//------------------------------// // A Heated Debate // Story: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic -- Off The Record // by The King of Hearts //------------------------------// //// A Heated Debate //// After picking up the girls from the library, the group decided to go out for dinner. It would be a place for Chet to get all of his questions out of the way, so as much could be cleared up as possible. “Are you sure Tammy is going to be okay with this?” Alex asked, as they entered the restaurant and waited for a hostess, “I thought you two had plans for later.” “I cancelled them after you passed out, Alex.” Chet replied, tilting his head, “I thought I told you that…” Alex shrugged, “Maybe you did... I’ve been a bit off my rocker.” “Hi!” A perky voice came from behind them, “Sorry, I was just cleaning—“ Alex and Chet looked over their shoulders to face a young women, that both of them knew. Well, one more than the other. “Courtney…!” Alex began, biting his lip for a moment, “How long has it been?” “Better part of a year.” She said, her tone coming to a sharp point, “Not since the graduation dance.” Twilight was missing something. Leaning over to Dash, she whispered in her ear, “Who is that?” Dash pursed her lips and thought for a moment, “I think that’s his ex. She kissed him three years ago when we were last here.” “Oh.” Twilight whispered, looking back to the exchange between the two with wide eyes. “So it’s for four of you?” She asked dryly, looking over her shoulder at the empty restaurant, “You can sit wherever.” With that, she gave Dash a dark look, turned around, and walked in to the kitchen just to her left. “That was super awkward.” Alex huffed, looking to his uncle, “Maybe we should go somewhere else?” “Are you kidding me?” Chet asked, “I’m not missing out on a grilled cheese sandwich just because you’re afraid of your ex.” “Dude, I can just make you a sandwich.” Alex said, pointing to the door, “Why don’t we just go home? We’ll have more privacy to talk about… well, you know.” “I still only half believe you, just so you know,” Chet said, walking toward the table furthest from the kitchen, “This should give us some distance from prying ears.” Sighing, Alex gave up and followed his uncle with the other two girls in tow, taking his seat across from Chet, leaving Twilight to semi-awkwardly sit next to him. “So,” Alex said folding his hands on the table and looking to his right at Chet, “What else have you got for me? I’m sure there’s plenty you want to know.” “Oh! What’s with that diamond you gave me?” He asked, reaching in to his pocket and dropping it on the table with a thud, “I got it appraised in town, and the guy said it was worth like, a billion freaking dollars!” “Uhh, yeah I guess that’s possible…” Alex muttered, having had no idea how much it would have been worth when he made it, “I’m glad you didn’t sell it!” “What’s it for?” He asked again, spinning it and watching the colors change, “Why did you give it to me?” “Well, I didn’t really know when I was coming back, to be honest,” Alex said, reaching out and taking the gem in to his hands, “I was considering just staying until I had to stop... whatever that thing is that’s coming to kill all of us.” “Kill you all?!” Chet asked, his attention completely pulled from the jewel, “What’s that supposed to mean?” “Have I not got there yet?” Alex asked, tilting his head, “I guess we didn’t get too far in the story, did we?” “Where did you get to?” Dash injected, not wanting to be too left out of the conversation, “I can help fill in some blanks!” “I’d love to as well!” Twilight agreed, nodding rapidly. “I got up to our first time meeting Alpha,” Alex said, remembering his explanation of Harmonic magic, “Told him all about Dax, the destruction of Haven Station.” “What did they ever do with that pile of rubble?” Alex asked, having not inquired about it at all. “Oh, they rebuilt it,” Twilight spoke up, “I heard the princess talking about it, and apparently it cost something like three hundred million bits.” “What’s a bit to a dollar?” Chet asked, trying his best to understand the conversation, “Like, one to one?” Alex scratched his head, “I think that would be about right. I’ve never really had to worry about it though.” “Well, it’s about ten bits for a meal at any restaurant,” Dash said, looking over the menu that was propped up against the window, “This is a couple more… So maybe it’s like, ten or twenty percent.” “Good call, ya nerd.” Alex laughed. “Hey!” Both Twilight and Dash said. “Math is cool!” Twilight defended. “See? Twilight’s the nerd!” Dash shouted after, “Not me!” “Look, why