Kick about! Los Lobos!

by Dirty Bit

Capitulo Veintidos

Back near Town Hall, Applejack, Big Macintosh, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie were hard at work with their repairs around the area. However, the cyan pegasus slowed her pace as she felt a sensation up her spine "Whoa..."

Pinkie Pie stopped and looked at Rainbow Dash "Something wrong, Dashie?" She asked inquisitively.

Rainbow Dash ceased her own work and shook her head with a groan "I dunno why, but I get the feeling something really bad's gonna happen soon..."

Pinkie blinked "You got your own Rainbow sense?" She asked obliviously.

Rainbow Dash turned to Pinkie "Wha-No! This is just instinct!" She corrected irritably, sighing shortly after as she calmed herself "You ever get the feeling that some ponies would want Starrk gone despite him saving everypony in Ponyville?"

Pinkie nodded "Because he's super strong, right?"

Rainbow Dash nodded back "That and because he's from a different world where everypony dies just from being around him." She grimaced "I'm glad we don't have to go through that ourselves..." The cyan pegasus quickly shifted back to her former expression "But despite that, he's really a nice stallion who's just wanting company."

Pinkie giggled "You don't have to tell me that, Dashie; I heard him talk, too." She blinked "Wait a minute, do you mean company or company? Because I'm starting to feel something from my short stalking time with Starrk."

Rainbow Dash stared blankly at the pink pony "What?"

"My short time with Starrk." Pinkie grinned innocently "So, which is it?"

Rainbow Dash tilted her head "What does your question involving the same word have to deal with-" Her eyes widened when she made the connection and her cheeks flushed lightly before she frantically shook it off, narrowing her eyes at Pinkie "You know what I mean, Pinkie. He was alone before, but now he has us and everypony else."

Pinkie gave a knowing nod "Ooooooooh~, okay!"

Applejack noticed her two friends stopping and frowned "C'mon, girls. No time fer lollygaggin'!" She chided as she went back to work.

Rainbow Dash snorted "Alright, MOM! Sheesh..." She said as she picked up her hammer and went to resume her work. Before she could take the first swing, Rainbow Dash saw Rarity and Fluttershy close by with a skittish Aloe trailing behind them 'What the...?'
_____

Lotus trotted towards Town Hall, taking point in the small crowd that she spoke with earlier. They were all directed to head to the determined destination in order to remain safe from the dreaded Coyote Starrk. While the others did not feel it, Lotus was apprehensive as she shifted her eyes in several directions, making sure that the former espada was nowhere to be found.

She noticed her sister Aloe being escorted towards the same place by Fluttershy and Rarity from another part of Ponyville. In her heart, she felt that she needed to be near her sisters for comfort. Breaking away from the group, she galloped towards Aloe with distress in her eyes, calling her name as she did so.

Aloe noticed Lotus approach her and had instinctively mimicked her sister's actions, the two clinging to one another once they had closed the distance between them. Rarity and Fluttershy caught up with them and comforted them both, hoping to lift their spirits and distract them from their sudden fears "Don't worry, girls, you'll be fine. All we ask is that you just keep calm and move on." Rarity advised comfortingly, a gentle smile on her face.

Fluttershy nodded "We'll be right beside you until you feel better." She chimed in, hoping the two would hear them out.

Before they expected a response, Aloe and Lotus perked up while they clung to each other "Vera!" They shouted simultaneously.

Rarity and Fluttershy grew worried that they would jump to the conclusion that Starrk had gotten to their sister, and Rarity quickly held up her forelegs in a placating motion with a nervous smile "Not to worry, not to worry! We're certain that Vera is safe and sound." She turned to the timid mare next to her "Isn't she, Fluttershy?" Rarity asked expectantly.

Fluttershy paused before nodding "O-Oh, yes! Vera couldn't possibly be in any trouble at all." She grinned hopefully, inwardly disappointed with herself about lying to the spa ponies about their missing sister.

Aloe and Lotus stared before they took deep breaths "Maybe you're right...Vera is tougher than she looks." The former said, trying to muster confidence in her words.

