Ballad of the Brobdingnag

by Jongoji245

Chapter 1: Into the Rabbit Hole

It is a rather cool afternoon in Ponyville, but everypony was preparing for a special occasion: the day when the three pony races found Equestria. The pegasi were tying ribbons to City Hall, the unicorns setted up shop in several locations, and the earth ponies were preparing parade floats and displays. And the Mane Six were performing no less as well. Twilight Sparkle is in the library preparing a speech with her dragon companion Spike. Pinkie Pie is at Sugar Cube Corner loading up her party cannon with confetti and candy. Back at Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack and Big Mac were harvesting apples to prepare apple pies, cider, and apple fritters. At the boutique, Rarity was preparing dresses for such an occasion on request from the Canterlot Elite. Rainbow Dash was at Cloudsdale practicing with the Wonderbolts for a performance that would end with a sonic rainboom. Fluttershy usually doesn’t go to festivities like this, but she knows this would be a good opportunity to provide adoption for many of her animal companions.

Meanwhile at school, Ms. Cheerilee was in her class lecturing her students about the early history of Equestria. The students were paying attention to her, but Apple Bloom noticed something off from one class mates, a multiple toed yellow colt with purple stripes name Cosgrove. Cosgrove looked unusually focused on the lecture. She noticed that when Cheerilee started talking about the “Crusades.” Usually he would secretly be drawing his next costume design under his desk.

“Button Mash,” Ms. Cheerilee spotted Button’s glowing face as he played on his Joy Boy. “What have I told you about playing video games while class was in session?”
Button Mash quickly slid the handheld console under his desk and gave an innocent grin. The outburst was the one moment Cosgrove changed his focus. When class resumed, the three toed colt returned to his focused look.

A few hours later passed when the final school bell rang.

“Okay class,” Cheerilee happily announced, “I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Most of the fillies and colts stampeded out of the class. Cosgrove however walked an a leisurely pace rather than ran to his home to continue work on his next costume.

“Hey, Cosgrove!” a voice called out.

Cosgrove turned to the sound and found Apple Bloom trotting up to him.

“Hey you have been actin’ awfully strange for the last couple days, what’s up?”

Cosgrove remained silent as softly scratched the dirt road as he looked to the ground. Apple Bloom widened her eyes.

“You’re not goin’ to the festival with me?”

“What-” Cosgrove raised his head up “of course I am still wanting to go with you. It is just that the lecture reminded me of something...” Apple Bloom cocked her head as Cosgrove looked away.

“Come on, Apple Bloom!” a voice cried out.

Apple Bloom turned to see Sweetie Belle in a wagon with Scootaloo on her scooter. As soon as the red hair filly turned back, Cosgrove was at full speed away from her. She immediately hopped onto the wagon and they began their travel to their clubhouse to plan their next crusade. Halfway to their destination, Apple Bloom’s ears perked up.

“Ah got an idea for today’s crusade.” she said with a smile.

It took some time before Cosgrove reached his home: a dingy looking house on a hill near the Ever Free Forest. So much thought has been going through his mind about today, among them how he just ran off on his good friend Apple Bloom.

“Pray Celestia that this didn’t hurt anything” he thought as he walked slowly through his hall of assorted costumes. His stopped and look at two pairs of hair extensions in a waste bin. He lifted one up and looked at it before closing his eyes.

Suddenly it was class time, but it wasn’t tomorrow, rather it was a year ago. Back then Cosgrove was doing his usual business before now. He introduced himself on his life in the circus and how he owned his own home. He talked here and there to Rumble, Button Mash, Dinky, and Indigo and occasionally stood up to Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon when they made fun of Pipsqueak and Featherweight, only to be remarked as a “yellow zebra.”

In order to earn enough money to stay at his house, Cosgrove would work at Sweet Apple Acres. Because he hasn’t bucked an apple tree his entire life, he instead found a niche with the livestock, often herding the sheep with Winona. Aside from being classmates, Cosgrove did develop feelings for Apple Bloom, but it was only recently that she had found out his affections.

