Chapter XI: Quality Time With Friends
The next morning, as promised, all of us went to Dickinson’s Candy Store after breakfast. On our way over, Pinkie could hardly keep in her excitement as she happily hopped up and down our whole way over there. Upon finally entering the store, her eyes widened with a ravenous gleam at the vast selection of candies the store contained.
“Wow!” she exclaimed. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much candy in one place before!”
“You can say that again, Sugarcube,” AJ agreed.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much candy in one place before!”
The rest of us chuckled at Pinkie’s parroted remark before we were approached by one of the employees.
“Hello,” she greeted, pleasantly. “Is this your first time here?”
“Me ‘n ma wife have been here before,” I began, “but this is tha first time fer our friends here.”
“O.K. Well, just to let you guys know, you’re more than welcome to try a sample of our taffy and fudge.”
“Thanks for that heads-up,” Rainbow remarked.
“You’re welcome. If you need anything else, just let one of us know.”
“We appreciate that very much, darling,” Rarity replied.
“Remember, Polly,” Savannah directed towards Pinkie, “that’s a sample of taffy and fudge.”
“O.K.,” Pinkie replied with slight disappointment.
The employee then left us with a smile to continue her work before I turned to our friends.
“Jus so that ya guys know, some o’ tha candy here already has prices listed on ‘em, but others, like what ya find in tha plastic containers, their price is determined by pounds. They even have scales that ya can fill up a bag with ‘n have it measured how much it costs based on weight.”
“Good to know,” Twilight commented.
“Now go help yourselves to however much you can afford,” Savannah stated with a smile.
“Thanks again you guys!” Pinkie beamed.
And so, our friends quickly went off to see what candies caught their eyes. With Ariel on her hip, Savannah followed close behind the girls to check out the other candies while I made my way over to the fudge stand. Fudge had always been kind of an iffy area for me as any fudge that was chocolate based had the very high possibility of being cross contaminated with nuts so, often times, I was limited to only purchasing Cookies And Cream Fudge.
But the previous year, Dickinson’s had released a new flavor of fudge that wasn’t chocolate based: Key Lime. Being the big time citrus lover that I am, I looked forward to every opportunity that I had to buy it and today was no exception as I’d had to go without it for the past several months during the off-season. Reaching the fudge stand, I was quick to speak up to the man behind the counter.
“Could Ah please get 2 pounds of yer Key Lime Fudge?”
“Sure thing,” he answered as he went to box up my purchase.
Upon receiving the package and thanking him for his services, I went to join the others. Pinkie was loading up her bag with all the taffy, jelly beans, gummy candies, and anything else that she could fit in it. The others were filling up their bags as well as grabbing some of the other candy that already had prices on them like Nerds, Pixie Stix, and candy bars.
Joining them, I grabbed a few packs of Mallow Cups. Mallow Cups are similar to Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups except that they have marshmallow in the center rather than peanut butter. They’d been a favorite of mine for a while as I’d often get them whenever my dad took me to one of the local convenience stores back home when I was much younger. Grabbing a few Giant Blue Pixie Stix and filling up a bag with gummy candies, I turned my attention over to the girls.
“You guys jus’ ‘bout ready ta checkout?”
“I am,” Fluttershy spoke up, holding her bag of about a pound or so of assorted candies.
“So am I,” Twilight stated.
“Ah’m ready if you are,” AJ affirmed. “Plus, Ah think it’s a good time fer us ta head out before Polly here gets too carried away candywise.”
“Tell me about it,” Rainbow laughed.
“Hey,” Pinkie protested, “I can stop anytime I want to… starting tomorrow.”
It was impossible for me not to crack a smile at Pinkie’s reply as we all made our way over to the checkout line with our purchases. Several minutes and a good chunk of money later, we were out of the store and on our way back home. On the way, I decided to bring up their show as we were almost caught up with it.
“You guys wanna watch some more o’ yer show when we get back? We only have ‘bout 34 more episodes ta go through as well as tha other 2 Equestria Girls movies.”
“I’m up for it, twin,” Rainbow replied.
“Me too,” AJ concurred.
“By my calculations,” Twilight started, “if there are 34 episodes left, each one about 20 minutes long, and you divide that by the number of minutes in an hour, we only have about 11 more hours of it to watch. Add to that the movies at a little over an hour each and it comes to about 13 ½ hours total. We might even be able to get them done before the day is up, leaving tomorrow wide open for whatever we feel like before going to New York the day afterwards.”
“Precisely what Ah was thinkin,” I answered.
“I’ve gotta say that it’s been an absolute joy having you guys here these past few weeks,” Savannah proclaimed.
“Anything for our friends, darling,” Rarity began, “and we’ve had an incredible time with you guys, getting to learn more about your culture and the like.”
