• Published 24th Apr 2012
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My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic -- Off The Record - The King of Hearts



A new pony is introduced to Equestria just before the fight with Nightmare Moon in Episode 1. Changing the entire story.

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The Ticket Master - Part 2

Chapter 3

The Ticket Master – Part 2

Alex couldn't help but cringe at the mess that he had been walking through on his way to Rarity's house. He could have sworn that there hadn't been this much garbage in the wagon. But, it seemed that every few steps he took, he had to avoid one kind of slop or another. However, he was thankful that no one knew who was responsible… yet.

After a small trip through the garbage filled town, Spike and Alex finally arrived at the Carrousel Boutique, the home of Rarity.

"We're here!" Spike said, almost jumping off of Alex's back in excitement. "Do you think she'll be happy to see me?" He asked, smiling.

"I'm sure she will be." Alex replied thinking back to the last time he had seen this mare, at the party a week ago. She was the gorgeous white pony with the purple mane, and the very lady-like attitude. It was her that made him realize that he was attracted to the ponies in this world. Something he still couldn't help but be a tiny bit weirded out a by.

"Would you just LOOK at this mess!" An annoyed voice came from the back end of the house.

Following the voice, Alex and Spike walked around the house, to see a very frustrated Rarity cleaning up some of the garbage strewn across her back yard.

"Hey Rarity!" Spike called, jumping off of Alex's back.

Upon hearing Spike, Rarity quickly changed her demeanor, not wanting to come off as unpleasant in front of her guests. Turning around, she faced Alex and Spike, and smiled charmingly. "My apologies for that very unladylike outburst, I wasn't expecting anypony," She said to the two. "Are the two of you looking for something? Or did you just drop in for a visit?" She said winking at Spike.

Spike blushed, "We came to see you!" He said smiling at her, forgetting his original goal.

"That's sweet of you to say Spike, but something tells me you two are here because of Twilights little visit." Rarity said, starting to look confused. "Could you two tell me why she was so intent on figuring out why I'd like to go to the Gala?"

Alex shook his head, "It's… just a thing." He said, not wanting to get Twilight in trouble with her friends. "I don't mean to hold anything back from you, she'll just… tell you when she's ready" He said slowly.

"Well, far be it from me to pry… I do hope she's forthcoming with it soon though. Patience isn't my most becoming feature." Rarity said smiling.

"How long ago was she here?" Alex asked.

"Well… Twilight left about fifteen minutes before all this dreadful trash littered itself all over my lawn… So, that makes it about a half hour." Rarity said lifting a cloth off the ground with her magic, and wiping some garbage off the side of her house.

"Do you know where she was headed next by any chance?" Alex asked, watching Spike run over and start assisting her.

"I believe she said she was headed to Fluttershys cottage," Rarity told him, mouthing a quick 'thank you' to Spike for assisting her. "It's just outside of the town, on the outskirts of the Everfree Forest." She said, pointing a hoof toward the path leading into the middle of town. "Just follow that to the end, and you'll be there in no time, darling."

"Thanks!" Alex said to her, "Sorry about all the garbage though…"

"It's not as if it's your fault all this trash got spilt. So don't worry about a thing." Rarity assured him.

"Actually, Rarity…" Spike began.

"Whoa! Would you look at the time?" Alex said looking at an invisible wrist watch on his ankle. "Come on Spike, Time to go see Fluttershy!" He said laughing nervously then sticking his head under Spike and lifting him on to his back, not letting Spike finish his sentence.

"What? no! I want to stay here with Rarity!" Spike said desperately, reaching his arm out to Rarity.

"Sorry Spike," Alex said as he started heading away from Rarity. "We've gotta make sure that we catch up with Twilight. And, without you, I won't be able to find my way around! You don't want me getting lost, do you?"

Rarity giggled at the exchange between the two, "Off you go, Spike! You can visit after you find Twilight." She said smiling at him.

