Epilogue: Know They Did1,309 words

Errands: The Streets I Used To Own

Ponyville was as bright and shiny as ever. And Dan hated all of it. He grumbled, walking next to Spike, his fists tightly-balled and his teeth gritted.

"You should try to relax, Dan," Spike told him.

"I TRIED relaxing."

"No, I mean like, actually putting effort into it. Relaxing. Loosening up a bit," Spike said, making waves with his arms for emphasis.

"When did you become a life coach?"

"Heh, kinda goes with the role of sidekick," Spike answered. Truth be told, he had given Twilight a lot of useful advice over the years. And now, he was more confident than ever, after their adventure and getting to spend more time with Rarity. The heart wanted what it wanted, however great or small that was, and when it was achieved, it could make one feel as if they were on top of the world. Spike was on top of the world that very moment.

A group of pegasi zoomed in overhead, a large formation. Ponyville had not quite settled back into the way of things just yet. Things were rapidly returning to normal, but still had a ways to go. This became more evident when Dan and Spike tried to take the usual route through town.

"Huh. I guess we'll have to go around."

"Apparently," Dan said, annoyed. The road ahead- Sweet Street, the road that curved north-west from the Golden Oakes and up towards Sugar Cube Corner, was undergoing construction. Wooden barricades were blocking the way and ponies in hardhats were working behind them. Nothing major; the road had still been heavily damaged when the sea ponies invaded.

Dan's brow furrowed. Equestria had been restored exactly as it had been. Not just as it had been before the planet had been destroyed; as it had been before Dan had even arrived. Ponyville had been through a lot since he became involved and now, ponies had actually decided they liked some of Dan's improvements. Equestria had been restored according to its original design- the Fausticorn's original design. Dan's mark on the planet had been erased, yet his influence remained in the ponies.

Dan had destroyed and rebuilt most of Ponyville. The citizens actually liked his improvements enough to implement them again, and with haste.

"Hey-HEY!" one of them yelled. "Hey, Dan!"

Just as they had been turning around, one of the construction workers trotted up to them. "You want something?"

"Hey, were you guys tryin' ta get through? Let me move the barriers aside."

A bearded worker, the foreman if it was ever evident, made his way over. "Lewis, what are you- oh! It-it's you!"

"...Yes? Yes it is. I noticed that as well, it being me, and all. The hell is going on?"

"Oh, uh, we're just expanding the thoroughfare here! Sorry it's taking so long- hey, you guys wanna get through?"

The pair exchanged a quick glance. "Yeah. But aren't you guys-"

"Ey! Louie, Lewis, Lou, move the barricades. Just for a minute there." The foreman waved over a few ponies and had the barricades moved aside. "Just follow me. I'll get ya through here."

"Alright."

The foreman led them through. Wherever there were ponies working, they stopped. Some carrying equipment, some using equipment, one using a jackhammer while chewing gum had to be nudged in the shoulder to stop hammering. But when he looked up to see Dan and Spike- more specifically, Dan, walking through his construction site, he stopped chewing gum.

"So I was just asking Terry, why do we have to carry this girder? And he doesn't even know- we're just supposed to carry it across the street. This has nothing to do with roadwork at all, and you know what Terry says?"
"I don't know what Terry says."
"He says the higher-ups told him to! So now, you and me are stuck carrying this friggin' thing back and forth, just to emphasize this is a construction site. And I told Terry this, you know what Terry says?"
"I don't know what Terry says."
"He says it's a union thing! So I told Terry he can shove it up his-"
"Hey! Look, it's Dan!"

"Hey, put that thing down. What are you two even doing with that?"

"Ask Terry."

"I don't know what Terry says," the foreman said, swatting away the suggestion. He beckoned Dan and Spike to come through with him. All around them, ponies were taking notice. The foreman let them through at the end of the construction site, another pair of ponies removing the barricades for them to pass and waving them on their way.

"Hey Dan!"
"Dan, can I buy you a drink, ey?"

Continuing down the street, it was mostly the same. Even more so when they got close to Photo Finish's studio.

"No! No, no! Stop vith zee flashing, you amateurs! No!"

"Just keep walking. Maybe they won't notice us," Spike said. And then, Photo Finish herself galloped over to them.

"There goes that theory."

"Dan! Dan, how good it is to see you!" The silver-haired euro-photo-fashionista was all over Dan in an instant. She grabbed his arms, his shirt, examining him for length as he walked, too quickly for him to really get annoyed by it and backhand her but that was quickly becoming a reality as his irritation built.

"Dan, have you had your portrait taken? I promise you- for YOU, YOU ALONE, only my finest work," Photo said.

"Get lost, fraulein," he said, shaking her off.

Spike looked back, shrugged and apologetically waved at her as they departed. "You lasted longer than Hoity Toity did!"

Fashion was a major business in Equestria. It was one of the only major businesses; there were just fewer overall than there were on Earth. Fewer of just about everything, for better and worse. And because Dan didn't deal much with fashion, he hadn't been on the radar of many of Equestria's elites. Now, that was not the case, and with his status as a world-saving celebrity, there were many clamoring for his attention.

Some of the ponies in Photo Finish's photo hut began following Dan, at a somewhat safe-ish distance, becoming a pseudo-paparazzi group.

