//------------------------------// // Chapter 17: Dinner Part 2 // Story: A Black Belt in a Colorful Land // by DismantledAccount //------------------------------// Chapter 17: Dinner Part 2 The Same Day, Day Two of Alex's Calendar Stick, One Second Later... Pink. Everywhere. It was up his nose, in his eyes, in his mouth. Choking. Blinding. His ears were being assaulted by a continuous stream of words. The voice was piercing his soul with its very pitch. Pink. Everywhere. It was all over him, everywhere he looked. It broke every semblance of Alex's personal space. So he punched it. He threw a right uppercut into the mass of Pink as he reached his left arm in front of him and grabbed onto the Pink. Alex literally had to peel it away from his face as he threw two more uppercuts into the Pink. He put more force into the fourth uppercut and felt something crack, causing the Pink to go limp. He threw it to the ground and whipped out his blade with his right hand. I am so glad right now that my knife is the spring assisted version. Alex got to his knees over the Pink and placed his left arm on it to hold it down as he raised his right hand above his head, knife held in inverted grip. Alex was beginning his downward swing when he felt a sharp, agonizing pain from his snakebite; causing his vision to darken to almost black. He imbedded two of the five inches of his blade into the floor next to the Pink, such was the force of his strike. Alex fell forward onto the Pink yelling in pain, then rolled to the side, falling off the Pink and onto the floor. He clutched his shin to his chest and began rocking back and fourth slightly, trying and failing to quell the pain. Alex's tunnel vision slowly expanded as the pain became more bearable. That. Really. Hurt. He became aware of a shouting match being held to his left. It sounded like "Ineewhpikyo! pikniasdommeekiepu! kanbeliveyowuddothat!" to his disoriented ears. No... actually, I think they are all shouting at me. He looked to his left and saw a room full of angry mares. There was Shiny Dusk, Rainbow Flash, Apple... something, and Fashion Creep. ...Yes I know I suck at names. But in all fairness, they don't even have real names. There was also a new horse, a soft yellow pegasus with a gentle pink mane, it looked cute while obviously trying for mad. It has butterflies on its ass... If that isn't a girl I am going to break his wings then throw him off of the tallest cliff I can find. All of the horses looked sweaty and more than slightly worn out. Can horses even sweat? Shows how much I know about horses. Butterflies and Fashion Creep bent down and began looking at the Pink, rolling and stretching it around. They unraveled the Pink enough to where Alex could recognize a head. Hmmm... Yes, that would explain why Dusk, Rainbow, and Applewhatever are still yelling at me. At this point Alex decided to finally put an effort into hearing what the mares were saying. "-furthermore I... Were you even listening to us!?" shouted Dusk. "No, not really. I was preoccupied with my leg, you wouldn't believe how much that hurt." Alex replied, still clutching his shin. "Good, serves you right for breaking my wing," said Rainbow, grinning. "Did you really have to kick him there, Rainbow? I saw it before I bandaged it up." Ditzy shuddered. "It wasn't pretty," she continued. "Wait, you kicked my shin?" That would explain where the pain came from. "Yep, and now we are almost even," said Rainbow. "We could be even more even if-" "Quiet, Rainbow," said Dusk, cutting her off. "Alexander, you're coming with us, we need to get you back to the specimen cage," she said. "No." "Excuse me?" said Dusk, eyes widening. "But, you have to." "You heard me. I. Said. No." Alex said, forcefully. "You don't have a choice!" yelled Rainbow. "You are going back to your cage!" "Oh, really?" said Alex, crossing his legs and sitting up straight. At this point Fashion Creep and Butterflies had helped Pink to its feet... hooves. They were supporting Pink in between them and she didn't look so good. They all look like girls... I haven't even seen one male yet... I'm not quite sure if that's a good thing or not. All of the mares were lined up and nodded as one in response to his question, Pink excluded. "So, I don't have any rights as a sentient being?" Alex asked. "None at all?" "Of course not!" yelled Rainbow, while the others looked slightly confused and sheepish. "So you are telling me I should go with you to your secret underground dungeon with no contact to any sort of authority while you all perform 'studies' on me?" Alex asked, giving the word 'studies' air quotes with his fingers. "Yes," continued Rainbow. "Sounds kinky, but I think I'll pass; bondage isn't really my style," replied Alex. He watched them carefully to gauge their reactions. Dusk grabbed a book from Ditzy's bookshelf to hide her blush. Rainbow appeared too angry to be affected by it. Appleass seemed to not quite get it, or her freckles were just good at hiding it. Pink was still not looking healthy and was breathing shallowly, and Fashion Creep was indignant. However, Butterflies was the best, she turned so red that even someone who was colorblind could see it. *Pomf* Went her wings. *Thump* Went her face. Annnnnd jackpot. If I'm going to be trapped here for a while no one said I couldn't have a little fun. "Fluttershy!" yelled Applewhatever, bending down to see if she was okay. Okay, note to self. Ditzy gets a cute blush, Alex thought, looking over to where she was standing. And this 'Fluttershy' practically had a heart attack. Happy fun times