Repast
As the Friendship Express pulled into the train station, most of its passengers were already picking up their luggage and moving to the train's doors. One, however, remained seated and motionless even as the train began to slow down. It wasn't that this pony was staying on the line past Ponyville; that town was indeed this pony's destination. Nor was this pony ambivalent about her trip -- in fact, this particular pony wanted to reach Ponyville more than any other on the train. It was, rather, a sort of weariness that stopped this pony from rushing to the doors so as to burst out of the train as soon as possible. The final step of a journey did not need to be taken with the same haste as all the rest.
It's been a long road, the pony mused as the train slowed further. I've been all over Equestria. Rushia, South Everfree, Hyasanguia, Latigo, Palomino... and Canterlot of course. I've worked every kind of odd job there was, from clerk to journalist to spy. Even spent time in the Court. And now it's almost over. A long, slow breath hissed out of the pony's muzzle. One more job. Then I'm going home at last.
The train was now crawling towards the platform. The pony finally rose, taking a single piece of luggage -- a plain, unassuming saddlebag -- while doing so. How many ponies have I worked for? But this time, it's just me. No employer, no ulterior motivation. Just righting a wrong. The train stopped at last, and the pony approached and exited through the nearest door, ignored by all the other passengers. Blackcherry Lee Punch, I will have my revenge, and nothing will stand in my way! I--
"HI!"
The pony suddenly saw nothing but a large pink face that was smiling brilliantly. "You're the forty-fourth and one-fourth pony to come into Ponyville today! You win a fantastic PARTY!"
The pony looked down, saw the platform, and then looked back into the... strange... pony who was smiling so brightly. "One fourth?" It was all the pony could think to say to that.
"Yep! You're on the first train, and forty-three ponies got off before you! Plus that stallion!" She pointed to a stallion who was indeed about one-quarter of the way out of the train, apparently having gotten that far before deciding he needed something from the saddlebag he was rooting through. The crowd behind him began to grumble, to no avail.
"So! You win a fabulous party! Let's go!" cheered the pony. "Right this way!"
"But... but I have this revenge to--"
"No time for chatter! Time for PARTY!" Pinkie began to drag the other pony away. "There'll be cake and pie and ice cream and sprinklers! Ooh, and streamers! Lots of streamers!"
And the pony was helpless to resist.
***
My little pony, My little pony
Ahh ahh ahh ahhh...
My little pony –
Friendship never meant that much to me
My little pony –
But you're all here and now I can see
Stormy weather; Lots to share
A musical bond; With love and care
Teaching laughter; It’s an easy feat,
And magic makes it all complete!
You have my little ponies –
How’d I ever make so many true friends?
***
"Uh oh," said Lyra. "Unhappy foals, three o'clock."
Trixie looked up from her hot chocolate. After talking with Twilight, she had spent a few days designing a new spell that could have vast and wide-ranging applications (at least insofar as allowing ponies to sleep in for longer, which she wholeheartedly supported). Having finished, she was at Bonbon's for her celebratory hot chocolate, but even the tantalizing treat couldn't keep her from helping to keep Ponyville's youngest residents happy. After all, helping others was part of what friendship was all about! "Which ones?" she asked, turning to the window.
"Looks like Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle," said Lyra. "Over there, by the town fountain."
"No worries. I'm on it."
"That's a reason to worry," joked Bonbon. Trixie stuck out her tongue, then trotted out of the door.
The two foals were moving along in a dejected fashion. "I just don't know what to do!" squeaked Sweetie Belle. "Without her, nopony can answer our question!"
"We'll think of something," said Scootaloo. "If we have to, I'll scoot over to Canterlot and find somepony there to answer it!"
"You can't really scoot to Canterlot. It's up a mountain. Mountains aren't scootable!"
Scootaloo grinned. "Wanna bet?"
"Hi girls!" said Trixie, trotting up to them. "How are you doing?"
"Not good, Dame Trixie," said Sweetie Belle. "We have a really big question we really need answered, but we don't know the answer! Or even how to find the answer! So we don't know what to do!"
Trixie smiled. "Well," she said. "Maybe I could help you."
