Previous Chapters Next
Close
The Deal4,230 words
Coming Home5,243 words
More Mid-Morning Incidents13,410 words
Gathering the Middle-Aged Mares of Hamony (Part 1)2,950 words
Gathering The Middle Aged Mares of Harmony (Part 2) unedited2,832 words

Gathering the Middle-Aged Mares of Hamony (Part 1)

Though she hesitantly nodded hearing the end of Spike’s sentence caused the unpleasant feeling that she had felt previously to return, and stew within in her, prompting Rarity to wonder if it was due to having her decision shared with her friends...or if Nightmare’s implications were just echoing in her head. “What’s the worst that could happen?”

At the that very moment famous donkey lawyer: Murphy Law popped his head through the door. “Can I get a--”

“WE’RE CLOSED!” Two voices from the other room shouted in unison.

With that rather rude reception the ass left the store, leaving its occupants to continue their plans.

“Alright I’ll send some a quick letter to Twilight, and see if she can stop by.” Giving his wife another loving hug Spike then proceeded to head upstairs to fetch his supply of royal parchment. As the drake disappeared up the stairs a small frown formed onto Rarity’s face, and she turned around to call after her husband

“D-do try not to make it sounds too grim dear.” It was bad enough to have to inform her friends about her somewhat questionable deal; having the whole gang fret over her while Twilight examined every inch of her new form sounded like a nightmare.

Speaking of nightmare’s a certain spirit couldn’t help but pause in her personal grumblings when her ears picked up the tidbits of conversation going on outside. “Great! Now the upstart and the rest of that irritating rabble are going to be here!”

However, after a few seconds the irritation turned into a smug feeling as the entity felt that she could finally give the elements of harmony a long awaited piece of her mind. Here she was as safe as can be as long as she held the fashionista as a shield between her and those blasted elements of harmony she ought as well get some mileage out of it. As she chuckled to herself it struck the deity as odd that while she had spent some much time slowly regaining her power and plotting to posses the avatar of generosity, she had next to no clue how time had changed the rest of the little elements.

Meanwhile upstairs Spike had just finished the last few scribbles to a well thought out, and hopefully informative letter to his closest friend. “Well if anypony can come up with an answer or at least maybe lecture Nightmare into submission it would be Twilight.” After taking a small inhale, Spike coated the rolled up piece of parchment (as well as some of his hand) in minty green flames. With the letter on its way the drake returned downstairs to ask Rarity what she had shouted to him while he was busy writing the letter.

At that exact moment within the crystal kingdom a certain purple furred alicorn princess was currently knee deep in ...nothing. As the appointed princess of Ponyville, avatar of magic, and a bunch of other official sounding tiles too numerous to list it was Twilight’s responsibility to oversee Ponyville’s happy citizens, continue her research on the magic of friendship, delegate with foreign visitors, and occasionally chase off any would-be troublemakers looking to disrupt the harmony within Equestria. Sad part was that after settling into her position as pretty purple princess of Ponyville, the more exciting parts of her new title...kind of waned. After word spread regarding how Tirek had been dealt with, most villains decided “To hell with that” and moved elsewhere. The gang had all grown up and were less into adventures and learning in favor of managing blooming families, doing their jobs, and the occasional get together to catch up. With all the exciting parts of being an element of harmony now on the backburner, Twilight was left to her only other real duty to uphold.

Paperwork. Stacks of documents that reached up to her shoulders, bursting folders that multiplied within her castle when she wasn’t looking, packs of degrees, new laws, and the odd sticky note that would catch her by surprise the moment the alicorn truly believed she had finally caught up. Now princess Twilight Sparkle enjoyed reading, and she enjoyed list...but this had long lost its fun by now, leading to a mare in constant need of newer, better, sorting system, and usually borrowing her oldest friend from his wife so that he could catch her up on the never-ending tide of parchments that assaulted her.

