look, remembering what happened the last time the workaholic worked with Fluttershy’s animals. A sideways glance was all that Applejack responded with. Getting back to the task at hand, Twilight said, “With Spike getting Rarity and Pinkie Pie, that takes care of everyone. Finish up here and then head to Ponyville Town Square. I’m sure everypony has been woken up by now.”
“You got it, Twi.” The two friends touched hooves before Twilight turned and galloped back to town.
***
“Citizens of Ponyville, remain calm!” the mayor spoke from her podium at town hall to the crowd rousted from their sleep. Anxious murmurs rippled through the worried onlookers as they wondered at the threatening orange glow and the billowing column of smoke rising from behind their homes. “I ask that those willing to volunteer to combat this crisis to please come forward.” It was at this time a certain unicorn made her way to the front of the crowd. “Twilight! I’ve been looking for you everywhere.” The mood of the assembly grew more upbeat as the instantly recognizable organizer of the previous Winter Wrap Up took the stage.
“I’m here now, Miss Mayor. What’s the current situation?”
“The evacuation went smoothly, and I heard from Spike you went to get Fluttershy and the Apple family from the outskirts of town. Everypony is accounted for then. Well, everypony except Zecora.”
Twilight could feel the crowd start to worry again over the fate of their zebra friend. “If Zecora is tough enough to actually live in the Everfree Forest, I’m sure something like this is nothing to her,” she said to reassure herself more than anything. “Does Ponyville have a fire department?”
“Yes, but in name only. We haven’t had any fires, so we haven’t had a working fire brigade in years.”
“Well, it looks like we’ll just have to make one then, won’t we? May I?”
“By all means,” the mayor said as she offered Twilight the lectern.
Stepping up to address the townsponies, Twilight felt her inner flame burn bright. Her friends had joked that had things taken a different turn, she might have had a checklist for a cutie mark. Her talent and passion for organization was second only to her magic as she demonstrated with the amazing turnaround last winter. Now, she was in her element once again. “Attention everypony! Listen carefully to my instructions. I need everypony to go into their homes and bring back buckets, pans, anything that can carry water.” She had no doubt that she could channel the strength of the ponies before her into one streamlined firefighting unit. Twilight looked at the burning forest with confidence. If it was a battle of fire versus fire, she believed without a doubt her fire would win.
With all of her friends gathered, Twilight laid out her plan. “Rarity, we’re going to need masks to cover our noses so we don’t breathe in the smoke. Also, make a parachute or something for the other pegasi to drop loads of water. Pinkie Pie, fill up your balloons with water so we can reach places we can’t with the buckets. Rainbow, use your clouds to soak that fire.”
“Duh! Don’t you think we tried that already? As soon as one of our clouds even gets close to the Everfree Forest, it goes, ‘Poof!’” As a point of emphasis, Rainbow grabbed hold of a cloud and shoved it in the direction of the cursed forest. Twilight watched as the cloud reached an invisible boundary line indicating the edge of the forest, where the cloud melted away in an instant.
“Fine, I get it. Use them to fill buckets then, Rainbow. If nothing else, we can also line them up to prevent the fire from spreading out of the forest and into Ponyville itself. The rest of us are on bucket duty.”
“Uh, Twi, you know you can use your magic,” Applejack suggested.
“Oh, right. I knew I forgot something.” Twilight turned her attention to the Ponyville water tower. Easing it off its stand, she floated it over the inferno and released its contents. A loud hiss reached the ears of a satisfied Twilight. “I think I’ll use this.”
***
With the efforts of all the citizens of Ponyville combined into an efficient firefighting force, the coordinated aquatic assault continued into the early hours of the morning. What once was a roaring inferno weakened with each new influx of water. The pegasi drops and Twilight’s water tower “bucket” sapped most of the fire’s strength, while the bucket and balloon brigades went in afterwards to quench any stray flames missed. Seeing the fruits of their efforts spurred the ponies on through their fatigue. It was only when the first rays of dawn peered out over the horizon did the makeshift fire brigade pause to catch their breath and assess their progress.
Sitting back on her haunches, Twilight removed her wet cloth mask and felt the tell-tale signs of a migraine that tended to follow whenever she overexerted her magic. It didn’t help that her lack of sleep and adrenaline withdrawal both chose to make themselves known at this time. Looking around at the sooty faces of everypony else, Twilight could see they were all in various states of exhaustion. Some were lying down, some sat like her, and some were almost asleep on their hooves. Knowing that their energy was nearly depleted, Twilight hoped that their ordeal was over.
