The Magic Within
After the hectic events of that day, the extended Chan family stopped for a late dinner at the House of Wu, a local Chinese restaurant. As their food was brought to them at their large table, Jade expressed her dissatisfaction with the choice. "Chinese food?" she whined. "I just moved here from Hong Kong. Can't we get some TexMex or something?"
"Meat doesn't agree with our digestion," Sweetie Belle pointed out to her, sitting beside her. "None of the TexMex restaurants around here serve tofu."
Jade grumbled to herself, but let it slide, trying to enjoy her meal.
"Jackie," Uncle spoke up, "the Rooster Talisman possesses enormous power."
"What's it do?" Jade asked eagerly, happily distracted as she snatched it up in her hand to examine it.
"Manners Jade," Jackie scolded, taking it back and setting it down, not noticing it glow briefly.
"Ancient legend speaks of 12 talismans," Uncle continued, his tone serious holding up the restaurant's place mat for the conveniently expositionistic design. "One for each animal of the Chinese Zodiac, each possessing a different magic."
"What kind of magic?" Jade asked eagerly, only to be silenced by Jackie.
"Legend also says the talismans were scattered to the four corners of the globe," Uncle continued. "If this, or any Talisman, should fall into evil hands-"
"Jackie will give 'em smackie with his lightning fists of steel!" Jade piped up, pantomiming inaccurate combat moves before bringing her clenched fist down on the table, making the dishes jump, drawing attention from around the restaurant and earning her a glare from Apple Bloom.
"Ah'm havin' enough trouble with mah chopsticks with the bowls holdin' still," she grumbled, looking down at the vines that had grown out of her wooden chopsticks to wrap around her hoof in order to manipulate themselves for her with a sigh. "...ah hate when they do that..."
Jade chuckled nervously as she righted the dishes. "So Jackie, when are you going to teach me some of your moves?" she asked eagerly.
"Later, Jade," Jackie promised, hoping to calm her down. As Jade pouted, he picked up the Talisman. "Uncle, do you really believe in such a myth?"
Three candy-colored heads turned towards him. Sweetie Belle cleared her throat. "Hi, I'm your talking unicorn cousin," she offered pointedly.
"And I'm a pegasus who can manipulate weather, sitting on a kinto un straight out of "Journey to the West"," Scootaloo added pointedly, gesturing to Cumulo beneath her as he floated beside the table.
"And I'm sitting on a walking, talking, carnivorous plant cause wooden chairs tend to sprout when I sit in them," Apple Bloom added irritably.
"And you think magical talismans are mythical?" Audrey III - the name had stuck when Jackie brought it up - spoke up in a sing song voice over her head, his leaves, vines, and stems arranging themselves into a comfortable seat for her.
Before the plant could say or sing anything else, Jackie grabbed a skewer of chicken off the table and shoved it in its bulbous head/mouth. "Touche," he told Sweetie Belle. "Touche," he added to Scootaloo. "Very much touche," he offered Apple Bloom. "And don't you start," he concluded, waving a finger at Audrey III, only to jerk back as the plant apparently decided that he was offering the finger to snack on.
Jade, however, had gotten bored listening and rushed out to an open space in the restaurant, the excitement of her day not having worked its way through her body yet. "Jackie, check me out!" she called out, once more attempting to mimic his movements from earlier...once more demonstrating her somewhat limited coordination and, despite Jackie's shouted warning, succeeding only in creating near absolute chaos as she managed to kick a waiter's tray, sending its contents into his face, causing him to stagger back into a table and send a large bowl flying straight into Uncle's face. As Jackie rushed to clean up, however, he lost track of the Talisman.
Once the mess was cleaned up and Jackie had made Jade apologize and sit back down, the meal somewhat resumed. "I was just trying to get you to teach me, Jackie..." Jade whined.
"You coulda just waited till morning, then," Apple Bloom pointed out irritably. "Ah've been takin' lessons from him for years. Ya coulda joined in easy." Jade chuckled a bit nervously.
"Besides," Jackie added, "the first lesson I teach...the wise seek power within. The foolish seek it within others. Until you harness the power within yourself, I cannot teach you."
"Ah'm trying!" Apple Bloom complained, trying to shake the chopsticks off her hoof, the vines unwilling to let her go just yet.
"And you are doing an excellent job," Jackie praised. "When this first started happening, the table would be sprouting, too."
Apple Bloom lowered her head. "...Audrey III's absorbing most o' that..." she admitted.
"Harnessing the power within isn't always about having total control," Jackie offered. "Sometimes, it is simply finding ways to ensure it does no harm." He gestured to Audrey III. "Considering how big he was, the fact he has not grown further from absorbing that energy is surely a good sign."
