A World Without Princesses

by PonyTom

Chapter 9 - Uneasy Alliance

Rest was proving quite elusive for Big Mac as he stared at the ceiling. It was odd for him to be spending the night in the home of a mare he didn't know, but a welcome blessing considering the time it took them to get to where they currently were, and the fact he hadn't been looking forward to the walk back. Still, he had a lot to think about now, and these thoughts plagued him.

"What are you going to do with the translations?"

Such a simple question, and yet so complicated. What did he want to do with them? Zecora had disappeared to who knew where. He wasn't even sure she was still alive, truth be told; for all he knew the mercenaries caught up to her and slaughtered her not long after his own fall from the sky. His thoughts were interrupted with a knock at the door, and he turned his attention to see Braeburn stepping inside, shutting the door behind him, smiling. "Hey Big Mac, feelin' alright?"

"Lil' sore," said Big Mac, smirking, "But I think I'll live."

"I imagine. That medicine still workin'?"

Macintosh sighed. "More or less. Had to drink a bit more. Keeps the worst at bay." He looked down at himself, finding himself hoping that he hadn't done any harm to himself with this little trip. "Gonna visit a doctor soon as I can."

"Good thinkin', that." Braeburn sat next to Big Mac, nodding. "So... what do you make of this whole mess?"

Macintosh sighed a bit, laying his head down. "Don't rightly know. Complicated. Confusing." He stared into space for a few minutes, eyes searching for answers that weren't where he was looking. "... Brae... I think we've gotten ourselves involved in somethin' bigger n' we're used to."

"Yeah..." Braeburn sighed a bit, looking to the side. "... Big Mac? If I'm to be wholly honest, I think we should jus' let Ms. Sparkle keep that book. I think we should just wash our hooves of this whole thing an' put it behind us."

"Can we though?"

Braeburn stared to the side silently. "... Brae... what if this isn't just some pony's tale? What if this is all really happenin'? What if the mare I saw was the Mare in the Moon?" Big Mac looked towards his cousin with haunted eyes. "... What if... what if everything Zecora said was true?"

"Well..." said Braeburn, rubbing a forehoof over a leg. "... I reckon if that was the case, we're doomed if we do, doomed if we don't..."

"But do we have to be?" Big Mac almost surprised himself by saying it. "... Braeburn... what if... what if we continued without Zecora?"

Braeburn held his forelegs up. "Wait wait wait, back up here..." He paused a moment, staring at his cousin with serious eyes. "You're kidding, right?"

Big Mac seemed to ponder it a moment. "Nope."

"... You actually want to run towards the danger, instead of away?"

Big Mac shrugged. "Well, where would we run to?" Braeburn held up a hoof, but he paused. He took a moment to think. Then he scratched his head.

"Well..." he said, uncertainly, "... We could always start my town idea..."

"Braeburn," said Big Mac with a roll of his eyes.

"What? Appleloosa's a great idea!" Braeburn pointed at his cousin. "Just you wait, I'll get it figured out an' I'll start my own town an' you'll wish you'd been in on it!"

"Right," said Big Mac with a smirk, "So, Appleloosa... will it be immune to Eternal Night?" Braeburn paused once more. Then, once again, seemed to take time to consider this piece of information. "Tell me when ya got an answer, cause eternal night'd be bad for a family like ours that makes it's livin' on crops that require sunlight."

"So..." Braeburn said quietly, staring at nothing. "... Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I don't know." Macintosh turned his attention to the ceiling. "But if all of this is real... I want to know. I want to know what that book says, what it knows that we don't..." He turned his attention back to his cousin. "... For safety's sake, we have to assume that book is entirely accurate."

Braeburn sighed, shaking his head. "I just don't know, Big Mac... I don't know if I like this one bit..."

Macintosh chuckled. "Me either," His voice was rasping a bit, so he took hold of a nearby glass of water and gave it a few light sips. Giving himself a moment to let the water sooth his throat, he continued, "... I'm not sayin' we'll go on a quest to save the world... I'm just sayin' it's best to know why that book is so darn important is all."

"I suppose that makes sense." Braeburn shrugged. "Well, Big Mac, you are the sensible one, so I'll take that answer for now... I just hope that this don't get us into more trouble than we can handle."

"Me too Braeburn," said Macintosh with a sigh, "Me too..."