The two foals looked at each other. "Hey, yeah!" said Scootaloo. "Sweetie Belle, I bet Trixie could help us!"
Sweetie Belle began to bounce. "You're right! She's a knight, after all. She's got to be able to help!"
"Of course I can help!" Trixie grinned. "So, what's your question?"
"Where's Miss Cheerilee?" both foals asked at once.
Trixie blinked. "That's your question?"
"No," said Scootaloo. "We need to know where she is so we can ask her our question."
"She's the smartest pony in Ponyville!" said Sweetie Belle. "Except for my sister--"
"And Rainbow Dash!"
"Right. But she's not at her house and we can't find her anywhere. But you can help us, right? You can find out where she is?"
Trixie stared at them, feeling almost like she was deflating. "You know, um, maybe I could answer your question?"
Both foals shook their heads. "It's really more of a Miss Cheerilee question," said Sweetie Belle.
With a sigh, Trixie said, "I think she said she would be eating brunch at her sister's pop shop today."
"Yay!" The foals began to run off. "Thanks, Dame Trixie! You're a big help!"
Trixie watched them go, then returned to the candy shop. "Another hot chocolate," she told Bonbon. "And with extra bourbon."
***
“It’s not true!” insisted Apple Bloom, shaking her head vehemently. “It can’t be true!”
“Oh, but it is!” said Snips. “The Great and Powerful Snails... Snailsini confirms it!”
“You can’t call him that,” said Featherweight.
“Why not?”
“Trixie trademarked it.”
Snails frowned. “Then I’m the REALLY Great and Powerful Snailsini, and I confirm it!”
Cheerilee trotted up to the scene, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle behind her. Over a dozen foals were gathered by the large apple tree near the school playground. Most were standing, but Snails -- wearing a large Saddle Arabian turban -- was sitting down, eyes closed and legs crossed. Two piles of apples lay near his hooves. He looked happy, but some of the other foals didn't."Good morning, class!" said Cheerilee. "What's going on?"
“Miss Cheerilee!" said Apple Bloom. "Snails said that he can talk to bugs and worms and so he can tell us which apples have worms in them!”
“I can!” Snails examined the first of two fresh apples that Tootsie Flute floated in front of him. “Mmm-hmm... mmm-hmm... okay, this one’s clear!” He looked at the other apple, his turban almost falling into his eyes. “Ah, this one’s got a big worm!”
“Eeek!” said Twist, scampering to hide behind Cheerilee. “Is it a mean worm?”
“No, but it’s a hungry one! It says that it’s going to eat the whole apple.” Snails nodded. “And it’s going to invite all its little wormy friends to eat apples too!” He waved his hooves. “The worms will break free from the earth, and will swarm over the town, eating all the apples! And then--”
“No they won’t! Ma sister will keep ‘em away!” insisted Apple Bloom. “Sides, ya can’t figure out which apples have worms in them. Nopony can do that, not even ma sister, an’ she knows all there is ta know about apple de-wormin’!” She turned to Cheerilee. “Ain’t that right, Miss Cheerilee? It ain’t possible ta figure out which apples have worms in them by listenin’, is it?”
Cheerilee walked into the center of the foals. She made a note of the ones that were there -- Apple Bloom and her friend Twist, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, Snips and Snails, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, Featherweight (now photographing Snails), Beebop (now banging two sticks together), and Alula. “Alright, class,” she said, merrily. “I think--”
“Class?” interrupted Snips, a horrified expression crossing his face. “But it’s the weekend! We can’t have class! That’s not fair! It might even be illegal!”
Cheerilee looked at him.
“Well, maybe not illegal. But it’s still not fair! My head’s already full from the week!” He rapped on it a few times to demonstrate.
“But Snips, every day is a great opportunity to learn something new!” said Cheerilee, face as smiley as her cutie mark. “Isn’t that right?”
“Uh huh!” said Twist, from her vantage point of safety behind her teacher.
“Now,” said Cheerilee, motioning the foals to close around the apple tree. “Snails has made a claim that he can detect which apples have worms in them. How do you think we could test this claim?”
The foals paused.
“You could just tell us if he’s right or not?” asked Scootaloo, a big smile on her face.
