//------------------------------// // Dragon's Teeth // Story: My Little Heartbreak: Creativi-Tea // by Jet_Black1980 //------------------------------// Chapter 23 Dragon’s Teeth. Spike rushed forward as quickly as his dragon legs would take him. He was unaware that at the same time he was running, Twilight and Zecora were also running. “Right, so she stopped by that table, got instructions on how to get to the dentist, and then raced off! But why the dentist?! That just doesn’t make any sense!” Then again, with what he saw at the library, it was a surprise that she even had any sense to even ask to go anywhere, let alone the dentist. There might have been clues in the cluttered mess back at the library, but...Spike shuddered at the thought of facing that mess again. Turning into a street he saw the dentist’s office. He smiled. “I really hope that she’s still there!” Dentists usually took a long time to get to their patients, so there was the off chance that she was still there. Spike walked into the office. He was greeted by the sound of a bell ringing and then by the sounds of drilling. Loads of drilling. A symphony of drilling as it were. It almost sounded like there were three, maybe four ponies in for their teeth. A musical voice came from the back. “Juuuuust a minute!” a white unicorn with a wavy mane walked out of one of the rooms in back. He had a face-mask on and there was a bit of sweat dripping off his forehead. What was perturbing was all the drilling stopped at once. He looked over the front desk. “A dragon! Oh my stars and garters! As I live and breath! A dragon!” “Are...are you Doctor Bright-White?” Spike asked. From the back he heard the moans and groans of several ponies. “That I am, that I am! And who would you be young ...uhm, what do they call young male dragons?” He asked. “I don’t know, but my friends call me Spike,” he said, momentarily forgetting why he was there. The doctor looked at a schedule book. “Spike,Spike,Spike! Nope! No Spike! Tell me, would you like to set up an appointment? Please do tell me, I am rather busy at the moment.” “Uhm, no actually, I was wondering if you had seen a friend come through here. She’s tan, has blue eyes and a brown mane goes by the name of-” “Heartbreak! Oh yes! Yes! Yes! She came in here for some drilling work!” Bright-White said nodding. “D-d-drilling?” Spike asked meekly. “Did she have some serious tooth problems?” “No actually! It was the strangest drilling that I have ever done. I might be new, but I have had to learn some interesting things about the different types of teeth I would encounter in my field.” He said, fidgeting a bit. “But, hey, this was the first time I had to drill a hole clean through somepony’s hoof!” Spike’s eye twitched. “Hole...through...her..hoof?” “Oh yes! I still have the diagrams that she showed me! Here!” he floated them to Spike. They were done in Heartbreak’s style alright. “Did she say why she was getting a hole in her hoof?!” Spike asked, panicking. “Not really, just that she needed it. I was really reluctant to do so, mind you. But then I had a sip of that...Wooooooonderful tea she had!” he said, practically swooning. Spike’s look of horror continued. “Tea?” “Yes, please!” he blinked. “Oh wait, you don’t have any. Well, she left my office at least ten minutes ago.” Bright-White looked at Spike intently. “Saaaay, I have never seen dragon teeth up this close...” The horror that Spike felt turned to unease. He flashed a rather large and nervous smile at the dentist. “You don’t know where she happened to go after she left do you?” “Not precisely,” Bright-White replied, walking over to Spike. Spike defensively covered his mouth. “I did see her walking down the street with all the minor little shops, clothing shops, antique shops, that clock shop at the end of the block, and that one hat shop with the shady sales pony...” Spike blinked. There was no telling what Heartbreak would do to High Hat in this tea addled state of hers. Last time she tore through him like tissue paper! This time...”Well, it has been fun, but I really have to go right now...” “What? But why? When’s the last time you had a check-up young dragon?! Your teeth must be cracking and in need of repair with how many rocks dragons crunch down!” “Oh no...you see, continually growing! Yeah!” Spike replied, clawing at the nearest explanation. “Besides, you sound rather busy at the moment!” “Busy? Oh Pish-posh-and-poppycock! I only have three patients that I am attending to right now,” Bright-White replied, his face slightly twitching. “At the same time?!” Spike asked. Bright-White nodded. “Dude, don’t you think you need to take things in moderation? You know, one step at a time?” “What? But there isn’t any time! I need to get to know my patients, what they like, how to calm them and what problems they have with their teeth! I need to be the best dentist! The. Best!” Bright-White’s eye twitched. “And the Best Dentist is one that can even work on Dragon’s Teeth! Ha! I bet Colgate has never done that before!” he exclaimed. The clock struck half past the hour. “Oh, Look at the time, it has been at least half an hour, maybe more since I saw Heartbreak! I should really find her!” “Wait!” Bright-White said his magical glow grabbing Spike’s arm. “I need to do this! You’ll see! It’ll be-” Just then the door chimed open. A mare and her daughter walked in. “But moooooooooooooom! I don’t want to see the dentist! He’s scary and weird!” the cream-pink coloured filly whined. “Strawberry Sweets! Don’t take that tone of voice with me. You are overdue and with as many sugary treats that you gobble down...” the lavender mare replied, scolding her. Bright-White’s magic faded from Spike’s arm. “Oh! You’re early for your two-twenty appointment! Strawberry Sweets! Right there in the book.” Spike raced to the door. Strawberry looked at the funny green dragon. Just before he darted out, he gave her a funny, panicked look and mouthed ‘I’m really, really, really sorry.’ Strawberry looked confused until she saw the creepy smile on the dentist’s face. Her ears drooped. “Today, I know fear,” she thought to herself. ======================================================================= Pepper Pocket looked over the diagrams. For being crudely drawn, they were inspired. He had never seen such a device before, it looked like it had been plucked from an out-of-this world comic book. In appearance, it looked incredibly simple. A standard pencil. However, this pencil had an expanding barrel and a rounded top that was split into five sections that were buttons for other tools. There was the pencil, of course, but there was also an eraser, a pen, a ‘smudge’, and an empty slot for small specialized tools. While that was all interesting, it was the inner workings of this device that had Pepper mesmerized. “All this in a single...what did you call it again?” He asked. “MechanicalPencil,” Heartbreak replied. “And the dial on the side controls how much the barrel of this ‘mechanical pencil’ expands and contracts?” he whistled. “That is one tall order. That is a lot of small working parts in a tight confined space...One second, how do you intend on keeping the pencil sharp?” The mare infront of him blinked as if his question posed no problem. “That’ssimple. Youdon’t. Theleadofthepencil isathinline ofgraphitethat ispushedout asneededwhen youclickthepencilbutton. Well,whilethepencilbuttonis ‘active’.” Pepper raised an eyebrow. “Good luck finding graphite that thin...” he shook his head. “Or even getting a pony to make this,” he saw the disappointment on Heartbreak’s face as he spoke those words. “I mean, it’s not that you can’t get it made, but what you’re asking me to do is rather, no offence, but I believe it is in the realm of impossible.” “Believingimpossiblethings iseasy, PepperPocket,” she replied, tilting her head. “Why,Ibelievednineimpossiblethingsbeforebreakfasttoday.” Pepper shook his head. He had a hard time understanding what Heartbreak was saying with the way she was talking. She sounded like a watch that had been wound too tightly and was ticking too quickly. “Be that as it may, I already have a large workload on me. Being one of the few clock repair shops in this area doesn’t allow me to work on frivolous projects.” He sighed and looked at a few oddball half finished pieces on a far away shelf. “As much as I would like to. Besides, I can see a vital flaw in your design.” Heartbreak scoffed and looked insulted. “Flaw?Ihavechecked thesedesignsover twice!thrice!Evenfourtimes!Whatcouldbemissing?!” “A power source? This kind of thing couldn’t work on mechanics alone. It would need a power crystal of some kind,” Pepper replied. “Powercrystals,uhm,wouldthosebe redcrystals keptinthecabinets inthefourthdrawerfromthetop?” she asked. “Yes...” Pepper blinked. “Well, normally they would be, but I have misplaced quite a few of them. And they aren’t the most inexpensive things. I have had to settle for green or yellow power crystals.” Heartbreak looked around frantically, she then blinked. “Aretheythin hexagonalandabout fiveinchesorless long? Causethereis oneon thatshelf, oneunderthatclock, anotherunder yourworkingdesk, oneinthiscrack inthefloor, forsomereason asah-hahaafff!” she spat on her words. “Aspartofthatclockface in thatclock overthere, andfinally...” Pepper Pocket flinched a bit as she reached forward. She tapped on his vest pocket. “Thereisonerighthere.” Pepper looked a bit shocked. “How did you-” he sighed. “I thank you, Heartbreak, but again, I just wouldn’t have time for this little project of yours. I have more clocks on my hooves than any one pony can, or should handle. Each one of them with a deadline to be met and each one with a different problem! I am lucky if I get two or three clocks fixed in a day. The project that you are asking me to do would take months...” Heartbreak shook her head. “Months?!No,no,no,no! Iamonadeadlinemyself!” she rubbed her head. “Andnottosoundlikean AppleBloom, but’ahwantitnow!” she said, zipping up to Pepper, desperation in her eyes. “Well,need-it,want-itnow...” “I am terribly sorry, Heartbreak,” he replied, almost adding a ‘miss’. “I just don’t have the time. Not by myself anyway.” “Whydon’tyouhiresomeponyelse tohelpyouwithalltheseclocks?!” she asked. “Can’t afford it,” he shook his head. “When my mentor was here, maybe, but ever since his...” Pepper grimaced, “Retirement. I have been stuck here, alone, barely having time for the projects I really want to do, or even my loved ones.” he put a hoof on the portrait of Jewel Movement. “I never thought I would ever get sick of clocks. But, I really am. I hate fixing them.” he sat down at his work station. “Thenwhyareyouatyourjobifyouhatewhatyoudo? Don’tallponiesdosomething thatdealswiththeirspecialtalent? Somethingtheylovedoing?” Heartbreak dug around in her saddlebag for something. “Well, yes, but really I don’t like fixing clocks. It isn’t my special talent,” Pepper replied. “My special talent is in making clocks. I love making something new, something original, something that no pony has ever seen. It’s ironic really. While other ponies are free, I am a prisoner to my job, a