The Magnificent Six

by Paradise Oasis

First Lesson- Making Plans

"Okay, Lightning, you need to break it up," Tornado snorted in annoyance. "I think you've proven your superior strength to Thundercloud enough for one day!"

The four mountain boy ponies- Thundercloud, Fireball, Lightning, and Tornado- were in their room in the stallion/colt guest quarters at Hoofkaido. The Pegasus and the earth pony had spent the last hour hoof wrestling, with Fireball switching between cheering for one or the other. Tornado, meanwhile, was busy trying to study a book he had borrowed from the shogun's library... and trying to ignore the ruckus the other three were making.

"Aw, c'mon Tornado! Just one more round," Thundercloud pleaded. "I don't care if he's an earth pony, I know I can prove I'm the strongest for sure."

"If six out of seven losses didn't discredit that hypothesis, I might concede your reasoning was sound." Tornado looked up from his book. "But all you're doing at this rate, Thundercloud, is wearing yourself out."

"Yeah! He's right, Thunderbutt. You’re wasting your time." Lightning struck a victory pose. "There ain't no doubt that I'm the strongest mountain boy pony that there's ever been!"

"Only because of the unfair advantage bein' an earth pony gives you," Fireball noted. "Rather unfair, but still an effective strategy."

"It's all about strategies and planning with you, isn’t it, Fireball?" Lightning grumbled, trotting over towards the bed where the unicorn lay, watching them. "You'll make a great general in some pony army, someday... but that's about all you'll be good for."

"Yeah... just like this bookworm over here!" Thundercloud snorted, pointing a hoof at Tornado. "He's had his nose stuck in a book his whole life. I doubt he'll ever be useful as anything but a librarian."

"Ah, so we should have more passion and spirit, like you and Lightning over there?" Tornado looked up at them, levitating his reading glasses off. "Such as when you tried to sneak into that geisha mare's private quarters downstairs yesterday evening?"

"Or just this evening, when Lightning here had one too many hard ciders at the festival, and got into an argument with that samurai stallion?" Fireball replied calmly. "We would've been confined to quarters for the rest of our stay here, had Tornado not smooth-talked us out of trouble yet again!"

"Hey, I’m not *hic* inebriated," Lightning protested. "I just had a little disagreement with that samurai is all."

The two colts scowled at their friends, even though they knew Tornado and Fireball were right. If they were nothing else, this little gang called the Mountain Boy Ponies were troublemakers of the highest caliber. Numbering six total with Ice Crystal and Sunburst, their two friends back home, these six delinquents had been causing trouble around Misty Mountain ever since they were foals.

"Can't this group ever act civilized?" a frustrated Fireball whinnied. "Remember when that visiting foal, Baby Lucky, found us on top of Misty Mountain, and you two convinced him we were all deities?"

"Oh yeah!" Thundercloud recalled with a smile. "We had him believing Lightning could actually teleport around like a unicorn!"

"The poor kid was actually going to sacrifice his pet dog to us, until Fireball set him straight!" Lightning burst out laughing.

"Honestly, what is wrong with the two of you?" Tornado snorted. "Can't you take anything seriously?"

"As serious as Fireball here, letting Princess Cadance's chariot get stolen!" Lightning retorted, glaring at the unicorn.

"Yeah! He was the one that started on how we should help you get with that 'Twilight' filly!" Thundercloud blurted out, earning him a glare from Fireball. "What? That's what we were talking about!"

"You were talking behind my back, about getting me a date with her?" Tornado whinnied, annoyed. "What, don't you think I could get her attention on my own? Well, if I wanted to, that is."

"Tornado, my friend... let's face it, you're not exactly a prime catch for a young filly," Fireball advised him. "She's nineteen, and you’re... what, thirty? If you want to win this filly's heart, you're going to need a strategy!"

"I... suppose you're right about that." Tornado shook his mane sadly. "What was I thinking, hoping a plain stallion like me could catch her attention?"

"Now, that's not what he meant at all, Tornado," Lightning snorted. "Ya just have ta step up yer game."

"Yeah, ya just have to know how to approach her!" Thundercloud replied, putting a hoof around Tornado's shoulders. "Trust me, my friend... listen to us, and she'll be putty in your hooves!"

Before Tornado could even reply, Starglow, Snowflake, and four of the fillies suddenly came galloping into the room. They had looks of utter panic on their faces, and the boys knew immediately something was amiss.

"Boys!" Starglow exclaimed. "Boys, we’ve got a major problem here!"

"What's wrong?" Fireball exclaimed, suddenly at Glory's side. "Glory, what happened?"

"Oh! It was simply awful," the unicorn exclaimed. "A ninja attacked us in our room and tried to kill me!"

"What?! Are you alright?" Lightning was at Applejack's side in an instant. "Were any of you hurt?"

"I'm fine, Lightning," a shaken, but calm, AJ replied. "Thank you for your concern."

"We're all right, AJ and I were too tough for 'em!" Firefly exclaimed, trotting up beside Thundercloud, a smirk on her face. "And now we're here to protect you, in case they decide to go after the weaker pony gender!"

"You certainly are a feisty one, aren't you?" The pegasus colt replied, smiling back.

"Not now, you two!" Tornado hissed. "Snowflake, where's Twilight?"

"She and Surprise went to get some answers," Starglow replied, comforting a still-shaking and silent Posey.