Rarity nodded in satisfaction "Splendid. Now why don't we make our way to Town Hall where it's safe?" After receiving a nod of confirmation towards both sisters, the group resumed their trot towards Town Hall.

When they reached their destination along with the rallied crowd, they noticed Twilight and Derpy trot out of the doors, both of which were surprised by the sudden increase of ponies in front of the building "Erm...Is there something wrong, everypony?" Twilight asked quizzically as she gazed upon the gathered ponies in front of her.

Colgate spoke up from the crowd "Sparkler wanted us to come here so we can solve an issue involving Coyote Starrk. Perhaps you can help us as well?"

Twilight craned her head back "Issue? What issue? Has he done something to upset you all?"

Rarity and Fluttershy approached Twilight, the former holding up a hoof "You don't even know the half of it, darling. One moment, Derpy's family helped us with repairing the spa, and all of the sudden Aloe, Lotus, and Vera grew terrified of Starrk."

Derpy nodded "It's true. That's why I was chasing down Vera until you showed up."

Twilight blinked before looking down pensively "This is just too odd for words...Who or what could've caused this sudden happening?"

Derpy frowned "Beats the heck out of me. At least Starrky's not around to rile them up, though..."

On cue, a group of ponies and one dragon blurred into existence near Town Hall. Starrk released his grip on Spike and Sparkler, both of which were wide-eyed and dazed from their fast trip as they stumbled about. When they shook off their dizziness, they noticed they were at Town Hall. Spike grinned in excitement "That was amazing!" He turned to Starrk and brought up a clawed thumb "You're really something, Coyote!"

At the sound of his name, Aloe and Lotus quickly turned their heads towards the newest group with fear in their eyes "Coyote Starrk is here!?" They said simultaneously. The small crowd looked over as well, following their gazes until they stopped on the former espada staring back at them in boredom. Their eyes widened and went through the same change as the spa ponies as they gasped in terror and backed away, murmuring amongst themselves in fright.

Spike stared back at them before pointing a claw "Okay, that's not weird or anything..." He quipped with a raised eyebrow.

Starrk looked around at the crowd in front of him and his frown deepened 'This isn't good...Why are they all acting like this after cheering for me earlier?'

Dinky hopped off of Starrk and looked for her mother, who was found at Town Hall with some of her friends. She quickly galloped towards her with Sparkler following close behind, though the sight of the frightened group of ponies caught Dinky's attention once she approached her "Mommy, what's wrong with those ponies?" She asked curiously, not finding comfort in seeing several ponies staring at Starrk.

Derpy patted Dinky's mane with a superficial smile "They're a little shaken about Starrky, muffin. But don't worry; we'll sort this out."

Twilight and her friends noticed this change in surprise "Wait a minute. So they're afraid of Coyote, too?" She asked incredulously.

Rarity winced "This is all becoming too hectic. If too many ponies fear Coyote Starrk..."

Fluttershy frowned sadly "Then they might want him to leave Ponyville." Her expression deepened "Or worse..."

Sparkler looked worried at the sight of other ponies growing fearful around Starrk "What do we do? We gotta let everypony know that Starrky's not some crazed killer or they'll throw him out of town!" Unbeknownst to them, she inwardly beamed at the success of her plan 'Preferably the latter...'

Twilight nodded and bolted inside the Town Hall building. While inside the lobby, she galloped towards the supply closet and opened the door to reveal several items resting on different shelves. When she spotted the desired item, she levitated it with her magic and stared at it in determination.

"Twilight?"

The lavender bookworm perked up and looked to her left to see an awakened Mayor Mare with a quizzical glance "Why are you raiding through the supply closet in such a hasty manner? Is there something I should know about?"

Twilight faced Mayor Mare with a nod, a serious gaze in her eyes "Some of the ponyfolk are all riled up over Starrk for some unexplainable reason. They could possibly be driven to force him out of Ponyville. I'm going to see if I can't calm them down through reason."