---

As night fell, the rain had continued to pour down with a vengeance. Macintosh found himself constantly twitching at every little sound, his skin crawling anytime a noise occurred that he could not determine the source of. Braeburn had left a while ago to help cook meals for Big Mac and himself, though he hadn't heard word from him sense. Every once in a while, Big Mac would turn his attention to the portrait of the unicorn on the wall and feel like it was staring at him, silently judging him. At times, he had considered getting up and taking it down, but it was not his room, and he would not be so disrespectful.

Plus, it really hurt to move, and he would rather save his strength for eating.

A knock on the door caught his attention, however, distracting him from an otherwise monotonous situation. "Come in." The door creaked open for Macintosh's visitor, revealing the familiar lavender mare that was playing hostess to him and his friends. "Oh. Hello, Miss Twilight."

"Hello," said Twilight with a nod, walking towards the bed. "How are you feeling?"

Macintosh quirked a brow. Perhaps it was a harsh thing to think, but he was a bit suspicious of the mare actually asking him, especially since she didn't seem like she was actually concerned. "Been better, but the accommodations are good. Why?"

Twilight reached into a saddlebag on her side, and produced from it a bottle with a strange, red liquid inside of it. Oddly enough, the stuff seemed to have a slight glow. She approached Macintosh, setting it on the nightstand next to the bed he was occupying. He reached for it, gently taking the bottle in his hooves and looking it over. "What's this?"

"It's a special blend," said Twilight, walking back towards the door, "It temporarily relieves pain and hastens the healing process. Drink it tomorrow, and you should be able to return home without much stress."

Macintosh looked at the little bottle, as if it might house some untold secrets, either dark horrors or the key to true happiness. "I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but... why you givin' me this?"

Twilight stopped and looked back to him, her expression as devoid of concern as ever. "I originally made it to give to you as payment for the book. Then you showed up at my doorstep. Now, it's to assure you leave as soon as possible."

Big Mac grimaced a bit, looking down at the bottle again. "Thanks...?"

Twilight turned and made her way out of the room, and just as she left, the small, purple dragon walked in, carrying a tray with a platter, a glass of cider, and a bowl of soup on it. He frowned a bit, making his way to Big Mac and setting the tray on the night stand. "You'll have to forgive Twilight, she's got a lot of stress she's dealing with."

Macintosh shrugged. "I noticed." The little dragon grabbed the lid from the platter, pulling ut up to reveal a delicious looking salad and a pair of biscuits. "Here you go. I hope you like it! I'll be back in about thirty minutes with desert, and your cousin's helping me with that, so I hope you like it!"

As the little dragon made his way out of the room, Big Mac leaned forward and sniffed the food. The soup smelled alright, tasty even, and the salad as well. He shrugged a bit, leaning forward and taking a little sip from the soup. It was quite delicious, actually. Realizing just how hungry he was, he decided it was okay and dug into the meal. The soup was a vegetable soup, and seemed to have been made quite well; it tasted like it was likely at least overseen by Braeburn. The salad had a nice mix of tomato, carrots, and potatoes, a healthy meal in itself, and the biscuits were cooked to a nice, fluffy texture. Macintosh took drinks between a few bites to wash his food down, and in seemingly no time at all, he had eaten the entire thing.

"Ready for desert?"

Big Mac saw the dragon return, with Braeburn following and smiling. "You won't believe how useful it is havin' somepony with thumbs to help you cook!" Spike set a table next to Big Mac, taking the empty tray and setting it on, then placing a new tray on the nightstand. As the old tray was sat on Braeburn's back, Spike picked up the table. Braeburn smirked, pointing at the food. "I think the lil' guy could be quite the cook if he was taught properly!"

"I can cook well enough," said Spike with a roll of his eyes, "Twilight burns anything she tries to cook." Braeburn snorted a bit, but Big Mac had his attention on the desert; a delectable looking collection of three, tasty looking sweet rolls.

"Mind if I sit with you while you eat?" Braeburn smirked. "Little Miss Grumpy disappeared, an' Fluttershy doesn't seem very talkative."

"Nope," said Macintosh, waving a hoof as a gesture of saying 'go right ahead'.

"Can I sit with you guys too?" The two stallions looked to the little dragon, who bit his lip and fidgeted a bit. "Sorry, it's just that the only pony I ever talk to is Twilight, and sometimes that Rich fella when he comes here."