"Oh… Okay…" Spike said a little dejectedly. But he quickly perked up at the thought of being able to come back. "Well then… We'd better hurry up! Allons-y, Alex!" He said sitting up straight on Alex's back, and pointing his claw forward.

"Thanks for the help Rarity!" Alex said running toward the path she had given them.

"You're most welcome!" She said, only increasing her volume enough to be heard. "I hope I see you two again soon!" She said as they headed back into town, "I know I'll be seeing at least one of you soon." She said to herself, smiling.


After leaving Fluttershy's cottage, Twilight moved on to Pinkie Pie. Because of her particular path, she had yet to be aware of the garbage covering the town.

Walking down the road, Twilight couldn't help but be nervous. A couple of hours ago, this plan of hers seemed foolproof. But, after hearing her last 3 friends' reasons for going to the Gala, she knew that the decision was going to be a difficult one. But, she was hoping that Pinkie Pie or Rainbow Dash might give her an extraordinary reason to choose one of them over everypony else. But somehow, she just wasn't confidant in that happening.

Walking through the door to Sugarcube Corner, Twilight was quickly greeted by one of the owners of the shop, and Pinkies landlord, Mr. Cake.

"Hello Mr. Cake! Is Pinkie Pie home?" Twilight asked the thin yellow pony, with the orange mane, and freckled nose.

"I believe so…" Mr. Cake said looking at the stairs beside Twilight. "It's hard to tell with that filly sometimes. She can up and vanish without anypony seeing her leave."

"She's good at that." Twilight replied laughing, "Mind if I head up and take a look in her room?"

"Nope, Not at all." Mr. Cake said with a smile.

"Thanks!" Twilight said with a smile as she headed up.

Walking down the hall toward Pinkies door, Twilight noticed that it was open a crack. Nudging the door open with her head, she walked into the room and was a little surprised, and very confused at what Pinkie was doing.

Sitting on the other side of the room, Pinkie was rapidly running her tongue over her hoof, as if something was on it. Even after she noticed Twilight, she still continued.

"Pinkie… What are you doing?" Twilight asked, slightly worried at what the answer would be.

However, instead of answering her question, Pinkie simply stopped licking her hoof for a moment, then said something completely unrelated. "Did you know cotton candy is pink, Twilight?" She said with a bright smile.

"Um… Yes?" Twilight said, cocking an eyebrow. "So… You think you taste like cotton candy? Because… you're pink?" Twilight said trying to work it all out in her head.

"Of course not!" Pinkie said giggling. "Just because I'm Pink, doesn't mean I'm made of cotton candy silly!" She giggled, "How did you like the cake I made for Alex?"

"It was delicious!" Twilight said, happy to be moving on from the cotton candy subject. "Right… Well, I wanted to ask you a question!" She said to the pony that had now stopped tasting her hoof.

"Sure!" Pinkie said, "I love questions!"

"Well… What do you think of the Grand Galloping Gala?" Twilight asked, slowly working her way to asking her for her reason to go.

Pinkie gasped, inhaling enough air to cause her body to physically expand, and make her eyes cross. "It's the most amazing incredible tremendous super-fun wonderful terrifically humongous party in all of Equestria! I've ALWAYS wanted to go!"

"Well…" Twilight began, "What would you do if you had the chance to go?"

Pinkie then proceeded to talk Twilight's ear off, about every single thing she would do if she had the chance to go.


Alex and Spike were feeling defeated after finding out that they had missed Twilight, yet again.

"I'm sorry…" Fluttershy said quietly. "She left almost twenty minutes ago."

"That's alright Fluttershy," Alex said in a soft tone, being careful not to upset her. "Do you know where she's headed next by any chance?" He asked.

"She's going to see Pinkie…" Fluttershy said quietly again. "Do you know the way to Sugarcube Corner Spike?" she asked him, having an easier time talking to the baby dragon.

"Yup!" Spike said proudly. "I'll get us there in a jiff!"