"I don't wanna grow up!" Audrey III sang out. "I'm a Toys R Us sprout-"
This time it was Scootaloo that stuffed Audrey's mouth with some sweet and sour pork. "Yeah, we got it. You're keeping yourself in check. Now quit singing."
"Besides," Jackie continued, "what I meant was that you must have the discipline to behave and control yourself." He smiled down at Jade and the others as a trolley with large bowls of noodles and soup arrived. "Now eat your food," he instructed Jade as the bowls were set out.
"Power within," Jade muttered. "Got it." She promptly began slurping up her noodles.
"Don't eat like a baboon!" Jackie scolded. "Chew your food."
"Chew...soup?" Sweetie Belle asked, more than a little confused as she slurped her noodles daintily, dealing with each mouthful before taking the next.
"What she said," Jade added, continuing to slurp her food.
"Help me out, Uncle!" Jackie pleaded.
Uncle raised an eyebrow. "She's your niece," he countered simply. "Besides, I still haven't managed with Scootaloo." He gestured to where the pegasus had buried her face in her bowl and was snarfing away.
"Scootaloo!" Jackie complained as Jade giggled.
"What?" Scootaloo countered, lifting her dripping head. "Cumulo wants a taste, too." With that, she buried her head in the cloud she sat upon, pulling it out completely clean and dry as the faint rainbow corona surrounding the cloud pulsed happily.
"Don't you dare," Jackie warned as Jade grabbed her bowl.
"Aww..." Jade whined, satisfying herself with just drinking the remaining liquid down. She then grabbed a fortune cookie and broke it open, eating the cookie fragments as she read the fortune inside. "Danger looms...in your future."
"Wow," Sweetie Belle murmured. "An honest to goodness misfortune cookie. I didn't think they actually made those."
"Is bad omen," Uncle warned. "We must be very cautious."
Jackie chuckled. "You listen to a cookie?"
"Evening, Chan," the thin thug in the white jacket said as he stepped up behind Jackie.
"Never mock the cookie," Uncle chided.
As the man started to open his mouth, Sweetie Belle piped up. "Before we start wrecking the restaurant fighting each other, do you think we could introduce ourselves?" All eyes promptly turned to her. "What? Just because we're enemies is no reason not to be polite. And they already know your name, Uncle Jackie."
"She's got a point," the other tall thug, wearing a black jacket with a bandaid on his nose, offered, a bit of friendliness in his voice. "I'm Ratso." He gestured first to the one who'd spoken first, and then to his shorter companion who was wearing sharply angled orange glasses. "This is Fin and Chao. Pleased to meetcha."
"I'm Sweetie Belle!" Sweetie Belle replied. "This is Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Jade, Uncle Jackie, and Uncle!" She then gestured to Audrey. "This is Audrey III."
"Hello hello, how are you?" Audrey III sang out. "Hello hello, how have you been-"
Uncle promptly stuffed some noodles in Audrey's bulbous mouth/head. "No more songs!"
"...that is so cool," Ratso gasped out.
"Yeah, whatever," Fin interrupted, trying to regain control of the situation. "Now where's the Talisman?"
"Uhh..." Jackie began, unsure what to say as he glanced around, taking in the scene.
At a signal from Fin, Ratso grabbed the front of Jackie's shirt and pulled back his fist.
Sweetie Belle sighed softly. "So much for dinner..."
Stats
Page generated in 0.047 seconds
Total duration
749 users online
962,818 hits today, 2,004,447 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Chapter Twenty Four:
"Aiyah!"
Chapter Count: 0
Total Count: 19
"One More Thing!"
Chapter Count: 0
Total Count: 42
That poor restaurant... Well, at least <Insert Favored Dining Establishment Here> doesn't have to put up with this violence nonsense!
You may now insert prior PWNY ponies into humorous situations. Please. We all could use more laughter!
Welp, at least Jade didn't eat the talisman this time
Ratso is pretty cool for a henchman. too.
Also, Uncle's best line
It's about this point Jackie should realize the talisman is not where it should be, and I can't help wonder why that was mentioned in passing.
This is the type of chaos I was talking about. Go Jackie! Also I love the CMC and Audrey's replies to Jackie about the talismans being real. Now if you'll excuse me I am going to enjoy butt kicking Jackie is about to give to the Enforcers. *Excitedly munches on food*
7353203
See this comment.7353214
Heh. I guess he did have too. Much exposure to the pendants.
I'm going to love Audrey III, aren't I?
Also, 1:06
7353277
Calling it now, Audrey III is holding it for Uncle!
.... I'm thinking Scootaloo ate the talisman. It would make sense and keep with how Jade ate it in the show by accident.