“Ah, but then what would you do if I wasn’t around?” asked Cheerilee. “Don’t you want to be able to solve these kinds of problems yourself?”
Scootaloo put a hoof to her chin and stroked it thoughtfully. “...I dunno. Would it help me go as fast as Rainbow Dash?"
Cheerilee reflected that there was a time when that answer would have seemed odd, but she had worked with Ponyville foals for quite some time now. “No. But... it's good to have goals!”
“We could cut open an apple and check?” asked Twist.
“More than one,” said Featherweight. “In case he just gets really lucky with the first one!”
“A very good idea!” said Cheerilee. “We can take a few apples, have Snails predict if they have worms, and then test them to see if they really do. If Snails is right, then maybe he really can detect apple worms. If not, then maybe he’s hearing something else--”
“Like the voices in his head,” muttered Diamond Tiara.
Cheerilee frowned at her. “Diamond Tiara, that’s not nice. Even if Snails is wrong, that doesn’t make him crazy or a bad pony. Everypony makes mistakes sometimes.”
“Even you, Miss Cheerilee?” asked Dinky, who had only just arrived and had only heard her teacher’s last few words.
Cheerilee paused, thinking back to her college days.
***
“Alright!” screamed the host. “Now, Thirster has just set a new record for our little bar’s annual Cidermania challenge!” The crowed screamed and appluaded the brawny earth pony stallion, who was wobbling quite a bit as he staggered off the stage. “He managed to drink nine-tenths of a keg of our pure, grade-A, knock-you-on-your-flank cider!”
“Thirster! Thirster! Thirster!” screamed the crowd.
“Does anypony dare to take on his record? Does anypony dare to drink a full keg of cider!”
“I DO!”
The crowd gasped and turned to a magenta-coated pony with a frazzled pink mane and a dozen piercings in various places. Cheerilee grinned as she swaggered towards the stage. “Name’s Blackcherry Lee Punch, and I’ve never met a pony I couldn’t outdrink!”
“Woah!” cried the host. “Quite a boast. Well, ma’am, you know the drill. If you win this challenge and beat all other contenders, you get a drink free every day this year! But if you lose, all you get’s a nasty hangover!”
Cheerilee grinned. “I won’t lose.” She hopped up onto the stage. “Cider me!”
“BLACKCHERRY!” screamed the bar patrons as the host began passing her mugs of cider, which she gulped down one after the other.
“Is this it?” she asked. “Hah! This is weak stuff. I could probably drink TWO kegs!”
The host grinned. “Oh yeah?”
“Blackcherry! Blackcherry! Blackcherry!” shouted the crowd.
“Yeah!” responded Cheerilee, wiping her mouth on the back of her leg. “Seriously? This stuff is weak. By tomorrow morning it won’t be affecting me at all.”
***
As it turned out, that was not true.
“My head hurts...” the magenta-coated pony groaned.
In retrospect, she thought, maybe a full keg was a little much. Sure, it had been worth it -- she could get a free drink every night for a year, which would be a great pick-up line with the mares and stallions on the quad -- but it would be nice if the air stopped hitting her with magical invisible hammers.
The door opened and a pony softly trotted into the room. “Here,” said a voice. A mug of something was shoved in front of her.
Cheerilee gratefully drank the liquid, a sweet tea that mildly alleviated her nausea and hangover. “Thanks."
“Mmm.”
“I wasn’t interrupting your homework, was I?”
“Yes, actually,” said Cheerilee’s roommate. She was a white-coated mare who smiled little, spoke less, and spent most of her time buried in books. She was so unobtrusive that Cheerilee sometimes forgot about her entirely, and she still wasn't quite sure of her name.
“Won’t happen again," the magenta-coated pony managed.
“You said that last time. Three days ago.” There was a pause. “And if I had a bit for every time you said that, I could fund this semester’s tuition. I counted.”
“But... but they offered me free cider if I won!” protested Cheerilee. “I couldn’t resist that!”
“Yes, because more cider is just what you need.”