Alex couldn't help but be a bit embarrassed. He didn't have the slightest clue how to get from one place to another in this town. The last week for him had pretty much been all sleeping and little else. He hadn't really been up and about besides the odd trip to the market, or to a restaurant with Twilight and Spike. The rest of his time had been spent reading up on portals and other dimensions.

But, at least after this search for Twilight was over, he would have a good grasp on the layout of the town. He wished that he knew how to fly, since it would have made this search so much easier.

"Um, Fluttershy… Can I ask you something?" Alex began slowly, getting an idea in his head. "By any chance… could you teach me how to fly?" He said looking at his wings, then back to her.

"Oh, my…" Fluttershy began, immediately getting quieter. "I don't think I'm the best pony for the job… I think you should ask Rainbow Dash… If that's okay…"

Alex sighed, he had expected this. Twilight had told him that learning to fly was something a Pegasi learned as they grew up, and that it was difficult to learn later in life. But, if he did want to learn, Rainbow Dash would be the best pony around to help him. Unfortunately, he and Rainbow Dash weren't exactly on good terms.

"Alright, thanks anyway," Alex said with a smile. "You ready to keep being my guide Spike?"

"Of course!" Spike said. "We've gotta hurry so I can get back and see Rarity!"

Alex and Fluttershy looked at each other and laughed at the young dragon's vigor.

"Well, we'd better get going then!" Alex said, still grinning.

"Thanks for helping us Fluttershy!" Spike said smiling.

Fluttershy simply smiled and nodded, as the two headed off back to town.


"I hope we didn't miss her this time…" Alex said to Spike as the two walked up to Sugarcube Corner.

"Oh, don't worry." Spike said reassuringly. "Even if we did miss her, there's only one other place she has to go."

Alex sighed. "That's what I'm worried about." Knowing Rainbow Dash was last in line.

Opening the door to Sugarcube Corner, The two walked in to the store, and were greeted with Pinkie Pie behind the counter, rapid licking her hoof.

Spike opened his mouth to ask her if they had missed Twilight, but closed it when he noticed what she was doing.

"Hey Pinkie…" Alex said, with a confused look on his face. "Whatcha doin' there?"

"Hey Guys!" Pinkie said excitedly, stopping her licking. "Did you know cotton candy is pink?"

Alex looked at her in confusion. Did she taste like cotton candy because she was pink? He still didn't know a lot about this world, but if that was the case, it would be awesome.

"Pinkie… Do you taste like cotton candy?" Alex asked, completely serious.

Spike and Pinkie both looked at him silently for a moment, then, they both burst into laughter.

"…Never mind." Alex said, feeling like an idiot, and still not understanding why she had been licking herself in the first place.

"Is Twilight still here?" Spike asked after finally composing himself.

"Nope!" Pinkie said wiping a tear from her eye. "She went to see Rainbow Dash!"

Alex and Spike both sighed.

"But she just left," Pinkie said, "You might be able to catch up with her if you hurry! She still has to go ALL the way to Stirrup Street!" She explained, "You can get there by…"

"Oh, we know how to get there…" Alex said recognizing the name of the road. He suddenly realized that if Twilight had taken the same path as him and Spike, she wouldn't have seen the mess he made yet. "We'd better get going." He said, wanting to catch up so he could explain before somepony else told her what he did.

"Okie dokie Lokie!" Pinkie said smiling, and waving goodbye.

Alex left the shop with Spike riding on his back. As soon as the two were out the door, Alex got himself into full gallop. Luckily, he knew the way to Stirrup Street from here, so he could get there quickly. But, in his haste, Alex failed to notice the three ponies coming from Fluttershy's cottage, who were intent on finding out why Twilight had been asking them about the Gala.