don’t we just get on with the story?” Alex asked, “There is so much we need to get through.” “Well, how did the story start, again?” Chet asked, tilting his head, “You said there was a door?” “You’re joking, right?” Alex asked, placing his chin in his open hand, “I spent so much time explaining things to you!” “Well, yeah… but there was no commentary before!” Chet said, gesturing to the two girls, “You’ve been with him for his whole time in that place, right?” “More or less,” Twilight shrugged, unsure if she should mention the two years he was brainwashed. “We’ll give you the real story,” Dash nodded, “So we’d better start from the very beginning.” Alex sighed. Not because he had to retell everything, but because he had embellished a few parts here or there, and he was sure Chet was going to cross reference with the two of them. “Okay, so!” Chet said, rubbing his hands together, “Let’s start when you first met the girls!” “Well, the first time I ever saw any of them, I ran head first in to an evil spirit,” Alex answered, looking between the girls for their acceptance of his explanation, as they nodded, “I had been in the woods for hours, and I decided that they needed some help against their enemy.” “Is that what happened?” Chet asked, looking from Alex to the girls. “Well, yeah he did.” Dash nodded, “He threw himself in front of a dark god, to protect Twilight here… But it was still a stupid thing to do.” “Stupid?!” Alex asked, throwing his arms in the air, “I thought Twilight was going to get impaled by Nightmare’s horn!” “I mean, realistically, I would have just moved…” Twilight muttered, as Alex exhaled loudly. “Maybe I should have just let her do her thing then!” Said, throwing his arms in the air. “Quit bitching,” Chet said, “Back to the story.” “You quit bitching…” Alex mumbled, before getting back on track with his recollection. “Well, after I knocked her over, the group of us—the Elements of Harmony, if you remember, Chet.” Alex said, as his uncle nodded, remembering the explanation on those, “We cast a spell that rid her of her evil side.” “But you passed out!” Dash laughed, pointing at him. “Was it too tough for you?” Chet teased. Alex shook his head, and continued. “So, after that, I woke up, and was introduced to the group of girls,” Alex said, remembering that first time they lined up for him, “Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Twilight, Fluttershy... and… Oh geez, what was that last girls name?” “Very funny.” Dash said, suppressing her own laughter, “You could remember every name except mine! The mare you were going to marry!” “Hey, I had my eye on Twilight back then,” Alex joked, as Twilight lit up a small amount, “I mean, getting with a teacher is always a sexy thought, right?” “I can’t disagree with you on that.” Dash nodded, winking as Twilight burnt up further, “Oh come on! It’s just a joke!” Chet opened his mouth to get in on the joke, but decided against it. He always swore he’d never be the creepy uncle, and calling your nephew’s friend sexy was a one-way ticket to creepy-uncle-ville. “So, after that, I started to adjust to life in cartoon horse world.” Alex said, thinking back to his earliest adventures with the girls, before he chuckled at one thing in particular, “But, for those first few weeks, you wouldn’t even talk to me!” “Because you forgot my name!” Dash defended, “And! You covered my house in flippin’ garbage! It stunk for weeks!” “You can’t throw that back in my face! I’ve made up for it since then!” Alex argued, as she gave him a skeptical look. “I still get whiffs of it, you know.” She said simply. “Oh, cry me a river.” Alex said, rolling his eyes, “You were dying for me to make up with you, and you know it!” Dash frowned. He was right, but she didn’t want to make it too easy for him. “I think you wanted it more,” Dash said, smirking, as he narrowed his eyes, clearly accepting her challenge, “I mean, you fell in love with me the second we made up. You’re lucky I’m even here with you right now.” “And you didn’t feel that way yourself?” Alex asked, tilting his head, “I mean, when I was taken in to the future, you ran off to become a Wonderbolt, and I had to move heaven and earth to get you back. I think you’re the lucky one.” “You could have just asked Celestia!” Dash countered, seeing how far she could push him, “It would have been much easier for everypony!” “Of course I couldn’t.” Alex said, his tone suddenly calm, as he gave her a small smirk, “Because you and I both know, that my falling out of a blimp, just for you, is the most romantic thing Equestria’s ever seen. I mean, how many ponies did you tell