Mayor Mare stifled a gasp "Is this true? Well, I don't see a reason to just cast away a pony who would be willing to protect us all." She said with resolve in her voice "Come on, Twilight. I'll assist you with this little problem." The two ponies then made their way out of the building, back out in front of the entrance.

Twilight levitated her item - a megaphone - in front of her, and shouted into it "Everypony calm down!" To her satisfaction, the trembling party had given her their undivided attention as she continued "I don't know what's gotten into you all, but it won't do you any good to get worked up over Coyote Starrk! Just because he's powerful doesn't mean he's out to get you all! Please, come to your senses and fight the fear inside of you!" She urged the crowd.

Mayor Mare held her hoof out to Twilight, silently asking for the megaphone. When the latter complied, Mayor Mare voiced herself to the public with words of her own "I'm aware that many of you have witnessed what Starrk was capable of; I myself was overwhelmed by his brute strength. But we're talking about a pony who has lived a life of loneliness out and wished for good company from all of us!"

Derpy saw what Twilight and the Mayor were doing and eagerly trotted up next to them, smiling at Mayor Mare with her hoof held out. When she understood the gesture, the mayor gave Derpy the megaphone with a warm smile. The mailmare cleared her throat before she projected her voice in the megaphone "Please, everypony, listen to them! My name is Derpy Hooves, who most of you know as the current caretaker of both Coyote Starrk and Lilynette Gingerback! I'm here to say that Starrk is most definitely NOT a killer!"

One of the mares in the crowd pointed an accusing hoof "Liar! He probably made you say it to lull us into a false sense of security!"

Derpy puffed her cheeks before shooting back at the speaking mare "He did not!"

Next to Starrk, Lilynette stared at the scared crowd of ponies and huffed with a scowl "What a bunch of jerks!" She went to march towards them, only to be stopped by an amber hoof. Lilynette looked up at Starrk, who stared ahead in silence with an unreadable glance.
_____

From where they stood, Rainbow Dash and the others stopped what they were doing after they heard three voices on a megaphone. Each pony was dumbstruck to see a rallied group of ponies who were showing visible signs of fear towards Starrk while him and Lilynette simply stood by with his usual expression. Rainbow Dash dreaded this moment and at the same time was irritated by it. She narrowed her eyes and dropped the hammer, turning to her friends "I think repairs can wait, don't you all?"

Applejack stared over at the commotion with a disapproving frown "Fer once, Ah agree with ya. What's happenin' right now just ain't right."

Big Macintosh nodded with the same expression as his sister "Eeyup."

Pinkie Pie shot a hoof in the air "C'mon, gang! Let's go help Starrky out of his jelly!"

Rainbow Dash shot a deadpan look at Pinkie "Jam, Pinkie..."

"That, too!" The pink pony quickly added. The small group of ponies made their way to Town Hall to try and help their friends with the issue over Starrk, although a certain cyan pegasus made a detour towards Starrk, Lilynette, and Spike.

When she approached them, Rainbow Dash hovered in front of them "Can you believe what's going on right now?"

Spike crossed his arms "You took the words right out of my mouth. First the spa ponies, and now them?" He looked over at Starrk "Are you really that menacing?"

He quickly hopped away when Lilynette stormed up to him "You're seriously gonna ask that stupid question right now?" She snapped, staring at Spike's startled eyes.

Rainbow Dash arched an eyebrow at Lilynette before smiling at Starrk "Don't worry, Starrk; we got your back! Leave this to us, alright?" She asked before zipping away, not even paying attention to the fact that Starrk had barely reacted to anything she had said. Right now, he was busy thinking to himself while gazing upon the group of ponies that are suddenly afraid of him.

Back at Town Hall, Pinkie, Applejack, and Big Macintosh trotted up the steps leading to the entrance at their friends' side. Pinkie grinned at Derpy as she stood next to her "Need a hoof, sister?"

Derpy's eyes straightened momentarily before beaming at the pink pony "Please and thank you!" She said as she lent Pinkie the megaphone in her hoof.