“It was our pleasure,” I smiled as we continued our walk home simply enjoying these final few moments with each other, never expecting how it would all fall apart sooner than we would’ve thought.
* * * * * * * *
Several hours later, we’d made our way through more of the show as well as the Friendship Games movie, stopping for a bit after the “Hearth’s Warming Tail” episode. During our time of watching the show, we’d been snacking on the candy we’d purchased from Dickinson’s; Pinkie had eaten about ¾ of her bag within that period. Deciding that we needed something more substantial than just candy, I went ahead and made a late lunch for us consisting of cheeseburgers and crinkle cut fries while Ariel ate Cheerios in her highchair.
It had been about a month since the girls had last eaten anything with meat so I figured that this wouldn’t be too much of a problem for them as our time together was winding down. As we enjoyed our meal together, we discussed some of the episodes that we’d just watched.
“So how’re you guys enjoying your show thus far?” Savannah questioned.
“I really enjoyed the season premiere with my niece, Flurry Heart,” Twilight replied.
“I thought the episode with Spike taking part in that dragon competition was pretty cool,” Rainbow stated after swallowing a mouthful of cheeseburger.
“One o’ ma personal favorites outta tha ones we jus’ saw was tha one with ma friend RaRa,” AJ answered back. “How bout you guys?”
“Well,” I began, “one o’ ma favorites would hafta be tha Hearth’s Warmin’ Eve one with Twilight tellin’ that story ta Starlight Glimmer. It actually reminds me of another story centerin’ ‘round Christmas, our world’s version of Hearth’s Warmin’.”
“What story is that?” Fluttershy asked.
“It’s a story called ‘A Christmas Carol’, a story written almos’ 2 centuries ago that has gone through many different retellin’s ‘n adaptations over tha years. Tha main character was a man named Ebenezer Scrooge who had a hatred fer Christmas ‘n cared much more fer money than anythin’ else ‘til one night he was led by 3 spirits through Christmases Past, Present, ‘n Yet Ta Come.
“Somethin’ that Ah found particularly interestin’ is how both that story ‘n tha Hearth’s Warmin’ story Twi told Starlight both have a real dark side to ‘em in regards to what’s presented to tha main characters by tha spirits of tha future.”
“Oh? How’s that?” Twi puzzled.
“Well, in tha case of Ebenezer Scrooge, tha Ghost O’ Christmases Yet Ta Come shows him a future in which he’s responsible fer tha death of a little boy, tha son of his overworked ‘n underpaid clerk, Bob Cratchit, as well as tha fact that, when Scrooge himself dies, no one even gives a shit. No one mourns his passin’ ‘n even some people who were deeply indebted ta him were actually glad he died.
“As fer Snowfall Frost, tha Spirit O’ Hearth’s Warmin’s Yet Ta Come revealed ta her that, if she were ta go through with tha spell she was makin’ in order ta erase tha holiday entirely, all of Equestria would be doomed. There’d be no love in pony’s hearts allowin’ fer tha Windigos ta return, turnin’ Equestria into a frozen wasteland.”
“Oh my!” Fluttershy remarked. “Those are much darker circumstances.”
“That they definitely are,” Rarity agreed.
“Something that I found interesting and kinda funny was how Twilight actually managed to pull off Pinkie Pie’s voice in that one scene with the song she was singing,” Savannah added.
Twilight blushed a little before replying.
“I think that a huge part of that was just the fact that, as I was reading the story, I couldn’t help but notice similarities between the characters in the story and the other ponies I knew.”
“Do you know if you could do it again?”
“And the reason is to be with your friends,” Twilight answered, quoting the line from the episode while sounding exactly like Pinkie Pie in that moment.
I couldn’t help but giggle a little at her response while also being amazed at how she’d actually managed to pull that off.
“Wow. That was impressive, Twilight,” Pinkie commented.
“Mhmm,” I concurred.
It was in that moment that Ariel let out an easily noticeable yawn.
“Looks like someone’s ready for a nap,” Savannah chimed in while picking her up out of her highchair. “I’ll get her ready for bed.”
“You do that ma love,” I replied as she went into our room before I turned to our friends. “So do ya guys feel up fer watchin’ more of yer show?”
“Uh huh,” Fluttershy answered softly.
“Sounds good ta me,” AJ added.
“Definitely!” Rainbow exclaimed.
And so, with plates polished off and put in the dishwasher, we settled back in the living room to continue through their show, determined to make it through before the day was up.
* * * * * * * *
By the end of the day, we’d completely made it through the girls’ entire show; Ariel woke up as we were watching Stranger Than Fan Fiction and we paused for bowls of cheesy potato soup after Viva Las Pegasus. At the time, we were just finishing up the Legend Of Everfree movie and the girls seemed very intently focused on it all the way to the end. Having finally made our way through their entire show and the Equestria Girls movies, it felt like a major accomplishment that I was glad to have been able to share with them.