Macintosh and Braeburn shared a look, but Mac smiled a bit, turning his attention back to the dragon. "Eeyup." Spike smiled wide, and seemed to dance in place. As Brae took a seat on a nearby chair, the dragon grabbed a stool and dragged it in, climbing up on it and sitting down. Big Mac chuckled at the little guy. 'Least he's not so bad. Guess she's cranky 'nuff for the both of 'em.'

Big Mac took one of the rolls and took a bite, finding it to be quite delicious; almost tooth-rottingly so. He secretly wondered if Pinkie Pie had managed to pay a quick visit to bake them herself (it wouldn't surprise him if that was the reality). He swallowed what he had bitten off, smiling a bit. "These are pretty good."

"Thanks," said Spike, smiling at the praise, "I like to cook, and learning new recipes is always pretty fun." Macintosh nodded, taking another bite of the desert. For a bit, the conversation had shifted into a more pleasant string of conversation, starting at cooking, then turning to various other chores and responsibility. It seemed no time at all had passed before Macintosh had finished his entire plate, and the little dragon had taken it to get it cleaned, once more leaving him and his cousin alone.

Braeburn sighed. "Well," he said, looking out the window, "Seems like the rain is starting to let up. Think we should get ready to make our leave?"

Macintosh looked out the window himself; indeed, the clouds seemed to be dissipating -- a welcome sight for him -- although it was clear that the sun was starting to fall, and it would take them some time to reach the foot of the mountain, let alone get to Ponyville. "I'd have to talk to Miss Twilight first. Figure out what it is she has planned."

"What I have planned," said Twilight, stepping into the room once more, the look of her face as cold as ever, "is fairly simple. It will take me some time to translate the book - likely a couple of weeks, possibly a month." She looked towards the window. "Much fun as it is to have you three running around my house, I hope you'll forgive me if I say I'm not thrilled at the prospect of playing host to you until then."

Braeburn grimaced. "Yeah, yer a hoot yourself, Missy."

"Braeburn," said Big Mac with a glare.

"Sorry."

Twilight cleared her throat. "Anyway... what I propose is that I will finish the translations, and when I do, I will make sure you are notified immediately. However, you are not to tell anypony about this book, do you understand?" Twilight looked at both stallions, her eyes more serious than normal. "You said you got attacked by ponies wanting that book, correct?" Big Mac was about to answer, but she didn't seem to allow him. "This book is a particularly special book, and it is within everypony's best interest that it never falls in the wrong hooves."

Macintosh looked to Twilight Sparkle a moment, pondering her advice. "... Mind if I ask a question?"

Twilight raised a brow, seemingly curious. That was good. "Go on?"

"You asked us what we wanted the book for," said the red stallion, pointing a hoof towards Twilight, "but now that I think of it... I'm curious as to why you want it?" She was quiet at first. Twilight stared at Big Mac, her eyes peering more into her thoughts than into him, as if she was searching for an answer.

"Knowledge," said Twilight, though there seemed to be an uncertainty in her voice, "I wish to find answers to questions nopony has asked for a thousand years. Answers that nopony has cared about for a thousand years."

"But why?" Big Mac felt like she wasn't telling the whole story. 'There's more to this mare than it seems, an' she's gotta want that book for more than just knowledge...'

Twilight's gaze shifting slowly away from his, though there seemed to be a bit of sadness to her. "... I've been asking myself 'why' ever since I was a filly..." She grimaced a bit, turning her attention back to Big Mac. He wasn't sure, but there seemed to be a bit of pain in her expression now. "... But that does not concern you."

"And what," said Big Mac, feeling a bit more confident in himself, "is it you intend to do once you translate the entire book?" Twilight paused. She stared at him silently, though her own eyes now seemed as he felt when she had asked him the same question. There was a deep uncertainty. "You said I might be able to help you with a mission, but what exactly is your mission?"

Twilight frowned a bit. "To find the truth. To understand why Equestria is as it is today." She turned away from them, making her way towards the door. "That is why I started working with Rich. That is why I go with him on his excavations and adventures into the depths of ancient Equestria." She stopped at the door, looking back at Big Mac and Braeburn, the pain still in her eyes. The more he looked into those eyes, the more Macintosh noticed a familiarity. Something he saw in his own eyes on occasion when he looked into the mirror. Subconsciously, he brought a hoof to his throat and gently caressed it over his bandanna.

