It was a nice day and Midnight was taking Twinken for a walk through town.
“Thanks for taking me out, big brother! TLC would’ve dumped me with laundry to do, and I hate doing laundry for the other foals!”
“Well, that comes from living with other ponies, Twinken,” Midnight reminded him, “and yeah, I’m glad you’re here to share such a nice day with me.”
“Thunderlane must’ve gotten up early to clear away all the clouds,” Twinken commented as he hopped onto Midnight’s back.
“But it’s kinda odd,” Midnight said as he brought them into town square, “You’d think everypony would be out enjoying such a sunshiny day but this place almost looks like a ghost town.”
They looked around, seeing not a soul in sight with only few signs of life. One mare squealed as she shut the shutters on her window, while a filly stood outside her door only to be pulled inside by her mother, the door slamming shut.
“Is some event going on?” Twinken asked as Midnight continued through the empty streets.
“None that I’m aware of.”
“If somepony smelled something, I swear it wasn’t me!” Twinken had a sheepish look, Midnight chuckling.
“Do you think that, maybe it’s…” Twinken was sounding nervous.
“Zombies?!”
“Huh?!” The two looked across the way and saw, “Twilight, Spike!”
“Oh, Midnight, and Twinken,” Twilight came over, Spike on her back, as the four of them looked confusingly around the empty streets. “Do you know what’s going on?”
“`Fraid not,” Midnight replied, “I was hoping you would have the answers …And for the record, Spike, zombies? Unlikely.”
“Unlikely, yes, but possible!” debated Spike.
“Psst!”
They looked towards Sugarcube Corner, and saw Pinkie inside, “Guys! Come over here! Hurry! Before she gets you!”
Twilight and Midnight looked at each other, not understanding, but heeded the party pony’s words, hurrying inside, only to get a light flashed in their eyes.
“From who?!” Twinken asked.
“The zombie pony?” Spike added.
“Z-zombie-pony?!” Pinkie echoed fearfully.
“Guys, there are no zombie ponies,” Twilight insisted, Spike and Twinken sliding down.
“Pinkie, what’re you doing here alone in the dark?” Midnight asked.
“I’m not alone in the dark,” Pinkie replied, and the two unicorns’ eyes adjusted to the dark bakery and saw all their friends were present: AJ, Mac, Rainbow, Thunderlane, Fluttershy, Rarity, even Apple Bloom was there.
“Okay, what’re you all doing here in the dark?” Twilight amended.
“We’re hidin’ from her!” Applejack pointed out the window, and everypony looked to see somepony was standing in the middle of the square, wearing a cloak, and apparently digging at the dirt. Suddenly the stranger looked towards them, yellow eyes glaring out from the shadow of the hood.
Everypony cowered and hid, except for Twilight and Midnight.
“Didja see her, Midnight?” Apple Bloom asked nervously. “Didja see… Zecora?”
“Apple Bloom!” Applejack snapped at the little filly. “Ah told ya never t’ say tha’ name!”
Midnight raised a brow and looked again, everyone peering out the window with him, albeit crowding him, to Midnight's chagrin.
“Ugh, the way she’s digging, does she not care about getting dirty?” Rarity huffed.
“Maybe she’s looking for something,” Spike suggested.
“Something evil!” Pinkie added dramatically.
They then gasped as Zecora pulled down her hood and Midnight saw, “She’s a zebra!”
“A what?” Thunderlane asked.
“Y’know, a zebra,” Midnight said, “they’re like ponies but they have stripes in black n’ white.”
“You mean to say they’re all born with stripes?!” Rarity was mortified at the idea of never being able to change the way you look.
“Born where?” Big Mac asked, “Ah ain’t seen any pony like her `round these parts.”
“Well, she’s probably not from here,” Twilight suggested, “and she’s not a pony, strictly speaking. I’ve read about zebras, that they come from a faraway land called Zebrabwe, but I’ve never seen her in Ponyville.”
“That’s because she lives in…” Thunderlane gulped and said, “the Everfree Forest!”
As if punctuating his statement, everypony gasped at the sound of thunder, Midnight snapping, “Boys!”
They looked to see Twinken and Spike had gotten into the cupboards for a snack and had dropped some pans.
“Sorry!” they said sheepishly.
“The Everfree Forest just ain’t nat’ral,” Applejack spoke, “the plants grow…”
“Animals take care of themselves…” added Fluttershy.
“And the clouds move!” Rainbow butted in before she, Fluttershy, and AJ all said, “All on their own!”
“Well, I’m gonna go say hello,” Midnight said, only for Pinkie to bar the door.
“No! She’s evil!”
“And she told you that herself?” Midnight asked with a skeptical raise of his brow.
“Well… no,” Pinkie admitted, “But I wrote a song about it!”
“Here we go,” Rainbow rolled her eyes.
She’s an evil enchantress, she does evil dances
Pinkie was dancing around the shop like a mad-mare
If you look deep in her eyes, she’ll put you in trances
Midnight couldn’t help but feel disgusted.
And what’ll she do? She’ll mix up an evil brew
And she’ll gobble you up
In a big tasty stew
So watch–
“THAT IS QUITE ENOUGH!!” Midnight shouted at her, making her wince away and stop, and everypony was startled by his sudden outburst.
“I am shocked at you all! How can you think such things about someone you don’t even know?!”
“Well, she’s… different,” Thunderlane offered lamely.
“And that alone is why you’re all acting like Zecora’s some kind of witch?” Twilight was equally appalled as she stood next to Midnight. “This is all just gossip and rumors, I mean what exactly have you seen Zecora do?”