Pinkie held up the megaphone and tapped at it with a skeptical glance, receiving a high pitched feedback noise "Is this thing on?" She said into it before she smiled in satisfaction "Okay, let's get something straight, everypony. Since when has Starrky ever killed anypony while he was in Ponyville?"

A stallion in the crowd voiced himself "He hasn't yet, but who's to say he won't kill us now!?" He answered.

Pinkie rolled her eyes "Oh, come on, killing's not his hobby or anything." She continued with an innocent smile "Besides, I'm pretty sure he likes other things, like sports or family!" She looked down "Well, something other than sleeping at least. He's quite the sleeper, am I right?" She chuckled, though received no positive feedback whatsoever from her question.

Rainbow Dash facehoofed before gliding to Pinkie's side, taking the megaphone from her and speaking into it "Listen up, everypony! I don't know what's gotten into you, but you're overreacting!" She spat at the audience "Who the hay would even fill your head with the possibility that Starrk would just up and kill you all?"

Sparkler hid a devious smirk after Rainbow Dash's question 'Normally, I'd stand on ceremony, but I'll just continue to watch...'

Rainbow bared her teeth as her anger rose "He'd rather sleep through a snowstorm than do whatever you're thinking right now, and I know some of you cheered for him when he took down Cerberus! Have some sense before I knock it into you, alright!?"

Twilight and the others were surprised at their friend's brash speech, and Applejack trotted up and gently brought Rainbow Dash town "Simmer down, sugarcube. No need to go overboard. We're tryin' t' convince 'em, not threaten 'em." She advised calmly.

Rainbow Dash growled "Well, this is all just stupid! Why would they even go from 'Hooray' to 'Oh no' in so little time like that?" She demanded angrily.

Applejack frowned "That's what we're tryin' t' find out, an' y'all gettin' yer feathers in a twist ain't helpin' this none!" She placed a hoof on her shoulder "Just try an' ease up a bit."

Rainbow Dash was close to hyperventilating before she took a deep breath, hanging her head in shame "Yeah, you're right. They got me all worked up is all."

Rarity smiled at Rainbow Dash "You did your best getting a word in edgewise, darling." She said in an effort to comfort the cyan pegasus.

From where they stood away from Town Hall, Spike shuddered after hearing Rainbow Dash's speech "Talk about hostile. I know she's trying to defend Starrk and all, but is she willing to make a bunch of enemies like that?"

Lilynette looked away "I don't blame her in wanting to beat those ponies senseless for acting that way around us. I'd say we let her do it just to see if it works." She heard hoofsteps, and Lilynette looked ahead to see Starrk trotting towards Town Hall in silence "Huh? Hey, wait up!" The red filly called as she chased after him.

Spike followed suit and caught up to Starrk's leisurely pace, examining his stoic expression "Hey, what's the deal? If you go over there, you're gonna make it worse on yourself." He received no response while matching his pace "C'mon, Coyote; why not let Twilight handle this?"

Lilynette looked up at Starrk's expression and a thought crossed her mind before she could snap at him. Her eyes widened slightly as she looked up at Starrk 'Wait...'

Twilight spoke into the megaphone again "Just hear me out, everypony! If it bothers you that much, we could-Coyote?" She looked over to see the former espada place a foreleg on the first step, causing the crowd to quickly scamper away from him as they watching him, Lilynette, and Spike ascend the stairs, meeting with the group on the entrance. He reached Twilight and stared at her before holding out a hoof towards her.

Derpy blinked at the gesture "You wanna hold Twilight's hoof?" She then remembered what was taking place before smiling sheepishly "Oh, right, megaphone..."

Twilight looked at Derpy before giving Starrk the megaphone, a curious and unsettled look on her face. She watched the lazy pegasus face the crowd with the megaphone in front of him, his expression remaining the same. The ponies below him were ready to run away once they hear any death threat or spine-chilling words come out of his mouth. He took a deep breath, and Starrk uttered two words into the megaphone.

"...I'm leaving."