Ponies & Keyblades

by GoneGuy

24 The Fourth Crusader Returns

The ponies sat waiting at the train station, waiting for the train to arrive. About 10 minutes before it was to arrive, a different train made it's stop in the station. The door opened, and a small pony with a brownish coat and a magenta pink mane stepped out.

"Babs! It's good to see ya again!" Applejack said.

"Likewise, Cousin AJ. Who are these two new ponies? Didn't see them last time."

"This is Sora and Riku." Applejack replied.

"What brings you back to Ponyville, Babs?" Pinkie asked.

"Just wanted to see everypony again. That a bad thing?"

"No, course not sugarcube. Why don't ya'll head on over to Sweet Apple Acres? Ah'm sure Applebloom and the Crusaders would be mighty glad to see ya."

"Yeah. I'll do that. Nice to meet you two."

Babs walked away, heading to Sweet Apple Acres, while Sora asked Rainbow Dash what was up with that gray pony who had flown into them by mistake on the way over.

"Derpy's just.... well.... Derpy." was all she could really say.

The train arrived, and the group boarded to go to the Crystal Empire.

Babs Seed finally made it over to Sweet Apple Acres. As she prepared to go meet her cousin again, she saw two shadowy figures in below a tree. She smelled the scent of some sweet apple cider.

"Hey kid," one figure spoke, holding out a glass filled with a sweet smelling yellow elixir, "want some cider?"

The other spoke.

"Free of charge."

Babs wasn't one to turn down a free pick-me-up. She walked over and grabbed the glass, drinking her cider in one gulp.

"Wasn't that good?"

"Yeah, wasn't it much better than that awful Sweet Apple Acres garbage?"

"Hey! Don't bash my cousins!"

"You're an Apple?"

"Technically, I'm a Seed, but yeah, they're my cousins! And their cider is so much better than your nasty stuff - who are you anyway?"

"We're glad you asked."

They burst into song, explaining that "He's Flim, He's Flam, they're the world-famous Flim-Flam Brothers."

"And we're gonna drive Sweet Apple Acres outta business one way or another!"

Several dark creatures formed around, grabbing Babs by her front hooves, and the two mischievous brothers dropped a note nearby.

Applebloom and the Crusaders walked out of Sweet Apple Acres, preparing for school. As they walked out, Applebloom noticed a letter that Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle had somehow missed. She read it aloud.

Apple Family,

We've taken your dear, smart-mouthed cousin Babs with us. Give us all your apples and money or else we'll let our Heartless have their way with her.

Signed, Flim and Flam

"Flim and Flam! Those dirty rats!" Applebloom exclaimed, "how will we save her? Applejack and Sora and the others are all headed off to Celestia-Knows-Where!"

"This is no time to panic," Scootaloo said, calmly, "We'll save Babs ourselves! Cutie Mark Crusaders, assemble!"

"We're all here already though," Sweetie Belle added.

"You know what I mean! Come on!"

"Hey! Wait!"

The Cutie Mark Crusaders all turned to see a pink pony with a reddish-brown mane, wielding a flowery version of Sora's blade in her maw.

"Who are you?" Sweetie Belle asked this new pony.

"I'm Kairi. Could you tell me where I am?"

"Ponyville," Scootaloo asked, pushing her fellow crusaders towards her scooter, "and no offense but we've got a fellow Crusader to rescue."

"Can I join you?"

"Sorry - only Official Cutie Mark Crusaders." Applebloom replied.

"Wait a minute!!" Sweetie Belle interjected, "look at her! She has a blank flank too! No cutie mark, see?"

To their amazement, Sweetie Belle was right. An ADULT pony without a cutie mark.

"Oh alright, you can tag along, and maybe we'll let you hang with us afterward, but you can't fit in my scooter! How will you keep up?"

"I'll manage." Kairi said, running quickly on her four legs.

"Alright. Follow us!" Applebloom said.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders hopped onto Scootaloo's scooter and sped off, following the marks Babs had left when she was being dragged away. Kairi, the strange new pony, followed quick as she could into the Everfree Forest, following her new pony friends to the best of her ability.

"You'll never get away with this!" Babs cried.

"Oh, but we will."

"We've got Heartless to do our work for us. Not too shabby eh?"

"Heartless? What are you even talkin' about?"

"Well, they got you here despite the enormous amount of whining and thrashing you did."

"Pretty interesting for such a small pony to have so much energy."

"Might make an even more interesting Heartless. Think of it, Flam. Make a new minion and take over Sweet Apple Acres all in one day."

"Now hold on, Flim. They'll never give it to us if we turn her into one. We'll wait till they've signed the contract, then convert this one."

"Why stop at this one? Why not the whole Apple Family? In fact, why not all of Ponyville too?"

"Now Flim, we musn't get ahead of ourselves. We'll start with the Apples THEN we'll see if Ponyville is weak enough to fall."

"Then on to Canterlot!"

The two ponies in the red-and-white striped jackets laughed, in a typical villainous way, as Babs tried to push the thoughts they had spoken of out of her mind.