while I plan my escape... And wait for my leg to heal. "We are not going to do any thing of the sort. Who do you think we are?" asked Fashion Creep haughtily. "I have no idea, that's the point," replied Alex. "Well we ain't gonna leave you here with Ditzy, tha's not fair to her," said Applewhatever. "She doesn't mind, does she?" said Alex looking over at Ditzy, standing by her sofa. "Well... I... Ummmm... I guess if he wants to stay he can, I mean, I would rather he didn't," she said, looking nervously at Alex. "Well its either here, or nowhere for me," said Alex. "Because I'm not going anywhere on this leg." Fluttershy had finally recovered from her self-induced blush faint. "... .s... .... .l... ..e. ... ..d... ...u.. ...s.... ..d... a........... ..l..... ...p... ...e.. .....a.. ......m.... .....b... ...e.... ...u... ......o.." she mumbled. "Uhhhhhh... Does she always do that?" asked Alex. "Yes, it is a bad habit of hers," replied Fashion Creep. "What she asked was, 'Where is your home?' which I think is a very good question. We have been trying to force you to live somewhere when you obviously have a place of residence somewhere. So, where is it?" "What I would like to know is why your pink friend is still here. She is obviously in pain and probably has a broken bone. And yet, you are standing here talking to me instead of taking her to a hospital. That doesn't give me a lot of confidence in being your caged acquaintance," Alex said, redirecting the conversation away from his home. "To the Emergency Room!" yelled Dusk. Suddenly there was a bright flash of light and Dusk, the Pink Menace, and Applebuck disappeared. The other creatures seemed much less phased than Alex over the fact that three horses just died. "I'm watching you Alexander," said Rainbow, pointing at her eye then at him with her hoof. "Three of your friends just died and your concerned about that?" asked Alex. That seems a bit cold, even for a human. "Huh?" she replied, seeming confused. "What is he talking about, Rarity?" "You mean the flash of light?" asked Rarity. Alex nodded. Darn it, I liked Fashion Creep better. "Don't worry about that, darling, Twilight just teleported them to the hospital, not killed them. Once she gets back I sure she would love to explain it to you," replied Rarity. "Teleporting is a myth, completely impossibly, and-" Alex was cut off by a scream. "Blasphemy! Blasphemy! Get him Angel!" Fluttershy screeched, flinging a baseball sized rock towards his head. Alex managed to get his uninjured forearm in place and blocked it, sending it bouncing back towards her. What the heck? Fluttershy snatched up the rock and scurried from the room, cackling with glee. Rainbow and Rarity looked at each other in astonishment. "I'll get her," sighed Rainbow, running out the door after her. "Well then, I best be going. Is there anything you require before I leave you in the capable hooves of Ms. Ditzy?" asked Rarity. Alex looked down at the sorry excuses for clothing that he was wearing. "I could use some new clothes before I leave town," he said, rubbing his freshly bruised arm. "I happen to be an accomplished seamstress, so I could do it. For a price," said Rarity. "What kind of price are you talking about? I don't have any of whatever the local currency is," Alex said suspiciously. "Silly Alexander, it's nothing you can't afford. Just a couple of hours of trying on some fashionable clothes," she said, smiling mischievously. "How about Ditzy models for an entire day and I don't take my business elsewhere," replied Alex. "Huh? said Ditzy, snapping out of her inner thoughts. "Deal," said Rarity. "Just come over after work tomorrow, darling," she said to Ditzy. "What?" said Ditzy. "Now, to take your measurements," she said, producing a measuring tape from thin air. Alex sat still while the small floating object ran around his torso and took his numbers. Then he stood up and hunched over while it did the same to his legs. He then went over to the sofa and sat down on it while Rarity looked at the measurements on her list. "But..." said Ditzy. "I want my clothes to resemble the ones I have on now, no exceptions," Alex said, giving her a stern look. "Understood," she accepted, somewhat sadly. "Well I'm off, see you tomorrow Ditzy," Rarity sighed. "Maybe next time you can try on more fashionable clothes, Alexander," she said with a creepy glint in her eyes. "Ta-ta!" she exclaimed walking out the door. "Huh?" said Ditzy. "Hello? Ditzy?" asked Alex. Hearing her name woke her from her stupor. "Did you just volunteer me for hours of dress up with Rarity?" she asked, voice betraying no emotion. "The best designer in Ponyville, and one of the best in all of Equestria. Who's clothes I have always wanted to try on, but was never able?" "Yeah," replied Alex, shrugging. "I wasn't going to do it." Ditzy's face appeared to be building pressure and her whole body was looking tense. Suddenly her face broke into a huge grin and she clapped her fore hooves together, fluttering her wings for balance. "Thank you so much!" she yelled excitedly. She promptly ran into the wall next to the staircase. "Ummmm, pretend you didn't see that," she muttered, blushing. Ditzy then ran up the stairs in the proper, non-face hitting way. "I get to try on pretty clothes, I get to try on pretty clothes, I get to try on pretty clothes," she sang from upstairs with a childlike glee. "But what about dinner? I'm hungry and have some fresh pain to add to my already remarkable collection. I think I deserve at least a snack," muttered Alex, getting comfortable on his temporary bed.