“Mayor Mare (rest her soul) how in the name of Celestia did you ever manage all of it?” The question was moot because not too long after the previous mayor of Ponyville passed away she had found a large stash of ‘Maniacal Mule brand bourbon’ was found under her desk as well as a little black book filled with ponies that Mayor Mare had ‘coerced’ into doing the paperwork for her. It was somewhat concerning to find how shoddily Ponyville had been run during the older mare’s time in office, but then again none of it’s citizens had noticed the entire time.

The purple alicorn’s moment of introspective rambling was cut short by a puff of green smoke materializing into a scroll in front of her.

♫ ♪ “Ooh, I just got a letter, I just got a letter, I just got a letter, wonder who’s it from?”♪ ♫

Of course, she knew the answer to that, but it had been so long since anything remotely interesting plopped down in front of her that she couldn’t help but act a little giddy at the prospect of a crisis.

Sure enough as grass grows and sun shines in big crudely scribbled block letters were the words: NIGHTMARE MOON IS IN RARITY...again... HELP!!! Love, Spike.

A moment of silence passed as Twilight’s eyes scanned the short letter again, and again. A cold shiver caused Twilight’s wings to ruffle slightly as the implications of a now returned Nightmare running amok within one of the elements of harmony began to creep into the alicorn’s mind. Ponyville was in grave danger, the populace unprepared for a sudden attack from one of Equestria’s oldest foes and the fate of Equestria itself was probably hanging in the balance. A hard look of determination crossed Twilight’s face as her brain immediately began devising a logical next step to take.

“Yay!” From her corner of the room Owliscious watched her owner with a raised eyebrow as the alicorn princess of magic pranced about the room excitedly then began to do her ritual ‘Twilight dance’. After a moment of giddy indulgence, Twilight noticed the disapproving look that her owl was giving her. “Don’t get me wrong I’m worried about Spike, and everyone else, but you have to understand...I FINALLY GET TO DO SOMETHING AGAIN!”

Having lived an unusually long life alongside the purple mare, Owlicious did little more than shake her head in reply, before hiding her face and her shame underneath a wing. She wished the dragon was here so that he’d be the one suffering Twilight’s oddness and not her.

Rolling her eyes at her backup assistant’s reaction, Twilight’s horn lit up brightly as she switched from ‘party hard’ to ‘strategize reasonably’. The purple alicorn would need to notify her brother that she’d be taking an early leave on her vacation, the other elements who certainly need to be notified as well as brought together and…”It’ll be so nice seeing the girls again.” Twilight paused in her mental list to ponder how her friends had been keeping busy since the last time she saw them.

Only a minute or two after sending his urgent letter to Twilight it dawned on Spike that his adoptive older sister’s ‘response time’ might take longer than he had the patience to quietly sit around for. There was too much happening and despite outwardly looking calm the drake was still at his wits end from worrying about his wife and the near all powerful being that was taking residence in her body. After huffing in exasperation for a minute or two Spike realized that his frantic energy could be much better used gathering up the rest of the elements of harmony. After giving a quick explanation to Rarity, Spike was quickly out the door and headed to the nearest residential element.

One Pinkamena Diane Pie, and her home/place of work good ol Sugarcube Corner.

Smack dab in the middle of Ponyville sat ‘the’ bakery to be if you were a pony with sweet tooth, and the patience to deal with a constantly bickering set of siblings, and the mature yet energetic mare that supervised them.

“Hey Pumpkin where’s that order of brown betties?”

“The hell should I know Pound, Pinkie told *you* to bake 'em not me!”

“No, she told me to tell you.” Hearing an aggravated growl as well as the sounds of kitchen utensils being dumped onto the floor, the young stallion known as Pound Cake rolled his eyes, before giving the slightly perturbed couple across the counter from him an apologetic smile. “We’ll have you order ready shortly. We just seem to be having….difficulties with communication at the mom-”

“The only difficulty we’re having is that you’re lazy and keep trying to boss me around!” Without warning, a spatula was hurled out of the kitchen window and collided with the back of Pumpkin’s head.