Twilight walked through the town with her head hung low. Her plan was a bust… Everypony had given her a pretty good reason to attend the Gala, and she expected no less from Rainbow Dash. How could she tell Rarity that Applejack making money was more important than her finding her true love? Or tell Pinkie that Fluttershy deserved to see the gardens more than she deserved to party? Even if she gave up her own ticket, that would still leave three unhappy ponies. "Oh well… Still one pony to go." She said as she started walking down a hill. Inhaling deeply, Twilight was quickly snapped out of her train of thought.

Something stunk.

Looking up, Twilight was shocked to see a very dirty Ponyville below her, at the bottom of the hill. More ponies than she could count were out cleaning the mess up. Looking up, she saw Rainbow Dash flying around the outside of her house, cleaning some filth off her house.

"Hey Rainbow Dash!" Twilight shouted to the Pegasus pony, who was now turned and facing her. "What happened here?"

"What happened here?" Rainbow Dash said in a sarcastic tone, approaching Twilight. "You don't know who did this?"

"No," Twilight said, confused. "Who was it?"

"It was…" Dash began.

"It was me." A voice came from behind Twilight.

Twilight turned around, and saw Alex with Spike on his back.

"I did all this..." Alex said looking at the ground avoiding eye contact. "I didn't mean to! It just… Kinda happened…"

Twilight looked at him, unsure of what to say. "How… How did you do this?"

"He was being a hero!" Spike cut in, standing up on Alex's back.

"Spike, I don't think that's the right word…" Alex said, before getting cut off by Spike.

"An out of control garbage wagon started rolling down this hill, threatening everypony at the bottom!" Spike began, trying to make the story as exciting as possible. "When Big Macintosh saw this, he threw himself in front of the wagon to stop it before it hurt anypony!" He said, continuing to embellish the story.

"Okay…" Twilight cut in, "How did it end up covering half the town in garbage then?"

"Well… When Alex saw the wagon headed for Big Mac, he used his magic, and stopped it before it hit him!"

This confused Twilight further, "What do you mean he used magic? He couldn't possibly…"

Spike continued, cutting Twilight off, "But, when Alex tried to bring the wagon back to the top of the hill, he lost control! And the wagon got sent flying over the town, and it spilt everything on the way!" He said, excitedly, as he replayed the whole event in his head.

"Okay Spike," Twilight said to him, "just slow down for a minute." She needed a second to understand this. Doing something like this would take a tremendous amount of power, how could Alex have done this?

"Is this true?" Twilight asked him.

"Yeah…" Alex said, worried that this might upset her. "I stopped the wagon from hitting Big Macintosh, but, I couldn't control the magic. The wagon ended up flying straight up the hill toward us, so, in a panic, I sent the wagon flying… Covering the entire town in trash… the wagon ended up somewhere in the Everfree Forest."

Twilight stood there, astonished. She couldn't believe that he had been able to do this. In a single day, he went from never using magic, to being able to lift things, to being able to launch them miles away. Alex was going to be able to get himself home in mere months. And, as much as she should have scolded him for using magic that could have gotten somepony hurt, she just couldn't do it. After all, he HAD saved Big Macintosh.

"Well?" Rainbow Dash said impatiently, "Aren't you gonna yell at him?"

"No Dash…" Twilight answered her softly, "If he saved somepony, I think we can skip the yelling."

Rainbow Dash groaned, "Fine, whatever." She said, secretly agreeing with her. "You're off the hook this time! Don't think this means I forgive you though!" She said to Alex, then turning back to Twilight and smiling. "So what did you come to see me for?" Dash asked her.

"Oh!" Twilight said "I wanted to ask you what you would do if…"

"Twilight," Alex said before she was able to finish. "This idea of yours… It isn't a good one."

Twilight turned to him and sighed, he was right, after all. "I know…" She began slowly, "But… I don't know what else to do! I can only pick one pony! And then, after that, everypony will think that I like that pony more than them! And I don't want to do that, because everypony is important to me! I don't know what to do! She said starting to sound frantic, as her eyes starting to tear up, and she lowered her head to the ground.