“So what’d you guys think?” Savannah asked as Legend Of Everfree finished.
“I almost can’t believe we actually made it all the way through them,” Rainbow remarked.
“I know right?” Twilight agreed. “All 143 episodes and 4 movies.”
“It seems like soo much time and yet hardly any time at all,” Fluttershy stated.
“Quite right,” Rarity concurred.
“It’s incredible how time flies by soo fast,” Pinkie piped up.
“Something I’ve gotta say, though,” Twilight began, “is that I feel really sorry for human Flash Sentry in that alternate world. The way that he crushes on that world’s Twilight thinking she’s me only for her to turn him down.”
“Yup,” I commented. “Ah can definitely see that. Ah felt pretty sorry fer him too.”
“I remember once hearing someone compare human Flash Sentry’s situation to meeting a girl and falling in love with her all while she loves you back, but she ends up dying in a tragic accident then you find out that girl has an identical twin sister who, because she looks soo much like the other girl, you end up falling for her only for her to not reciprocate those affections and fall for another guy,” Savannah mentioned.
“Ah’m purdy sure that’s an accurate description,” AJ answered, “even though Twi ain’t really dead. She’s just livin’ in Equestria.”
“Considering how far away both worlds are from each other, it probably feels like she is to him,” Fluttershy added, sadly.
“I wonder,” Savannah began, clearly trying to change the subject, “if me or David would ever get the opportunity to go to that world?”
“I dunno. Maybe?” Twilight replied.
“We can prob’ly talk ‘bout that another time,” I started, “but fer now, Ah think Ah’m jus’ ‘bout ready ta call it a night.”
“You read my mind,” Rarity remarked, stretching as she rose to her feet.
Ariel started rubbing her eyes as Savannah picked her up before speaking.
“I think all of us could use some rest. Tomorrow’s a new day with plenty of possibilities.”
“See you guys in the morning,” Fluttershy yawned.
And with that, we all retired to our respective rooms. As Savannah got Ariel settled in for the night and then joined me in bed, we fell into deep, restful sleep, looking forward to all that tomorrow had in store for us.
* * * * * * * *
The next morning, we sat around the breakfast table eating bowls of cereal while discussing what our plans were for that day.
“So do you girls have any ideas fer today?” I questioned.
“Personally,” Twi started, “I was hoping to finish up that Chronicles Of Narnia series. All I have left to read is The Last Battle and I’d like to have it done before tomorrow. I’m sure that we’ll have soo much going on with both musicals that there won’t be much time for anything else.”
“Knowing how large New York City is and all there is to do there, that sounds like a pretty accurate description,” Savannah concurred.
“Especially if it’s anything like Manehattan back home,” Rarity added.
“Oh Ah have no doubt that you’ll find it ta be pretty similar size-wise,” I stated. “It is a big city ‘n easy fer one ta get lost in if they’re not familiar with tha area. Fortunately, Ah still have a map o’ tha city from when Ah was last there almos’ 3 years ago that Ah’ve memorized quite well.”
“That’s good to know,” Fluttershy spoke up.
“Hey, twin, were you planning on getting any writing done today?” Rainbow asked. “I just realized that it’s been awhile since we’ve last seen you do that.”
“Ya know, that’s not a bad idea, Dashie,” I replied. “Ah might jus’ do that after breakfast. Any o’ you girls feel like joinin’ me?”
“I suppose it might be interesting to check out,” Rarity answered, “especially as this could be the last time any of us get to experience that.”
“I’m in!” Dash exclaimed.
“I’d like to participate,” Flutters stated, softly.
“Thanks fer askin’, Sugarcube,” AJ began, “but Ah think Ah’ll help Savannah with takin’ care of Ariel.”
“Me too,” Pinkie followed up.
“How bout you, Twi?” I questioned.
“I’m good, thanks,” she replied. “I’ll just spend my time reading The Last Battle.”
“K.”
And so, we finished off our cereal bowls before putting them away in the dishwasher and going off to our own respective corners of the house. I carried 3 of the kitchen chairs into my office to provide seating for Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash while I did my writing. Once I got settled in, I pulled out several bottles of Coke, one for me and three for my friends, before speaking up.
“Soda?”
“Yes please,” Fluttershy gratefully accepted.
“Sure! Thanks, twin!” Rainbow replied enthusiastically.
“Thank you, darling,” Rarity answered with a smile. “That was very considerate of you.”
I smiled softly back before starting my playlist up and jumping right into writing. This time around, I played some instrumental music by a duo known as Two Steps From Hell. I can’t remember how I first came across them except that one of their songs, Heart Of Courage, I had heard plenty of times before I even knew it was by them, mostly in trailers.