“Hey!” Turning away from the customers, Pumpkin made to give his sister a piece of his mind when a happy shout screeched out of the kitchen. Both siblings stopped their bickering to sigh in unison at their supervisor.

“Next week we eat Nylon Tights...err...um…..Neon Lights!”

"YEEEAAAAHHHH!!!"

After sharing a hardy hoof bump with Bulk Biceps who promptly nodded, readjusted his sunglasses and walked out the back door. Once her aid had left the poofy-haired, pink earth pony known infamously as Pinkie Pie reached across a table to turn off the recording device sitting upon it, and then gave a curious glance toward the concoction she had just finished creating. In all honesty Pinkie had next to no idea how a bowl filled with what had once been seventy deep fried cupcakes, sixteen pounds of chocolate candy bars, a slice of MMMMM and a half gallon of taurus juice light would taste. Sure she could taste it and find out which might be super duper fun...but the doctor had made it pretty clear that if he was going to have to keep seeing her every other day for the rest of his life than he expected a committed relationship and Pinkie just wasn’t ready to settle down quite yet. “Awww I don’t wanna waste this bowl of maybe it’s super yummy genius mush...but if I can’t eat it who?”

For reasons unbeknownst to them both Pumpkin and Pound Cake ceased fencing with stirring spoons when a sudden chill ran down their spines; though neither shared any real relation with their appointed ‘auntie Pinkie Pie’ the two siblings had grown up alongside the odd mare long enough to have somehow picked up a little of her ‘Pinkie Sense’.

Eyeing opening wide Pumpkin quickly pushed her brother aside so that she could reach out for large pot and place it protectively over her head. “Ohhh man did you just feel that? Pinkie’s gonna make us try something that she baked during that show of hers again!”

The color seemed to drain from his face as his ears picked up the sound of happy hooves skipping about within the kitchen towards the door that separated him from whatever Discord spawned dish that was surely going to be forced upon him. “N-not again!” Pound quickly turned around started shaking his sister frantically. “I’m 18 years old and already get the worst heartburn of my life already!” Pound could feel the acid preemptively building up with his sister in very much the same mood.

“Hurry we need some kind of distraction.” The twins ears darted toward the couple that had been oh so patiently waiting for their still pending order of brown betties only to see both ponies quickly galloping out the door.

“Pumpkin and Pouuuunnd, your favorite auntie Pinkie Pie has a surprise for youuu!!!” Both twins broke out in a panicked sweat as they felt their hearts go into a pre-session state or arrest. “Bring out the antacid, both the type that dissolves in water and the chewable chalky crap.” Just as Pound ran off to do just that both ponies heard the telltale chiming of Sugar Cube Corner’s front door opening. Frozen in place like statues the siblings could only move their eyes as a certain purple dragon rushed into the bakery.

“Hey Pound. Hey Pumpkin. Don’t really have time to talk right now, but have either of you seen Pinkie?” It should have struck Spike odd how eagerly the cake twins nodded, and pointed toward the kitchen.

“She’s all yours Spike! In fact I think now would be a great time to close the shop for a bit so that me and Pound can run away...err...I mean take a break while you and Pinkie Pie catch up.” Before her brother could protest, or possibly utter out something that would doom all three of them instead of just the dragon Pumpkin Cake quickly clamped a hoof over her brother’s mouth and dragged him out the front door.

Blinking in confusion for a second at the twin’s antics Spike merely shrugged before he padded toward the kitchen door. “I think Pinkie’s starting to rub off on those two.”

“Who’s rubbing their what?!” That one question was all the warning Spike received Pinkie Pie’s pink, poofy-manned head poked out of the kitchen, and her blue eyes enlarged as they focused on the purple drake. “SPIIIIKE!”

“Oh uh hey Pinkie Pieeeaugh!”