Cheerilee turned away, hoping her headache would subside. She still had an economics paper to finish, and a math test to study for, both would take at least a few hours, and botching either of those would imperil her ‘A’ average. Plus, she’d promised to help Hunky Hoof work on his history project too. “Well, this time I mean it. No more drinking entire kegs in one sitting.”
And she would have kept that promise too, but not only did she get all her work done in record time, but the biggest bar in the neighborhood put out a notice that night offering a free set of frisbees to whoever could drink the most mugs of extra-concentrated cider.
It wasn’t fair, thought Cheerilee, as she signed up. Sometimes the world was just too tempting.
***
Cheerilee smiled. “Even me. But -- that’s a topic for another day. For now, class, let’s check these apples! And be polite to each other too, please.”
Diamond Tiara nodded sullenly, and then the other foals were hurrying around the tree to evaluate Snails’ claim. “Go on, go on, make a few predictions!” said Sweetie Belle.
Snails put his hooves to his turban, and his ears to some apples. “No worm, no worm, no worm, no worm,” he said, pointing to four in turn. “There are all totally safe!” He paused. “I have spoken!”
Within moments, the apples were taken down and examined. Scootaloo and Beebop opened theirs up by stepping on them. Diamond Tiara opened her saddlebag and took out a shining silver hammer, set with several expensive-looking jewels, which she used to break hers open without getting even the slightest bit messy. Snips ate his.
“No worm!” said Scootaloo and Beebop at the same time.
“Hmph,” said Diamond Tiara, also failing to find a worm.
Snips burped. “I didn’t taste a worm!” he announced.
I might need to speak with his parents. Again. Cheerilee paused for a moment. “Alright, class. Does this seem like a good experiment to you?”
“Yes! And it showed I’m right!” cheered Snails. “I really can predict worminess!” He grinned. “Maybe I can predict other things too. Maybe I’m a psychic!”
“Wait!” said Apple Bloom. “Maybe none of the apples in this tree have worms. Maybe ya got lucky.”
Cheerilee smiled. “Very good, Apple Bloom. When testing something like this, it’s important to account for which choice -- in this case, worm or no worm -- is more likely to begin with, or a priori. Do you know how many apples have worms, on average, Apple Bloom?”
Apple Bloom scrunched up her face in thought. “Ma sis said about eight percent fer this kind of apple.” Her eyes widened. “That means anypony could just guess ‘no worms’ for all of ‘em an’ be right nine times in ten!” She turned back to Snails. “Predict some that have worms, or Ah won’t believe ya.”
“Wait,” said Twist. “Maybe we should break the apples into two groups first and have him test them at random, instead of letting him pick the easiest ones.”
“If he says he’s hearing them, I can get some of Vinyl’s mikes to see if there’s any sound!” yelled Beebop.
“Maybe he’s cheating and using magic, not listening,” said Silver Spoon suddenly. “Snails, take your turban off!”
“But without it I lose all my Great -- I mean, my Really Great and Powerful powers!”
Cheerilee grinned as she watched her foals discussing scientific procedure and experimental setup. She had taught them the basic a few weeks ago, and it was wonderful to see them applying what she’d discussed. Her foals were growing and learning, and she had wonderful friends to share her achievements and classroom adventures with. Everything was going fine.
“Alright, alright!” said Snails. “Please, give the Really Great and Extraordinary Snailsini some space!”
“I thought you were Really Great and Powerful,” said Sweetie Belle.
“I’m both,” said Snails. “I... I am the Really Great and Powerful and Really Great and Extraordinary Snailsini! And awesome. And...” He turned to Cheerilee. “Miss Cheerilee, what are some other really good adjectives?”
Dinky giggled. “If you’re really great, then predict some apples! I wanna see! And if you’re good at it I can pick some apples I know are good for my Momma later.”
Cheerilee sat back and watched as her students continued to work out the experiment. Yes, she thought. Life was good.
***
Apple Bloom galloped towards the town square, a big smile on her face and a big wagon trailing behind her.
It had been a wonderful day so far. Miss Cheerilee had helped her disprove Snails, and she’d even called her smart and talented! And Scootaloo had been making funny jokes, and Sweetie Belle had said they could all go get some ice cream and taffee later, and even Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were being nicer than usual. In fact, the day hadn’t just been wonderful... it had almost been perfect!