that story to? About the man who risked his life just to make out with you, in the middle of a cheering crowd of thousands? ” Dash bit her lower lip. “Face it, Dashie,” Alex said, his voice low and somewhat commanding, “You’re the lucky one.” Chet and Twilight exchanged bewildered glances, before looking back to the feuding couple. “Well, maybe I’m lucky to have Dax,” She said, her eyebrow raised, “He came through for me when I needed somepony to save Luna’s baby.” “Dax is just another part of me!” Alex said, his voice increasing in pitch slightly, “It was just a different version me!” “Well,” Dash shrugged, suppressing a smirk as she decided to poke the bear a little more, “Maybe a version with more balls.” “Oh yeah?” Alex asked, “What about when him and I were ripped apart, and I was forced to accept him, so I could save you because you were grabbed by the changelings? Or was that all him too?” “This is where I got to in the story!” Chet tried to get in on the conversation, before the two continued without him. “Well, okay, so that’s two things you have going for you.” Dash said, shrugging at the seemingly unimpressive streak he had going, “I, on the other hoof, spent two years studying every magic book in Equestria, so I could get you out of your stone prison!” “A prison I was in, because I literally sacrificed myself to save Equestria!” Alex countered, not backing down, “I gave up my life to save everypony from Discord!” At this point, Alex and Dash had turned their entire bodies toward each other, and were getting deep in to their argument. It was at this time that Twilight was relieved to be on the sane side of the table. “Discord wasn’t planning on taking Equestria over, if you remember,” Dash said, playing as hard to the technicalities as she could, “We were in no real danger.” “So I guess all that time you spent looking for me was a waste too then, wasn’t it?” Alex asked. Dash glared at him. Alex returned the gaze. An uncomfortable silence filled the table, as none of them dared say a word. Then, out of the blue, Alex shook his head slightly and spoke up. “God dammit, you’re sexy when you’re angry.” Alex said, reaching out and placing his hand on her cheek. “Just kiss me, you dolt…” She said, throwing herself forward, and initiating a passionate kiss with him, as she pushed his back against the window, and pressed herself in to him, intensifying the already inappropriate kiss. “What the hell am I looking at…?” Chet asked, his mouth slightly ajar as he watched his nephew continue his argument, albeit in a slightly different way. “They do this sometimes,” Twilight tried to explain, as she finally shook her head, “But I couldn’t even begin to tell you the reasoning behind it.” “Lucky kid, I guess.” Chet said, waiting patiently for them to break apart, “So, do you mind filling me in on some of the stuff he got up to in your… world? Alex has always been a terrible story teller. He skips important parts, and jumps all over the place. I just don’t want to hurt his feelings by saying that to him.” “Sure! It’s not like we have anything better to do,” Twilight said, looking on to the passionate couple, “So, let me get started from the beginning. I’ll try to cover every base.” “Thanks,” Chet said politely, “Hopefully those two will be able to join the conversation soon enough.” “And hopefully we can order our food here,” Twilight said, looking over her shoulder toward the kitchen, where Alex’s ex was obviously poking her head over the counter, watching them, “But… maybe I shouldn’t bank on that.” Chet looked from the making out couple, to the angry face trying to hide in the kitchen. “I’d be careful,” Chet said to Twilight, “Might find some spit in our food from that girl.” Twilight grimaced. That as a nasty thought. “Maybe I’ll just eat some hay when I get back to Alex’s house,” She laughed, before turning back to Chet and organizing her thoughts, “Okay… so… where should I start?” “Alex’s first day,” Chet said, truly wanting to hear everything again, “I’m missing so many points to this story…” “No problem,” Twilight smiled, “I’m sure you’ll find my account much more believable… Well, as believable as Alex turning in to a horse with wings and a horn.” “I’m doing my best here, Twilight.” Chet laughed, “Just go, I’ll let it sink in over the next few days.” “Okay, well… here I go.” Twilight began, smiling inwardly at her chance to educate somepony on the history of her world… even though there were two people making out just two feet away from her, “A thousand years ago, there were two regal sisters who ruled together, and created harmony for the entire world...” ////