'This mare is hurt... the kind of hurt that never fully goes away...'

"What if," said Big Mac, his voice much gentler than it was before, "we did help you? To find your answers?"

Twilight snorted. "You? What could you do that Filthy Rich couldn't?" She turned around once more, walking back towards the stallions. "He's got the wealth and resources I need to go anywhere in Equestria, places that ponies haven't stepped hoof in in centuries... how can you help me in ways he cannot?"

Big Mac simply shrugged. "Does he know about your quest?"

Twilight frowned a bit. "No..."

Macintosh nodded. "Why is that?"

Twilight stared at him a moment. The frown on her face deepened, a tinge of annoyance entering it. "He's got his own agenda in all this. I can appreciate it, but sometimes I feel like even when we're looking for the same things, he's not looking for them as I am." She sat down on the floor, rubbing a hoof over the bridge of her nose. "... And I have yet to be proven wrong. Any time we find an artifact, his first thought is to add it to a growing collection..."

Braeburn nodded a bit. "Sounds like it's somethin' he's taken to doin' since the passing of his wife..."

Twilight nodded. "Her passing did have something to do with it..." She sighed, putting a hoof to her nose once more. "A month ago, I learned that he might be following a fable in the hopes of reviving his dead wife... after that, I became a bit more 'selective' of what information I shared with him."

"Wait," said Big Mac, eyes widening a bit, "There's a way to bring back the dead?"

Twilight shook her head. "Highly unlikely, to be honest. There's been rumors of unicorns reviving the dead, but almost every tale of such involves terrible prices and curses as a result."

Macintosh nodded a bit, taking a moment to think. He grabbed hold of his glass of water, drinking from it to soothe his throat. "Why don't we help each other? We want answers, and so do you."

"Wait," said Braeburn, stepping between Big Mac and Twilight, "You're kidding, right? First off, you're considering continuing this silly stuff now that Zecora's gone off to who knows where, and now you're gonna get us into more danger?"

Macintosh sighed. "Braeburn, I've not fully made up my mind on anything. I just know that we all want answers here. That book nearly got me killed, so there's likely somethin' important in it." He gestured towards their hostess. "She wants answers. I want answers. Way I see it, we got an accord, at least for the time being."

Braeburn stared at his cousin incredulously. He threw his hooves up in the air. "Fine, what's one more thing, right?" Macintosh grimaced a bit at the yellow stallion, shaking his head, before turning his attention back to Twilight, whose eyes were focused on her hooves.

"What do you say? I may not have the resources that Rich has, but I want answers -- actual answers, just as bad as you do."

Twilight didn't respond for a while, seemingly lost in thought. She looked up to him, her expression shifting once more to something more akin to business. "Are you sure you want this? It may or may not require you to go to the kind of places most ponies would ordinarily stay away from. Places that ordinary ponies haven't set hoof in since who knows when."

Macintosh nodded. "Eeyup."

Twilight stared at him a moment more, as if appraising him. "I will work with you, on the conditions that you never tell anypony about what we find, what we see, and what we do." She stepped closer to him. "Especially not anypony you'd want to endanger, because we may not be the only ones looking for these answers."

Big Mac nodded. "Sounds fair."

Twilight was quiet again, thinking the situation over. "Alright." Twilight reached a hoof out, but Big Mac spat on his first, before bumping it against hers. Twilight pulled her hoof away, staring at it with a look of disgust. "What was that for...?"

Macintosh shrugged. "You don't spit on your hoof before sealin' a deal?"

Twilight shook her head as she brushed her hoof against her coat. "Okay, well, now that that's settled... I'm going to go to bed. Come morning, you should all be ready to head back home. Once I'm done translating the book, I will contact you and we can go from there."

Macintosh nodded, smiling. "Eeyup."

---

Braeburn and Macintosh stood at the doorway, the latter grimacing a bit at the slight pain in his legs. He had already known the trip home wasn't going to be an easy one, and that he'd likely collapse at least once before finally reaching their destination. 'I probably should have swallowed my pride and brought a cart or somethin'...' He shook that thought from his head. 'Nah, Braeburn'd just accidentally loose it and I'da fallen off a cliff to my death or further injury or somethin'...'

"Well," said Twilight Sparkle, stepping down the stairs with a beg over he back, "I suppose, all things considered, this turned out fairly well. Are you all ready to go?"