But the one thing the day lacked, the one thing preventing it from being perfect, was a big glass of her sister’s super-sweet, super-sugary, super-duper-delicious apple juice. (Granted, cider might have been better, but then all the adults had gotten really silly for a few days from drinking too much cider, and she didn’t really want to drink it anymore).
And that was why Apple Bloom was running towards the market. Because she was thirsty, and so were her friends, and Cheerilee had helped them figure out how much each pony would have to pay for a big jug of cider, so Apple Bloom had collected the money and race off to order a set of drinks from her sister. Hey, does this mean I’m helping sell apples and apple acc... access... accessthingies? Yay! I’m helping my sister! And I should check with Miss Cheerilee what that word is again.
As she raced into the market, she had to dodge around the slower adults who weren’t as good at getting out of her way. Fortunately, as a pony foal, she was quite capable of going left, right, and under the adults who took forever to get anywhere. Just skid under Rarity’s legs (and ignore her complaints about ‘hooliganism,’ whatever that meant), dodge around the Flower sellers and old Mr. Waddle, use a conveniently-placed ramp to hop over Filthy Rich, and there it was! Faithfully attended to by her big sister and big brother, the Sweet Apple Acres farm stand stood bold and bright, the best place in town to get the most delicious (and nutritious!) food.
In fact, they seemed to have a customer at that very moment!
Apple Bloom skidded to a halt just before she would have plowed into the pony, a white-coated mare with an eggshell-colored mane and tail and a party hat on her head. She was speaking with her sister, who was smiling at her. Apple Bloom smiled too. Another soon-to-be satisfied customer! Yay!
“...no, Ah have ta admit Ah ain’t ever tried a... what’d ya call it? Pickled apple?” Applejack looked at Big Macintosh, who seemed to be struggling to hide a grin. “What?”
“Nothing,” said Big Macintosh.
The mare put her saddlebag on the counter and opened it up. “They’re a Moscolt specialty. Would you like to try one?” Apple Bloom blinked. The mare talked funny. She rolled her ‘r’s’ a lot, like she couldn’t seem to get them out of her mouth, and her other tones were almost clipped. Maybe she’s foreign! Maybe my sister’s talking to a foreign princess or something!
Applejack looked over. “Oh, mornin’, Apple Bloom! Ya havin’ fun with all yar friends?”
“Ah’m havin’ a blast!” said Apple Bloom. “We’re learning all about the scientific method!” She grinned. “Maybe Ah’ll be a brilliant scientist one day! Ah’ll be like... like as smart as Twilight! But focused on apples.”
Applejack grinned. “Ya’d be a great scientist. Natalia, this is ma little sister, Apple Bloom.”
The mare turned. She was smiling politely -- but there was something about her eyes, Apple Bloom noted. Her eyes looked serious and focused, like Twilight when she was learning a new spell, or Truffle Shuffle when he found out that somepony had filched his cookie. Or Scootaloo, when she saw a wall that she hadn’t climbed yet.
The mare bowed slightly. “A pleasure to meet you,” she said. “My name is Natalia Rye...” A string of syllables followed. There were a lot of r’s and z’s, and Apple Bloom was lost at about letter thirty. How can her name be that long? It wouldn’t fit on her birth certificate! And what about her tests in school? She wondered if maybe Natalia got extra paper to account for this difficulty.
“Introduce yarself,” urged Applejack to Apple Bloom.
“Oh! Uh, Ah’m Apple Bloom. Pleasure ta meet ya, Miss Rye... Ryeuh... Miss Natalia,” said Apple Bloom.
The pony seemed amused. “I also go by Notary.”
“Oh! Then Ah’m pleased ta meet ya, Notary.” Apple Bloom grinned. “Ya've got a party hat -- are ya partyin'?"
The pony glanced around nervously, as if expecting some party pony to ambush her from behind a tree. "No." She removed the hat. "I only have a few hours in Ponyville and cannot spend them partying."
Apple Bloom smiled as nicely as she could. "But ya have time fer apples, right? Want ta buy some? Best in Equestria!”