As if to answer her plea, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy returned from their aerial survey of the Everfree Forest. Upon hearing their findings, Twilight leapt to her feet. “Citizens of Ponyville!” The crowd turned towards the organizer of their effort, eager to hear the news. “The fire in the Everfree is extinguished, and the threat is over! Ponyville has been saved!” The tiredness melted away as an euphoric cheer erupted. Twilight was soon smothered in an enthusiastic group hug with her friends. Dirty and tired as they all were, the relief of knowing they had won had all been worth it.
The cheers turned to gasps as a voice cried, “Look, it’s Princess Celestia!” Arriving in her usual golden chariot, the monarch leapt with poise onto the ground. The crowd parted to make way for her as they bowed in reverence.
A surge of pride welled up in Twilight as she saw her teacher coming towards her. Though not one to brag, she was sure that the princess would praise her for her quick-thinking, her ingenuity, and her ability to manage a crisis. The anticipation was almost unbearable as the princess stopped a few feet away. “Twilight, would you kindly tell me what in the world has happened here?” Celestia asked as she glanced to her left and right at her soot-faced subjects, some still wearing the wet cloth masks over their muzzles.
Twilight’s confidence wavered a little at the questioning tone of the princess, but she explained, “Your Highness, the citizens of Ponyville rallied together to save their town from a dangerous fire that broke out in the Everfree Forest late last night. Thanks to the efforts of all these ponies, the fire was put out and Ponyville is safe once again, with a little help from me.”
“I see,” responded Celestia, her eyes shifting from the smoldering forest to her proud student and back again.
Sensing the princess wasn’t satisfied, Twilight continued, “Of course, our job’s not completely finished yet. Now the hard part is finding out who started this fire in the first place.”
“Oh, on the contrary,” Celestia rebutted, “I know who started this fire.”
Twilight’s confidence flagged further. “You do? Who is it then?”
“Why she’s standing right in front of you.”
The realization hit Twilight like a bucket of cold water. “Wait, what?!”
“That fire was my doing. When the Everfree Forest was last inspected, it was reported to me that its undergrowth was growing quite dense. If left unchecked, it would have been a major fire hazard. Even with all of its faults, the Everfree Forest is still part of Equestria, so it is our responsibility to manage it. After all, the forest is where that delectable Zap Apple Jam originally came from,” Celestia said with a nod towards the Apples. “One of the few ways we have of influencing the forest’s growth is controlled burning, purposely setting a section of the forest on fire to clear and renew the vegetation. In many ways, it is like a phoenix that is renewed through burning.”
Celestia felt the incredulous stares from everypony upon hearing her confession. “I feel that this was partially my fault. I didn’t want anypony to be worried, so I figured the task could be done when everypony was asleep. Unfortunately, the fire burned brighter than I would’ve liked. The last one was about seventy years ago, so I’m not surprised none of you knew what was happening.”
“Seventy years?!” Applejack and Apple Bloom shared a look. “You don’t think... Granny Smith knew?!”
Twilight felt like she was going to be sick. “So that means...”
“Ponyville was never in any serious danger. I can assure you of that,” the princess answered as a matter of fact.
“Wait! What about Zecora?” Apple Bloom shouted before being hushed by her sister.
“She’s staying as my guest in the palace. Once she literally packed up her home, Zecora couldn’t wait to visit Canterlot for the first time.” A stunned silence fell over the crowd as they let what they just heard sink in. “In any case, I commend you all on your efforts! I am quite impressed at your teamwork and cooperation. You truly exemplify the spirit of friendship.” Leaning down to her faithful student, she whispered, “Remind me to make this up to you next time.” With a single flap of her wings, Princess Celestia leaped back onto her chariot. “Well, the day is young, and I must depart. Toodles!” In the blink of an eye, the chariot hurried off and out of sight.
After the princess left, the crowd of ponies shrunk bit by bit as they each dragged themselves back to their homes, grumbling along the way about their wasted efforts and. Once they had dispersed, Twilight sat by herself, shocked and unmoving. “What just happened?” she asked herself.
“You were the hero, and now you’re the goat,” Pinkie Pie stated the obvious as she bounced away.
“Don’t take it so hard, Twi,” Applejack added with tact. “How could anypony know that something like that would happen? At least it worked out, right? Sort of?”
“Speak for yourself, Applejack! Do you know how far back this sets me? All that cloth is now ruined!” Rarity complained before storming off.
“Well, I don’t know about you guys,” Rainbow Dash said as she stretched, “but I’m going to go catch up on my napping. I am so not looking forward to double shifts at the weather factory this week since we used up all those rainclouds. See ya.”
Spike watched as each of their friends went back home. “Guess we should as well, huh?” the baby dragon asked.
Twilight sighed as she willed her body to walk the distance home, but something on the ground caught her eye. Trotting over, she saw that it was a fire helmet which read, “Twilight Sparkle, Honorary Fire Marshall.” With a rueful smile, Twilight set the hat on her head and felt a small flame flicker back to life within her chest.