"Ready as I'll ever be..." said Big Mac. Twilight seemed to notice his expression. "Are you alright?"

"Lil' sore..." said Big Mac with a smile, "But I'll be fine." 'Until I get outside the gate.'

"Did you drink that medicine I gave you?" Twilight stepped closer, looking him over as if inspecting him.

"Nope," said Big Mac, shaking his head, "I was gonna save it for when the pain got too much."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I wouldn't. That medicine should get you back to ponyville if you drank it now and sat around for a few minutes. I'd drink it now."

Macintosh raised a brow. "The whole thing? Ain't that dangerous with medicine?"

Twilight nodded. "Sometimes, but what I gave you is not so much 'medicine' as it is a potion. Your body will metabolize it and use it to strengthen and regenerate damaged tissue." Macintosh's eyes grew wide. "Don't go getting silly ideas - this potion won't heal you completely, it'll just help you with the worst of the damage."

"You can make that sorta thing?" Macintosh said, reaching into his own bag and pulling the bottle out.

"Not easily," said Twilight, waving her hoof. "The ingredients are kind of hard to come by."

Big Mac looked towards the small bottle for a bit. With a shrug, he popped the stopper and put the bottle to his lips, drinking it down. At first, he noted the taste was bitter, but then detected a taste of... cherry? Odd. Once he had drank it all, he pulled the bottle back down, staring forward. "... When's it work?"

Twilight shrugged. "It should start working soon enough... probably enough time for you to wonder where your pegasus friend ran off to."

"Yeah," said Braeburn, quirking a brow, "Where is Fluttershy? I ain't seen her since last night."

As if on cue, everypony turned to see Fluttershy and Spike rush down the stairs, panicked looks on their faces. "Twilight! Twilight!" shouted the drake. Twilight turned around, just in time for Spike to rush in front of her, holding up a strange, stone orb. "Twilight, it glowed!"

"What!?" Twilight's eyes widened. "It did what!?"

"It glowed!" He pressed the stone against her face. "Fluttershy and I were talking, and it just sort of started glowing!"

Twilight took the orb from him, looking it over. "What? You were talking? Did you say anything specific? Something that might be an activation phrase or something?"

"No," Spike shook his head a bit, but stopped himself, "I mean, I don't think we did... we were just talking about dragons and stuff, and then how she was here to help Big Mac, and it just started glowing!"

Twilight stared at the stone orb for a second, looking it over. She looked up to Fluttershy, whose eyes seemed just as curious and panicked as Spike's. Abruptly, Twilight pressed the stone against Fluttershy, who seemed more than a little put off. She rubbed the stone orb up and down over her neck, face, and chest area, before pulling it back and looking it over.

"Are you sure you didn't use something that could be mistaken for an activation phrase?"

"Well," said Spike, looking up as if to go through a catalog in his head, "We talked about dragons, she asked me lots of questions about what I like to do and what I eat and what I won't eat and if I think I'll eat ponies when I grow up, and then we got distracted by an owl that somehow found it's way into your room--"

"She was in my room!?" Twilight shouted.

"Yeah," said Spike, waving a claw, "Well she had to be to help me get the owl out! Anyway, when she noticed that the owl looked like it really liked being in your room, we got into talking about why she was here and why she was so nice to the owl, and about how she was so nice to Big Mac, and then it just glowed!"

Twilight stared at Spike a moment. ".... Alright, so.... you didn't say anything like 'open says me', or anything that might have been confused for magic words?" Spike simply shook his head. Twilight sighed. "Is the owl still in my room?" Spike nodded.

"He looked so happy to be there..." said Fluttershy, smiling a bit.

Twilight stared deadpan at nothing for a moment. "Well, I'll have to deal with that once you're all off." She looked towards the stone orb once more, inspecting it. "You are a curious trinket aren't you...?"

Big Mac found himself curious. "What's that?"

Twilight shook her head. "It's... an artifact. A very special artifact that was hidden in a tomb under this house." She passed it to Spike. "Please, take this back to my room." The drake nodded, and made his way back up the stairs to his task. Twilight looked towards the others. "There's a bit more to it than that, but I'm still doing a lot of research on it for now. That's the first time it's done anything though..." She tapped a hoof to her chin. "I've had it for nearly a year now, and never once has anything I've ever done or said managed to stir it... I wonder what triggered it?"