“I have been to a lot of places in Equestria,” said Notary, smiling a little. “But, as I was just explaining to your sister, I brought my own for my trip. We eat apples differently in Moscolt.”
“Well, maybe we can prepare ‘em special for ya!” said Apple Bloom. She looked at Applejack. “There’s never been an apple recipe ma big sister couldn’t cook!”
“This recipe takes forty days to prepare,” said Notary.
Apple Bloom’s eyes widened as she wondered what kind of magical, delicious apple recipe would take forty whole days. “Wow! That’s a... a real long time!” She began to count on her hooves. “That’s more than five weeks!”
Notary chuckled. “I have more than I need. I could let you have some.”
Apple Bloom turned to her sister. “Oh, can Ah try one? Please please please?”
“Uh,” said Big Macintosh. “Ah dunno, Apple Bloom. Moscolt pickled apples are--”
“Hey, if Ah’m gonna be a great apple scientist some day, Ah’ll have ta know all about them, right?” urged Apple Bloom.
Big Macintosh smiled. “Point.”
Notary took three apples out of her saddlebag and gave one to each member of the Apple family. Applejack gave her a few in return. “Could hardly sample yar wares without offerin’ some of mine.”
“Wares?... oh. I’m not an apple salesmare.” She paused. “I’m actually between jobs at the moment.”
“What brings ya ta town, then?” asked Apple Bloom, sniffing the apple. It had a strong, vinegar-y scent.
“Just visiting an old friend.”
“Sorry Ah couldn’t help ya find her,” said Applejack. “Ah know where her house is, but if she ain't there Ah don't know where she might be. Maybe her sister's?"
"No, I was just there..."
Apple Bloom bit into the pickled apple, and her eyes widened. It was sour. It was like... well, like somepony had crossed an apple with a pickle. Which made sense, when she thought about it. “How do ya make these?”
Notary looked at her. “You take an apple, coat it with a few herbs and spices...”
Applejack picked hers up and took a big bite.
“And then soak it in a vinegar-tarragon mixture for forty days,” said Notary.
“Oh.” Apple Bloom looked at the apple. The taste made sense then, she supposed. “Well, Ah -- hey, Big Mac, stop snickerin’. That ain’t nice.”
Big Macintosh put a hoof over his mouth, though he was unable to hide his smile. He’d already finished his apple, it seemed. “Sorry.”
“Anyway, Ah wonder if Miss Cheerilee’s tried them?” Apple Bloom wondered. “She’s been all over the world--”
Notary started. “Did you say, ‘Cheerilee?’” Her accent sounded a little more pronounced, like her control of her voice had slipped for a moment.
“Yeah! She’s ma teacher, an’ she’s the best there is. She’s in the park.” Her eyes widened. “Oh! Ah bet she’s the old friend ya wanted ta see! Ah can take ya right to her! Ah bet she’d be thrilled ta see ya!”
Notary bowed. “Thank you.”
Apple Bloom quickly put the bits in the till and took a jug of apple juice, then began to hurry away with a big smile on her face-- she was going to reunite her teacher with a friend! It was going to be wonderful! “Just follow me!” she called as she ran. Behind her, she heard Notary rushing to keep pace.
Big Macintosh smiled as they ran off, and then turned to Applejack. “Think we should pickle apples?”
Applejack was standing still, almost frozen. Her jaw was locked with a bulge in it. Her face looked pained.
“Uh, Applejack?”
“Worst... apple... ever...” Applejack spat her bite out. "Who would put vinegar on a perfectly good apple?"
"Who indeed?"
The two were silent for a moment, and then Big Macintosh looked at his sister. "AJ?"
"Yes?"
"Ah can finish yours, right?"
***
Notary’s face was calm and implacable as she hurried alongside Apple Bloom. She did not show any extreme emotion; she stayed calm, rather, and blended in as she always did. But on the inside, there was a fierce determination burning within her.
I am wrapping up this loose end, she thought. It finishes today. Cheerilee... I’m coming for you. Her eyes narrowed slightly. That which you did to me so many years ago... at last, I will make it right. And I--
“So!” said Apple Bloom, gesturing with a hoof towards the park. “What did ya want ta see Miss Cheerilee for? Have ya seen her in a while?”