“Well… Once a month,” Rainbow spoke up, “she comes in to Ponyville.”
“Ooooh!” Twilight said dramatically, Rainbow frowning in response.
“Then she lurks by the stores,” Rarity added.
“Gasp! That monster!” Midnight said sarcastically to her face, causing her to scoff indignantly.
“And then she digs at th’ ground,” Big Mac brought up.
“Say it isn’t so!” Midnight and Twilight said together, before they both returned to being stone-faced, Twilight saying, “forgive me if we missed something, but what about any of this is so suspicious? Maybe she just comes to town for a visit?”
“Yeah, maybe she’s just tryin’ t’ be neighborly,” Apple Bloom agreed.
“And maybe she’s not lurking around the stores,” Midnight added, “because she’s shopping?”
“Yeah, everypony does a little window-shopping,” Twinken offered, Midnight giving him an approving smile.
“Apple Bloom, Twinken,” Applejack said sternly, “hush an’ let th’ big ponies talk!”
“We are big ponies,” Apple Bloom pouted, Twinken following her equally miffed.
“Well what about her digging?” Rainbow brought up, “Ya gotta admit that’s weird!”
“Maybe she’s digging for innocent creatures,” Fluttershy shuddered.
“Well, I’m sure there’s a reasonable explanation,” Midnight insisted. “and if anypony here were actually brave enough to approach her, they’d find out for themselves!”
“Hey Apple Bloom, we’re brave enough!” Twinken whispered.
“Yeah! Come on, we’ll find out ourselves!” agreed Apple Bloom.
And the two foals stepped out the door, but none of the others noticed.
“I never thought ponies capable of segregation,” Midnight shook his head, “especially ponies like all of you!”
“Midnight’s right, you’re all being ridiculous!” Twilight agreed.
“Well I heard-” Pinkie started to say but Midnight cut her off.
“One more bad thing about Zecora out of you, Miss ‘Evil Enchantress’, and I’ll pop all the balloons at your next party!”
Pinkie gasped at that but kept her mouth shut albeit in a pouting way.
“Wait an apple pickin’ minute!” Big Macintosh gasped, “Where’s Apple Bloom?”
“Wait, Twinken’s gone too!” Midnight noticed.
“The door’s open!” Fluttershy pointed out.
“They went outside!” Rarity fretted.
“With Zecora!” worried Rainbow.
“Those fool foals!” Applejack led the charge out.
“Spike, you stay here in case Apple Bloom or Twinken come back,” ordered Twilight as she was the last out.
“Will do!” Spike said with a salute.
Meanwhile, the hooded zebra was just entering the Everfree Forest, unaware of the two foals on her tail, as they popped out of the bush they’d been hiding in and slowly approached the entrance to the frightful forest ahead.
“Maybe we should go back…” Twinken suggested, looking nervous.
“This was yor idea!” Apple Bloom reminded him.
“Well I’m starting to think it wasn’t a good one!”
“Oh come on!” Apple bloom insisted, Twinken in reluctant tow, and they stepped into the shadow of the canopy.
They hadn’t followed Zecora long, who appeared to be avoiding some blue flowers, when she, along with the two foals, heard a distant voice behind them.
“Apple Bloom?!”
They looked and saw everypony catching up, stopping in the middle of a patch of the flowers, Applejack saying, “You and Twinken get yer li'l tails back here right now!”
“Beware, beware you pony-folk, those leaves of blue are not a joke!”
The voice had come ahead of the two foals, and they saw Zecora looking right at them.Applejack hurried up and scooped up both foals, yelling, “You keep yer creepy mumbo-jumbo t’ yerself, ya hear?!”
Everypony else (sans Twilight, Midnight, and even Big Macintosh) were shouting similar words to the zebra, who slowly vanished into a fog, her voice calling out, “Beware, beware…!”
Midnight sighed at his friends’ behavior, but wondered what exactly Zecora had been talking about.
“Yeah, back at you, Zecora!” Rainbow reared and flayed her forehooves out in a lame attempt to seem intimidating. “You an your lame curse should beware!”
“And you two!” Applejack glared at Apple Bloom and Twinken on her back, “Why couldn’t y’all just listen?”
“Well, uh-” Twinken tried to say something but Applejack cut him off.
“Who knows what sort’a nasty curse Zecora was gonna put on you!”
“Just like in my song!” Pinkie brought up, “Evil Enchantress-”
“I warned you! Expect some popping at your next party!” Midnight reminded her, and Pinkie instantly sulked. Midnight levitated Twinken to his own back, saying, “As for you, young colt, I appreciate what you and Apple Bloom tried to do, but that doesn’t mean you should just walk up to strangers.”
“Besides that,” Twilight spoke up, “there’s no such thing as curses!”
“That’s funny, coming from miss magic pants herself,” Thunderlane responded with a raised brow.
“Our magic comes from within” Twilight clarified, “a skill that one is born with. Curses are artificial, fake magic. Y’know, smoke n’ mirrors? The kind of thing used to fool or scare others. Curses have no real power.”
“Actually, Twilight,” Midnight shook his head. “Curses can be real, they’re malevolent arts of magic meant to cause harm to another.”
“Not helping!” Twilight snapped at him before looking at everypony else. “Like, I said, curses are just an old pony’s tale.”
“Well just you wait, Twilight,” Applejack warned her as everypony started to leave, “Yer gonna learn some pony tales really are true.”
Twilight watched them all leave, and looked back towards the fog, a little bothered by Midnight contradicting her words and Applejack’s warning. But she shook off the worry and followed after them, even though the worry lingered.