Quicker than a mare her age really ought to be able to move logically, Pinkie Pie tossed a large bowl she had been carrying into the air, barreled into Spike with the force of a cannonball, and gave the near unconscious dragon a hug around his head that would have cracked the skull of any lesser being. “Aww it’s soo good to see you Spikey! I haven’t seen you since last…”

“T-Tuesday! Y-you saw me...l-last Tuesday Pinkie!”

“That was forever ago, and you know your bestest party pony misses you when she doesn’t get her daily visit silly.” As Pinkie Pie continued to happily squeeze the life out of Spike, the element of laughter suddenly remembered the bowl that she had left in suspended animation above them. “Ideaaa!”

“What?” Despite the spots now appearing in Spike’s normally great eyesight, the drake inwardly sighed in relief that Pinkie’s age had managed to dull her reality breaking feats of speed and strength. Five years prior to this Pinkie’s enthusiastic ‘playing’ could have possibly snapped his spine.

“Well...I just happened to make a bowl of super yummy totally not life-threatening party recipe, annnnd my usual taste-testers are nowhere to be found.”

Now fully realizing why the cakes twins had been so dead set on escaping Sugar Cube Corner, Spike rolled his eyes at being thrown under the bus without even being asked. “Alright chef Pinkie Pie, what do ya got for me today?”

“Oh nothing special..” At that exact moment, Pinkie held up her front left hoof, and a second later, the mysterious concoction landed perfectly on top. “...Just a half gallon of taurus juice, a dozen or so pounds of chocolate, and a few other super yummy things that were lying around.

Low and behold readers for there is hardly anything on this planet that can rival the digestive might of a dragon, or their incredibly low-standards for what they find worth taking a nip at. Cocking a raised eyebrow toward the beaming mare above him Spike paused a moment before uttering out an audible “Bring it on.”

“That’s my favorite dragon!” In a mere second Pinkie turned the bowl upside down, and dropped the bowl knowing that Spike would catch it. “Down the hatch!”

For a typical pony that creation of confections probably would have induced a food coma that would last for 10 years...for Spike it was a light snack. Snapping his jaws just a few times the purple drake consumed the entire contents of the bowl...and the bowl for good measure as well. Licking his lips Spike let out a belch as well as a small puff of emerald fire; though he certainly hadn’t planned it he had enjoyed...whatever that was.

Making a mental note to ask for seconds at another time Spike picked himself off the floor so he could follow through with his task. “Pinkie, I need you to come to the Boutique in --” the drake was cut off mid-sentence by his pink friend.

"Half an hour Spikey Wikey. I woke up this morning with an upset stomach, shaking knees and springy ears. That told me everything I needed to know, congrats by the way.” The fuchsia mare disappeared leaving a bewildered dragon in the middle of a messy bakery.

With gentle sigh, he left to continue his quest to gather the other element bearers, next stop being a cottage near the Everfree, though thanks to some new vegetation it was more of a Cabin in the Woods in more ways than one.

Author's Note:

Stay tuned for part 2: Fluttershy, Apple Pie and Twi.

Sorry about the wait, guys, a bunch of stuff happened all at one time. Also I needed to break this chapter into multiple parts because other wise it'd be over 10,000 words.

2,129 views

223

Previous Chapters Next

Comments ( 9 )

Viewing 1 - 50 of 9
- Newest First
- Oldest First

Ryan Martin

Ryan Martin #1 · Sep 27th, 2014 · · ·

Thank you for the update, I was starting to think that the story was dead.

Smashing Skunk53

Smashing Skunk53 #2 · Sep 27th, 2014 · · ·

5063450
Same. Nice to see some activity.

So Pinkie had her age slow her down a bit. Now a small, evil part of me wants to see one pony that gained 200lbs, you know like a random actor from "what ever happened to?"

I really want more interactions between Spike and Nightmare though, but having the older, wiser Elements try to figure this out could be interesting, but I shall wait and see.

FinalFan