“No.”
“So it’s a long-time reunion?”
“...yes.”
“Awesome! Miss Cheerilee told ma once that seein’ an old friend makes for some of the best memories ever!”
“Yes,” repeated Notary. “Yes, this is going to be... memorable. And nothing will stop me from seeing her."
"Nothing?"
"Nothing."
"What if zombies attack?"
Notary blinked. "...what?"
Apple Bloom stopped running, apparently lost in thought. "Or what about timberwolves? Or what if Philomena comes back?"
"If we could keep going--"
But the foal's mind seemed to have switched tracks. "Hey, what if zombie Philomena came back? Would ya still see her? Or pirates! What if we got attacked by pirates?!" Apple Bloom's mouth dropped. "Or zombie pirates?"
Notary blinked. This may be... harder than I thought.
Stats
Page generated in 0.026 seconds
Total duration
1,026 users online
1,926,650 hits today, 2,280,440 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Like I don't have enough to read... *Faves*
Hey hey hey, new Lunaverse story! Will Cherilees wild past haunt her, or is there something else amiss? Only one way to found out!
Off to the reading chamber!
"Pull the lever Twilight"
CRASH
"Wrong lever Twiiiiiiiiiiiiligt!"
(Sorry for that, was watching The Emperor New Groove when this came up)
Anything with the Lunaverse foals is potential gold.
She's a comin for ya Cheerilee!
Oh, my........Notary is "Pony Pretending to be Ryoga Hibiki." No wonder she was so ready to help that idiot Greengrass. Also, given how paranoid Trixie is, she'll assume that somepony didn't get the message.........
Teaching foals the scientific method is good. I wonder when she will fomilize it:
0. Observe.
1. Create a testable (disprovable) hypothesis.
2. Try to disprove the hypothesis.
3. Repeat.
Also maybe, Twilight Sparkle should chime in on this story, since it touches on science, education, and Library-Research (AppleBloom was the library with her recall of 8% of the apples having worms).
So far, this is the AntiFeelingPinkieKeen —— ¡I hate that AntiScienceEpisode!. It is a bit like Bridle Gossip —— ¡I love that ProScienceEpisode!. So far, I like this story.
It begins.....
Hum, I didn't think Notary would be the old enemy, I guess she was Cheerilee's room mate. The not being remember fits with her tendency to blend into the background. I guess Cheerilee made her miss an exam or something. Not sure about her being fired or quitting Greengrass they seemed a good team.
Well Time will tell how this turns out.
3498280 The irony is, Pinkie Keen was writen by an atheist trying to do a "don't judge people with different beliefs" moral, but as an atheist he really didn't get how to represent faith in stuff that cannot be proven, so pseudoscience and magic powers are go was his basic plan.
Well written as usual, though I don't think I like Notary as an antagonist. She works better as Greengrass' more competent assistant, like Pokey to Trixie and Spike to Twilight. She's not a nice pony, but she certainly isn't evil.
3497995
Why do you even HAVE that lever?
So only one complaint, liked this start so far, but must you put in another Pinkie Pie Sub-plot? Especially because I have a feeling like It'll end up being like Concert's, which honestly felt like you wanted to end every scene she showed up in with "Get back on your meds, Pinkie,"?
Edit:
3499514
I presume then, that you would prefer us not to respond to that comment.
3499376: PInkie has a much smaller presence in this one. Mostly, I wanted her in scene 1 to help lighten things (so it didn't end on Notary swearing revenge). She's kind of a flag that this won't be a dark story.
3499253: I also dislike FPK, but this isn't really on topic for this story. Maybe move it to your blog or another appropriate forum? Thanks.
3499514
Certainly.
As I pointed out, your story is like S01E09 “Bridle Gossip by Amy Keating Rogers” —— not S01E15 “Feeling Pinkie Keen” by Dave Polsky. I shall make a BlogPost out of my comment and reduce my comment here to a link. It will all be fixed in a few minutes.