"WILL YOU PONIES LEAVE ME ALONE?!?!" Dan shouted. But a crowd of ponies now followed him and Spike, too busy talking amongst themselves about Dan to pay attention to Dan. Most of them were with friends that didn't want to leave without said friends, and because none of them left, none of them started to leave. The only leader there, for the moment, was Dan.

They were almost to the supermarket, their first stop. Spike looked back over his shoulder. "I guess they're really committed to following you," he said. When he turned back around, he saw Dan running. "Wait! Dan, where are you going?"

"AAAAAAAHHH GET AWAY FROM ME!!" Dan yelled. And ran. And the yelling and running only encouraged more ponies to look and follow him. Some didn't, some did, either way the crowd continued growing.

And then, suddenly, Dan split into three. Spawning from Dan's own shadow, the other Dans broke and ran in different directions. Spike stopped. When one of them ran past Dan, Dan stopped. The crowd, confused of what was happening but not paying attention, continued following the running Dans.

"Well now, someone's popular, aren't they."

"More popular than you right now. Isn't Fluttershy expecting you?"

The last of Dan's shadow turned into Discord. "She lets me off the leash now and then."

"It's not a literal leash, is it?" Spike asked.

Discord's eyes went wide for a moment. "At any rate, I couldn't help but notice your predicament. What neighborly sort would I be if I didn't help out a friend in need?"

Dan huffed and walked on without an answer. So Spike offered one. "He's not in the best of moods right now."

"Isn't that normal for him?"

"Not this kind of mood. Not really."

"Hmmm," Discord rubbed his chin. "Well, I suppose you can't blame a guy for trying."

Spike held up two talons. "Two things: he can and he will."

Discord started walking with him. He appeared next to Dan, mimicking his high-shouldered, fist-balled stomp through town. But then he stopped and floated in front of him.

"Get away from me before I make you wish you were stone again."

"I know why you're angry, Dan. Celestia doesn't exactly have the best track record for making good decisions, does she?"

Dan visibly de-tensed. "How exactly did YOU find out?"

"Me? I was there. With everybody else on the moon. We all saw it. And the ponies that didn't see it were told by the ones that did- how you shot yourself into space on a cannon, rode on a magic carpet through the stars following a comet as fireballs flew around you, jumped out of a star fortress with a legion of space knights, crashed upon the moon's surface, tamed a clan's worth of Ursas and fought your way through the palace guards of the moon, only to get to the evil chancellor's inner sanctum and have him give up before your very eyes. A heroic tale, if ever there was one."

Dan stopped. "What... it's not a CARPET... I mean, technically..."

Spike scratched his head. "It does kinda all sound cool when you say it that way. And I mean, it DID all happen."

"That's right. That's right it DID happen," Dan declared. "But now..."

Discord shrugged. "Seems a little pointless if they're just going to let the bad guy go after all that."

"You're one to talk," Spike countered.

"Ahh, you wound me, my little reptilian friend. But as many would point out, I happen to be reformed. As is somepony else you kno-" Dan grabbed Discord's muzzle before he could say another word.

"You come anywhere near me, my friends, my family and I..." but then he stopped. His grip on Discord relaxed. "I... I don't know what I'll do." It wasn't a threat. Dan felt anger ebb from him. What was the point in feeling something if there was no way to use that emotion, no way to express it, nothing to do about it at all except... accept it?

"You ARE torn up about this," Discord said, sounding serious. "Tsk-tsk-tsk. And I thought poor Luna was shaken up."

"What about Luna?" Dan and Spike asked simultaneously. In the background, the crowd was still chasing after another of the magic duplicate Dans. He jumped on top of a building, making the Super Mario jump sound effect as he did.

"Luna disapproves of Tia's decision as well. Twilight, well, she did not want to take sides and neither did Cadence. Shining Armor was against letting Rice go, but the princesses are the ones who make the rules, not the males. It seems many are unhappy with the way things are going," Discord explained. "Everybody seems to think ruling a nation is easy. Until they try it."

"You were at the meeting? The summit with Twilight, Celestia and the others today?"

Discord nodded. "Lots of problems, it seems. There's civil unrest in the neighboring kingdoms- talk of uprisings. Sudden disappearances, ponies going missing since being rescued. And more interlopers arriving as well. Not to mention the impending return of the king and queen."

Dan turned around, fuming a little bit less. "Was it because of them? Because Celestia and Luna's parents are returning that they spared the shithead?"

"Why exactly ARE the king and queen returning again?" Spike asked.

A bag of popcorn appeared out of thin air. Discord jabbed a crazy straw into it and proceeded to drink. "That I don't know. From what we do know, the king and queen are not very happy. Seems they moved Equestria, the sun and the moon to its current position and separated it from the nearest planet and put a bunch of space nasties- ursas and the like, between them in order to protect Equestria. But with this summoning magic, creatures from all over can just pop up right here."

Dan frowned. "Really? Hadn't noticed. So they don't like borrowing folks from other dimensions, huh? They purists or something?"

Discord folded his arms again, thinking to himself. "There's consequences to opening Pandora's Box. Never know who's from another universe these days."

"Uh huh. Naturally. Well, Disco-tech, you've been spectacularly unhelpful as always. Thanks for the update but now Spike and I have errands to run." Dan turned back around and resumed his angry march towards the south.

"But... Dan? The market is THAT way."

"I know," Dan said, not looking back. "There's someone I wanna see first."

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