One day he and Apple Bloom were walking into the Everfree Forest.

“Ah know of another zebra who would love to meet ya.” As she said that, Cosgrove slowed his walk.

“Apple Bloom,” - The farmer turned around -“I’m… not a zebra.”

“What do ya mean? Ya look like a zebra to me.” Upon hearing it, Cosgrove gripped the leg hair extensions and pulled them away.

Which leads to the present day, now in the evening. Cosgrove is still in thought as one last phrase he remembered Apple Bloom saying, “Zebra or not you are always my best colt friend.” He looked outside, Celestia has lowered the warm sun to allow Luna to raise the cool moon.

“I will make it up to you later, right now I have something to do.”

Cosgrove walked down to his closet, loaded up a blue wagon with a radio and a bunch of pears. Wrapping his tail around the handle, he started his trek to the Everfree Forest.

Unknown to Cosgrove the entire afternoon and into the evening, the CMC was hiding behind a bush waiting for him to make his move. While Apple Bloom kept constant watch, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle appeared very bored.

“Apple Bloom, it is already late.” Sweetie Belle huffed.

“Yeah and just sitting here isn’t going to earn our cutie marks.” Scootaloo looked at her flank. “Why are we here in the first place?”

Apple Bloom turned her head towards her fellow crusaders. “Ah know Cosgrove is hiding something and I want to find out what.” Apple Bloom turned her head back to Cosgrove’s house.

“Didn’t we try spying already?” Sweetie Belle remarked.

“There he is!” Apple Bloom yelped. The other two fillies looked out of the bush as Cosgrove dragged the wagon towards the Everfree.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders, Go!” shouted the CMC upon looking back to each other.

A few minutes passed as Cosgrove walked through a path presumably made by himself in the forest. Fifty paces behind, the CMC crept up quietly so as to not be spotted. It was about half an hour before Cosgrove stopped at a break in the forest. He looked at the starry sky before unwrapping his tail. Cosgrove began placing the pile of pears onto the grass when he heard a twig snap. Immediately he perked his head up and looked around hard. He knew the risk of going into the forest this late in the evening.

What had really occurred is that Scootaloo stepped on the twig. The fillies hid behind a tree trunk to avoid detection. Scootaloo was then given the look from the other two.

“What,” Scootaloo moved the branch aside. “How was I supposed to know that twig was there?”

Suddenly, a sound was heard in the clearing. The CMC looked out as Cosgrove sat a couple feet away from the radio since it was blazing loud. Apple Bloom pondered why is there a pile of pears laying on the ground and a radio that plays what sounds like a bassoon.

An hour has passed in the Everfree Forest, and the radio was still playing at full blast. Again, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were bored and tired as hay while Apple Bloom kept constant vigil. She is basically risking getting into trouble coming home late just to investigate one tiny, but suspicious detail. Suddenly Cosgrove turned off the radio and started putting the pears back onto the wagon. As he placed the pears back into the wagon, the words “OH COME ON!” ring his ears.

Cosgrove turned around and saw the CMC walking out of the bush, with Apple Bloom walking faster towards him with a stern face.

“Apple Bloom?” Cosgrove looked around frantically, “What are you guys doing here?”

“The exact same thing Ah should ask you!” Apple Bloom replied back. “THIS is the reason you were feeling strange in class today!”

“You shouldn’t be here!” Cosgrove turned around to his wagon only to be stopped by the farm filly.

“YOU shouldn’t be here either,” Apple Bloom continued walking up to him. “We could be crying timber wolf right now...” She was into her rant that she didn’t know the trees rumble and the ground shaking. Cosgrove was looking upward as a massive overhead shadow casted upon them, the CMC looked as well but in utter horror.

“Why are you looking at a rain cloud?” Apple Bloom looked at the scared looks on their faces.

Cosgrove eyed her. “Turn… around…. slowly…”

Apple Bloom turned around in a huff, only for that expression to change to utter horror as a massive figure gradually looms down at her.