3498733
GrassAndClouds2 did not like the long response about the writing of Dave Polsky. Since this story is much more Like S01E09 "Bridle Gossip" by Amy Keating Rogers, GrassAndClouds2 has a point, so I moved my response about Dave Polsky to a BlogPost:
http://fimfiction.net/blog/247398/feeling-pinkie-keen-by-dave-polsky-is-antiscience
Not a bad start, still not sure how come Notary's link to Cheerilee didn't come up sooner...
And must Cheerilee be once again haunted by her past?!
It's the second friend who is angry at her, possibly as a misunderstanding! Plus I would think Cheerilee would have gotten more responsible by that point in her life, considering that's when she left her old gang behind...
3500095: She can be a very responsible pony who gets all her homework done on time and scores really high grades, but still parties very hard on the weekends and is perhaps a bit inconsiderate of her roommate.
As for it being mentioned before, Trixie didn't know Notary (they met in Chap. 4 or 5 of AtGGG and Trixie didn't recognize her), so she couldn't have mentioned her to Cheerilee, and Cheerilee never actually met Notary in any of the S1 fics (Notary was on vacation in 'Foaling Around', and she wasn't at the Gala itself.) So Cheerilee wouldn't have known that Notary was working for GG at that time. On the other end, considering how Notary seems to feel about Cheerilee, it doesn't seem like GG would have been able to manipulate her by referencing their past ("hey, remember your college roommate whom you did some unspecified bad thing to? She works for me, and -- hey, wait, where are you going? Come back!"), so he wouldn't have had it brought up either.
Of course, now that Notary doesn't seem to be working for him anymore, all bets are off...
3500138 I guess it's okay, though it would work better if Cheerilee doesn't recognize her at first. We'll see. So far I'm liking this fic.
Also, minor nitpick, but I think you shouldn't have went ahead and have her refer to herself as Notary right in this chapter. If only to see how many readers would have recognized her right away.
Is Notary really from Moscolt? There is a doubtful half of me that thinks it is only a cover-up story for her. She used to be a spy, didn't she?
And Applejack's reaction after biting a pickled apple.
If that's not culture clash, I don't know what it is.
And why is Big Mac struggling not to laugh?
3500315: Sibling teasing. He's familiar with pickled apples, but he knows his sisters aren't, and are likely to be bewildered by them. Plus, AB probably made a funny face when she bit into one and found it to be vinegar-tasting.
> Cheerilee... I’m coming for you.
Just curious - does Notary mentally think of Cheerilee as "Cheerilee" or "Blackcherry"? The first scene on the train would seem to indicate the latter, although it's a more formal designation. Presumably Notary knows by the time she's talking to Applejack that her target also goes by "Cheerilee", but I was just wondering if she's comfortable enough with the name so that in her thought text above (quoted), the lack of quotes would be appropriate.
"Cheerilee... I’m coming for you." - comfortable with the designation, and has internalized it.
"'Cheerilee'... I’m coming for you." - recognizes the name as an alias of Blackcherry's, but doesn't think of her under that name by default.
Oh, this is gonna be awkward as all hell for Cheerilee...
3499034
Comedic purposes methinks.
Sounds like something she'd do.
Tell me Trixie wouldn't eat pickled apples. I dare ya.
Also, pickled apples are a real thing. I did not know that.
9702468
True, almost any fruit or vegetable can be
1) Fermented and made into booze
(Worked in an Italian restaurant where the owner had a bottle of garlic wine that his wife got at a bridal shower. )
2) Pickled
However, at least in the USA, when you just say "pickle" without specifying "pickled whatever" you are thought to be talking of pickled cucumbers.
"Trefoil, John's Wort, Dill
Frustrate witches of their will."
Old folk saying.
John's Wort is the stuff you can buy in health food stores. I think trefoil is a shamrock. Dill is the stuff they put in dill pickles.
This is why you don't see witches hanging out at fast food places.
11163024
true. I live in a area with lots of farmers amrkets and small indedant wineries.
cpuple years ago quick picking diff veggies and stuff was the 'hot thing'
haver persanlly eaated the following stuff picked:
mild hot peppers
radish
garlic
sweet peas
scallions
strawberries
asparagus.
have had wines made from:
blueberries
sour apples
half-ripe (green) red delicious
cherries
blackberries
potato