"Listen, Twilight," Alex said comfortingly "If you can't take everypony, then maybe you shouldn't take ANYpony." He said, placing a hoof on her shoulder.

He was right. That was her way out. Looking up to him, she smiled, and wiped a tear from her eye. "You're right…" She said starting to smile. "Spike, please take a note." She said, her voice cracking slightly.

Pulling a piece of paper and quill out of seemingly nowhere, Spike waited for her to tell him what to write.

"Dear Princess Celestia," Twilight started, "I've learned that having to choose between your friends can leave you, and your friends feeling pretty awful. A pony should never be in a position where she can leave her friends feeling unimportant. So, before I have to make a choice I have no wish to make, I'd like to return the two tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala."

"You had two tickets to the Gala?" Dash said shocked, "And you're just gonna send them back?"

"I'm sorry Rainbow, but I don't want to have to choose between anypony. And if I can't take everypony, then I don't want to go either." Twilight explained.

Dash sighed, she was right. It wouldn't be fair. "Okay, but… are you sure you don't just want to give me one, and send the other back?" Dash asked hopefully. But, Twilight simply shook her head. "Alright… Just askin'…"

Taking the letter from Spike with her magic, Twilight wrote something extra on the bottom of the note, then rolled the scroll up, and placed the two tickets inside.

"Okay Spike," She said, happy to be rid of the burden, "Send it."

Taking the scroll from Twilight, Spike inhaled, and then blew green fire at the letter, turning it into a wisp of magic, that floated off toward Canterlot.

"Hey Twilight!" Pinkie called from the top of the hill, hopping down toward them. Behind her, were Applejack , Rarity, and Fluttershy.

"What are you guys doing here?" Alex asked them.

"We're here to ask Twilight about all this Gala Business." Rarity said.

"Yeah!" Pinkie chirped in.

"If you don't mind…" Fluttershy added quietly.

"It's not like you to be beatin' around the bush with us, Twi!" Applejack added.

"Oh… Well… You see…" Twilight started, knowing they wouldn't like her explanation.

But, Before Twilight could start explaining herself, Spike cut her off, making a loud 'urk' noise, which was followed by him burping out a scroll that landed on the ground in front of him.

Lifting the scroll of the ground, Twilight opened it and read what Princess Celestia had to say. She immediately lit up.

"Well Twilight?" Rarity asked again.

"I was asking because I had five extra tickets to the Gala." Twilight said beaming.

Alex and Spike both took a step back, as the group of girls started screaming, cheering, hugging, thanking, and even some squealing. Something neither of them particularly wanted to get stuck in the middle of.

"Yuck." Spike said loudly, enough for all the ponies to hear him. But, they simply ignored him.

After the long slew of thank you's, ohmygosh's, and Pinkie's excited singing, the group finally calmed down.

"Come on everypony!" Pinkie said throwing her arms in the air. "This calls for a party!"

The six girls all cheered and started following Pinkie back to Sugarcube corner, leaving Alex and Spike alone on the hill.

"You know…" Alex started slowly, "That Gala actually sounded like it would have been fun to go to…"

"Yeah…" Spike agreed. "I kinda wish that we… urk" He burped again, and another scroll landed on the ground. Picking it up, he read the text out loud. "And one for Spike and Alex" He said as he pulled two tickets out of the letter and looked at Alex. The two then proceeded to jump around and cheer, just as the girls had. But, they were cut off from their celebrating when they heard laughing coming from the top of the hill from the six girls.

"Oh…" Alex said blushing with embarrassment. "I mean… yuck!"

"Yeah!" Spike said, quickly acting grossed out. "But I guess we have to go, since we got invited!"

"Yup," Alex agreed. "Nothing we can do!"

The girls laughed at the lame attempt to cover up their excitement, then started telling them to hurry up, so they could go party. The boys quickly headed up to join them, at which point, they all headed off to Pinkies house to celebrate.

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