Fluttershy smiled. "Maybe it responds to acts of kindness?"

Twilight, however, simply rolled her eyes. "It can't be that simple. I've given Spike plenty of treats and treated him nicely since getting it and I never so much as got it to shimmer."

"Oh," said Fluttershy, seeming a little dejected, "Okay, I just thought it was possible..."

"Well," said Big Mac, shrugging, "What if it requires an act of real kindness?" Twilight turned to face him, eyebrow raised. "I mean, givin' Spike a treat is nice an' all, but it's not really a spectacular kindness, is it?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "I'll be sure to file that away as a possibility for some other time then... so, how are you feeling now, Macintosh?"

Big Mac hummed a bit, just now realizing that in his distraction he had stopped thinking about the pain. He looked himself over. Sure enough, he wasn't feeling too sore. Well, he was still a little sore, but it was a manageable sort of pain. He looked up to Twilight and shrugged. "Not half bad, actually."

"Excellent," said Twilight, smiling a bit, before deadpanning. "Now, if you'd all be so kind as to get home and allow me to do my work?"

Macintosh grimaced. 'An' here I was, thinkin' we was actually gettin' to be on friendly terms.' "Eeyup." He turned to Fluttershy and Braeburn. "Y'all ready?"

"Yessir," said Braeburn.

"Yes," said Fluttershy.

Macintosh turned his attention back to Twilight. "Thank you for your hospitality, Miss Sparkle. Hope that book helps you find the answers you're lookin' for." He turned around, followed by the other two ponies, and together they made their way out the door. Macintosh turned around just long enough to smile. "Have a good day." With that, he pulled the door shut.

Twilight stood there a moment, staring at the door. Her expression shifted slowly from the deadpan irritation it had held to something more tired, more weary. She hung her head a bit, sighing. Turning around, she made her way up the stairs. Up to the second floor. Then to the third. She made her way down the hall, towards a door.

"Even if it has the answers I seek... it won't change what has happened."

She opened the door and stepped into the room, closing it behind her.

---

Macintosh was extremely happy to be back home. The travel down the mountain had been uneventful - something that Macintosh was happy to say - and his aches were still quiet pains that felt more like a particularly rough day of physical labor than an actual body-wide series of injuries. As he and Braeburn made their way towards the house, Macintosh felt a strange sense of foreboding overcome him. A sense that something was off, that something was not right, though he couldn't place his hoof on it. As he stepped onto the porch, he kept wondering what it could be. He tried to pull the door open, only to find it locked. Not a usual occurrence at this time of day. Wary, Macintosh brought a hoof up to the door and knocked.

The door swung open, and Macintosh smiled, if only for a moment. Slowly, however, his smile receded when he realized what he was looking at.

"Oh... hi Applejack... you're here early..."

A hoof across his face caused him to stumble aside as the orange mare stepped from the doorway, fury painted into her green eyes, her mane hanging down in a ponytail, wearing a green blouse.

"You got some explainin' to do, Big Mac!"

TO BE CONTINUED...

Author's Note:

Sorry this one took so long. Recently moved, so I've been kind of distracted from it!

Comments

[willhman]

Great chapter!!! Thanks for posting this and I hope that your move went well.

[howard035]

I love Braeburn's goal of founding his own town. You know, if Nightmare Moon DOES plunge Equestria into eternal night, thus making it the far side of a tidally locked planet, Braeburn could always found Appleloosa in the Terminus zone, where it is eternally twilight. That should have at least adequate growing conditions.

Man, Twilight is lucky no one believes in unicorns anymore, with the potions and the statues she's not being subtle. And I love that you've finally given us Rich's motive for his helping Nightmare Moon.

[SFaccountant]

Fluttershy smiled. "Maybe it responds to acts of kindness?"

Well, that seemed like a convenient shot in the dark. I mean, obviously we know what it is, but as wild guesses go I probably would have guessed owls first.

A hoof across his face caused him to stumble aside as the orange mare stepped from the doorway, fury painted into her green eyes, her mane hanging down in a ponytail, wearing a green blouse.

Yeesh, no wonder they don't have her over more often. Ease up a little, filly!

[PonyTom]

4973605
Very convenient. That's basically why I put it in there.

[MrAskAPirate]

Fluttershy smiled. "Maybe it responds to acts of kindness?"

Twilight, however, simply rolled her eyes. "It can't be that simple."

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