Audrey III a best.
Did we ever get a physical description of Audrey III? Because I'm getting a distinct Petey Piranha (only smarter) vibe from this guy.
7353267
...seriously, someone needs to make those.
7353612
He was dubbed Audrey III due to resemblance to Audrey II from "Little Shop of Horrors".
screeninsults.com/images/the-little-shop-of-horrors-giant.jpg
So, that, but smaller and in the JCA drawing style.
7353616
...and you probably didn't want to draw from the same well twice, I'm guessing. Fluttershy already has a chain chomp, after all.
Another enjoyable chapter. Good job.
7353639
Actually, it's because I was specifically referencing the movie when I had that happen, and hadn't initially planned Audrey III to become a permanent cast member.
Well you never can tell how these things are going to turn out.
Maybe Scootaloo ate the talisman this time?
Also, yay for naming the Enforcers immediately! It took forever for them to get names in-show.
Least when Cumulo wants a taste Scootaloo helps by going in... face first.
Guess Apple Bloom still can't... shake off her natural overflowing magic just yet.
Well Jackie, that's how the cookie crumbles.
If Jackie still doesn't believe in magic then we'd better let the CMC become their local myth busters. Itd be awesome and adorable to see that happening.
I was wondering who'd fill in for the 'maternal figure' role.
I did not expect... The Mean Green Mother From Outer Space.
(Well, obviously not from outer space since she's made with Applebloom's magic, but still...)
7353616
Nitpick time, because I can't let that pass without nitpicking:
Audrey II was the space plant. Audrey was the girl Seymour was in love with, who he named Audrey II after.
Lol. Reminds me of that one Fortune cookie that insulted me. Told me "Someone MIGHT benefit from an Act of Kindness I've Yet to commit."
Audrey 3... Just Audrey 3....
7353970 ....I'm awed and terrified at the same time
7353857 Papyrus: NYEEEEEEEEEEEEH SANS!
i.ytimg.com/vi/OIdY4AFKvHA/hqdefault.jpg
7353277 Oversight was never really my friend in life...
7353857
Not to mention it would be adorably destructive. I can just hear the phrase "Scoots wants big boom!"
Meh, when I hear carnivorous plants the first thing that pops into mind is the giant Piranha Plants from Mario. I'm honestly waiting for Apple Bloom to see the games and start growing them as needed. Very nice chapter... though I have to wonder if the Crusaders will be a calming influence on Jade, at least Sweetie and Apple Bloom.
I loved the interaction with the Enforcers, I can't wait to see future encounters with them.
7353644 You should have known better Tats, we love characters like this who can have a good running gag.
I always liked Ratso the most....
Oh my fucking god... (Actually I still have Geoffrey lying around somewhere, can't believe someone else remembers him)
*Jump.
cdn.meme.am/instances/500x/22695213.jpg
*Stares intently at Sweetie Bell*
...
Ok, what is she planning? I know she's up to something.
You know it could be possible that Sweetie Belle or Applebloom ate the talisman instead of Scootaloo or Jade since we initially think it would be either one of them.
7354796 I agree.
7353857 If the CMC can't get YouTube famous at least Applebloom can succeed in Vine.
Audrey III will never outgrow Toys R Us... but is it too old for PBS:Kids or Sprout?
Jade is like a bull in a china cabinet! Hopefully, she's more light on her feet next chapter.
I'm glad Finn isn't a buttface in this chapter! (JCA fans would understand.)
...you took the good ones. Now THAT'S how the cookie crumbles. Late puns seem to be my... misfortune.
Randomly, I feel like this clip should be referenced at some point... at the very least, the last costume switch.
"Never mock the cookie" - I've always liked that line when Uncle says it. The delivery adds to the overall atmosphere that happens after the Enforcers come in and make their demands. Also, I'm glad you retained Ratso's love of anything that fascinates him.
I totally believe it really exists!
7659681 "Bad luck and extreme misfortune will infest your pathetic soul for all eternity."
cdn.meme.am/images/1291172.jpg
The wise words of Uncle.
7353699
QFT (Quoted For Truth).
I believe Tolkien once wrote in a letter something very vaguely along the lines of: "I have introduced a character named Strider. I think I will be killing him off in the next chapter."
Wait, did she seriously just...
Dammit Scootaloo! Just because you have wings doesn’t mean you have to act like a mother bird!
8750636
No you'vegot it all wrong! She used Cumulo as a napkin.
Yeah weird is normal now.
7354467
Seconded!
I like the automatic (and overly helpful) chopsticks. Making nearby wooden objects sprout is a hilarious power.
7353167
forgot to mention the
bad day
7353167
forgot to mention the
bad day