In fact, the more I checked out their work, the more I began to realize all the songs they’d done that I’d previously heard in trailers. This then opened the floodgates for me to come across other similar groups such as Audiomachine and Immediate. I had soo many favorite songs by these groups that it was hard for me to choose just one. Some of those favorites being Heart Of Courage, Star Sky, and Remember Me by Two Steps From Hell, Ice Of Phoenix by Audiomachine, and Shield Of Faith by Immediate among others.
A couple of hours passed by pretty quickly as I was able to knock out a total of 7 pages in just one writing session. With that days worth of work completed, I closed my document.
“Well that was fast,” Rarity remarked.
“It sure feels that way, don’t it?” I replied. “How ‘bout we go check on tha others?”
“Sounds like a good idea to me,” Fluttershy commented.
And so we made our way back into the living room where Twilight appeared to be most of the way through The Last Battle while AJ and Pinkie were playing with Ariel on the floor as Savannah watched. Pinkie was the first to notice our presence there.
“Oh hey you guys. How’d the writing go?”
“It went great!” Rainbow remarked before I could speak. “David managed to knock out 7 whole pages just in this session alone!”
“Woo-wee. Sounds like ya got a good, full day o’ work in there,” AJ answered.
“That it does,” Savannah agreed.
“How’re ya enjoyin’ that book, Twi?” I directed towards the Princess Of Friendship.
“It’s very interesting to say the least,” she replied, eyes still focused on the pages. “I particularly like a lot of the symbolism and metaphors it contains, just like the other books.”
“Glad ta hear it. If you girls don’ mind, Ah’m gonna go shower.”
“You go do that, Davey,” Pinkie piped up.
Even then, I couldn’t help but smile every time she used that nickname for me. After grabbing some clothes from my room, I made my way to the bathroom where I grabbed a towel, undressed, got in the shower, and turned the steaming stream on. As I began bathing, nothing could’ve prepared me for what I would experience in a short while afterwards.
* * * * * * * *
Several minutes later, I’d finished with my shower and stepped out of it to dry off with my towel, the bathroom itself full of heat and steam. After drying myself off, I put on my clothes while gently wiping the condensation from my glasses before putting them on. I then ran a stick of Axe Dark Temptation deodorant along my armpits a few times and sprayed myself with some Nightmare Before Christmas Bone Daddy cologne I’d previously gotten from Hot Topic before grabbing a hairbrush and going to clear the mist off the mirror so I could actually see what I was doing.
As I wiped the moisture from the mirror, I noticed that the mirror was all blackness for some strange reason. While pondering why this could be, 2 glowing red eyes appeared within the blackness along with a wicked, jagged-toothed smile that I’d unfortunately become all too familiar with. I let out a yelp of fear as I fell backwards, nearly hitting my head on the hard tile floor in the process.
“Time’s up,” the shadowy figure spoke in its gravelly voice.
“Wh-wh-what’re y-you talkin’ ‘bout?” I asked nervously.
“You haven’t been listening to my warnings and now there’s no turning back. You and everyone you know and hold close are doomed.”
“What do you want from me?”
“I want you to pay for what you’ve done.”
“Which is what?” I demanded out of frustration.
“Have you really forgotten soo easily?” the figure mocked. “If you honestly can’t remember, you don’t deserve for me to explain it to you.”
“Explain what!?!”
In that moment the bathroom door opened to reveal Savannah on the other side.
“David? What’s going on? And why are you on the floor?” she asked with obvious concern in her voice.
Looking from her back to the mirror, I saw that the shadowy figure had vanished.
“Everythin’s fine,” I lied. “Ah jus’ slipped on tha floor.”
“Are you sure? Because I thought I heard you talking to someone in here.”
“Oh no no no. That was jus’ me thinkin’ out loud.”
“O.K. Well me and the girls were busy making sure that we’re ready for that trip to New York tomorrow and I was thinking we could watch the Back To The Future trilogy afterwards. Whenever you’re done in here, you can join us.”
“O.K. ma love.”
And with a smile, she turned around and walked away, leaving me to reflect on what had just transpired. What had just transpired anyways? This felt almost completely similar to those nightmares that I’d had weeks ago, except for the fact that apparently this was reality. I was awake and fully conscious, I’d seen the figure myself. There was no way that I could pass this off as just fantasy.
With that said, why had this bizarre occurrence happened now? Why was it taking place in the real world? Was I hallucinating? Was I losing my sanity? And what had I done that this figure wanted me to pay for? All these questions haunted me as I went to join the others, wishing more than anything else for answers in this time of fear and uncertainty.
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8753711
I just featured it in my story because it's a series I really enjoyed, but wasn't sure if anyone else would've known about it. Thanks for the comment too. 
Glad to meet a fellow enthusiast of The WaterFire Saga.
Two steps from Hell is AWESOME!!!! Audiomachine is Very Good. I LOVE Star Sky.
10430319
Damn right it's awesome