job that gives the other ponies what I don’t: Time.” he picked up the coffee cup and took a sip, his face twisted up. “I barely have any energy and to top it all off, I am stuck drinking cold coffee all day.” he glared at the cup. “I wish I could help you Heartbreak. However, I neither have the time or the energy, so, if you don’t mind, time is money. And I have wasted enough money talking to you.” Heartbreak frowned at Pepper Pocket. She pulled out a sipping cup and took a sip of it. Her face twitched. “Mmmmstillwarm.” Pepper looked over at her. “What’s still warm?” he inquired. “Oh,mytea,” she replied. “My word, is that what you are drinking that makes you sound like a hyperactive chipmunk? How much have you had?” Pepper asked. “Oooooh, justoneortwosipshereandthere. It’sreallygooooodtea,” she replied. “Really? What kind of tea is it?” Pepper asked, sniffing the air in hope he could get a whiff. Suddenly there was a bright flash of a smile on her face. “Oh,itisjustthemostwonderoustea inallofEquestria, it’sateacalled ‘Creativi-Tea,’” She replied. “Anditisstillverymuchquitewarm.” Pepper looked curious. “Creativity. I could use some of that right about now...Are you against sharing a bit of it with me?” Heartbreak grinned from ear to ear. “WhyMr.PepperPocket. Ithoughtyou’dneverask.” she sweetly replied, offering him the cup. ======================================================================= Spike ran down the street. His run in with Doctor Bright-White was painting a rather unsettling, unnerving, and really creepy picture of what a cup of Creativi-Tea made with four tea bags could do to a pony. “And I don’t think he had much! If Heartbreak is sipping on it from who-knows-when to now....Oh man...” Spike shuddered at this thought. “Her mind must be racing! But...racing to what?” he suddenly stopped in his tracks. Even if creativi-tea wasn’t an energy drink, Twilight had complained to Heartbreak the dangers of having what she called a, ‘caffeine overload,’ and how it would lead to an early grave! His eyes widened as he realized the further desperation of his situation. “Finding. Heartbreak. Now!” He shouted. Just then he found himself running into what could only be described as a mountain of hats. “Oh, me, Oh my! My hats!” said a familiar voice. “Oh, no, no, no! Look what you have done! Some of them are flying away before they are finished!” Spike rubbed his head slightly. “What is it with me and running into things? And why can’t I just run into Heartbreak?” A flurry of hats surrounded him, all of them diving and ducking around with little wings. Other hats crept about on the ground, there were hats that were collapsing and uncollapsing. Hats that were made of grass, roots, feathers, marbles, and various other materials. There were even hats that had what looked like small felt teeth in their mouths. High Hat looked down proudly at Spike. “Do you like them!? I call it my ‘Random Hat Collection!” he said, in a loud, excited voice. “Uhm...let me guess, you ran into Heartbreak again...didn’t you?” Spike asked nervously, looking at all the strange hats. “Oh, yes! And what’s more, I found my muse! I tell you that mare can really look into a pony’s soul! His inner workings! It was like she saw this block in my head and bashed it to bits!” High Hat said. “Yeah...” Spike rubbed his temples. “She gave you some tea, didn’t she?” High Hat nodded vigorously. “Oh, and by golly it was the best tea in all of Equestria! I had but one or two sips! But oh, was it ever marvellous tea! Really got me thinking about things. I mean, why was I so hung up about Los Pegasus?! The past is the past, and the present is now! On to the future...The future of hats!” he shouted at the top of his lungs. “Oh look! One of my hats seems to be taking a liking to you!” High Hat pointed at a small bowler hat that had felt teeth. “Uhhhh,” Spike began, looking at said hat. The creation was almost crouched down and wiggling its brim away from him. Almost like a cat ready to pounce some sort of rodent. “That’s...really...nice...” he replied, looking really unnerved, he turned back to High Hat. “Did you happen to see where Heartbreak went after she left here?” That’s when the hat pounced the top of Spike’s head. “Aaah!” “Awwww! It likes you!” High Hat said, before looking thoughtful. “Where. Did. Heartbreak. Go...Right, I think she was looking down the street and saying something about her needing something. She most likely spotted a shop or something. I’m not terribily sure...” High Hat’s hooves paced franticly about, before grabbing another blank bowler hat. “Aaah! Get this thing off me!” Spike tugged and pulled at the hat. However, it refused to come off. What’s more he swore that the hat was almost growling at him. “Oh right, that’s one of my, ‘Won’t come even in a stiff wind,’ hats. It only comes off if the wearer wants it to. However, I am still working on the ‘comes off’ part. The last batch is better than the first. They wouldn’t come off at all. This one... I think it will come off, but you have to give it some time.” High Hat replied. Spike shook his head to try and get the thing off. However, it was far more persistent and stubborn than the little dragon had time for. “Whatever! She went down that way?” High Hat momentarily looked up. “Oh No. She went down the other way. Not sure which shop though!” Spike rolled his eyes. He would have to check every one of them. “Great. Thanks,” he said racing off. High Hat smiled as the little dragon wore his creation. “Yes, yes, yes. A place for every hat and every hat in its place....