"She went to the Shogun's throne room, to use her enchanted mirror," Snowflake continued, "To speak to her old teacher, the Moochick."

"The gnome wizard from Dream Valley? The one who advises their queen?" Tornado asked. "Boy, she really did have the very best magical education!"

....

"Here is the mirror, Twilight," Surprise whispered as the two fillies snuck into the main chamber. "You’d better hurry and use it, before the next guard comes in on his patrol!"

"Thank you, Surprise." Twilight Shine nodded, and trotted up to the mirror. Lowering her horn, the filly touched the mirror, causing the surface to ripple like a disturbed pool of water. It was mere moments before the image of an old gnome with white hair appeared⚊ leaning on his cane, and dressed all in green.

"Ohhhh, mymymy! Twilight Shine! It certainly is a surprise to hear from you at such a late, late hour," the Moochick exclaimed, stroking his long white beard. "I had heard you were away at Hoofkaido on a mission for Princess Cadance. Is something amiss?"

"Boy is it ever!" Twilight told her tutor. "You wouldn't believe what happened to us since I got here."

As Twilight proceeded to tell her story to the Moochick, Surprise couldn't help but be amazed at the sight of the diminutive spellcaster in the mirror. She had heard stories of the helpful little mage of Dream Valley, who lived in a house amongst tree-sized mushrooms, and helped every pony who came to him with a problem. Who was this strange humanoid, who commanded such respect amongst ponykind, that he might as well have been an alicorn? It was only as Twilight finished recounting events that the Moochick's voice snapped Surprise back to reality.

"So Cadance has recruited the six of you to be the new Harmony Bearers, eh?" the Moochick replied. "Capital idea, my dear! You and your friends may just be what Ponyland needs!"

"But Mr. Moochick!" Twilight whinnied in frustration, pulling his scattered brains back on topic. "What about the situation with our attacker?"

"Well, it seems somebody amongst the shogun’s court has an agenda," the old wizard replied. "And if Firefly is correct about that shuriken, I'd say our culprit has help from the other side as well."

"Conspirators on both sides who don't want a peace settlement," the pink unicorn exclaimed. "Of course! It all makes sense now!"

"And what better way to ignite a conflict with Hoofkaido than to kill its harmony-bearing saint's descendant with an elven shuriken, placing the blame on them?" the Moochick noted. "But if that's the case, then you and your friends should be especially careful until you find out who's responsible."

"Thank you, mister Moochick!" She bowed to her teacher respectfully. "And don't you worry, I’ll be careful, I promise!"

The Moochick nodded, and the mirror rippled back to normal. As Twilight trotted back towards the door, she motioned for Surprise to follow her out.

"Gee, what the Moochick said sounds awful," Surprise whispered to Twilight. "Who could be so mean in Hoofkaido that they'd want us to go to war with the elves?"

"I've been thinking about that," Twilight whispered back. "Remember how suspicious the duke and the shogun acted at the festival earlier this evening?"

"Twilight, you... you don’t think the shogun's involved, do you?!" the white pegasus asked in shock. "Why would she betray her own subjects?"

"I can't believe I just managed to surprise Surprise!" Twilight gave a soft chuckle. "Now come on, we need to go back and get the others, then inform Princess Cadance about what's going on."

The two ponies trotted back towards their room, totally unaware that another pony was watching them from the shadows.

...

"Are you certain of this, Twilight Shine?" Cadance asked incredulously. "This is a very serious accusation you are making!"

After Twilight and Surprise returned to the room, the small group of ponies had hurried to Princess Cadance's room, who was oddly still awake this late. After dismissing her guards, the alicorn princess let them in to hear what her little prodigies had to say.

"Doesn't really seem that far-fetched ta me!" Firefly snorted, as Thundercloud continued to groom her mane. "I thought there was something shifty about that Dancing Butterflies, right from the start!"

"Your Highness, this is incredible!" Snowflake replied, looking over the six fillies. "When I invited you and the six Harmony Bearers here to help solve this dispute, I had no idea this thing would spin this wildly out of control."

"And even if she is guilty, we can't accuse our Shogun without proof," Starglow pointed out.

"But wait," Thundercloud asked. “how can we get that proof?”

"We're going to need a plan..." Fireball added.

"I don't wanna plan, I don't want evidence," Posey shrieked, hiding her face in her tail. "I just wanna go home!"

"Posey! Pull yourself together!" AJ snorted at her. "You're almost a grown mare, and you need to act like it."

Shocked, the whimpering yellow filly fell silent, and only nodded towards Applejack.

"But as the matter still stands, we need proof," Tornado added thoughtfully, pacing the room. "And we are going to need to gather and present such evidence in a manner that suits Hoofkaido's formal, fashionable style."

"Formal and fashionable you say?" Glory's eyes lit up. "Surprise, darling... I know surprises and jokes are your thing... but would you be interested in helping me prepare a party?"

"A party? Sure, I'm kinda good at those," Surprise added. "But why do ya want to have a party at a time like this?"

"I think we should invite the Duke and the Shogun to a banquet, hosted by the up-and-coming Harmony Bearers of Generosity and Laughter; one to celebrate this new-found peace." A wan smile crossed the white unicorn's face. "A festive occasion that would allow both parties to give themselves away... and be caught red-hooved!"

"Ohhhh, a trick!" An evil grin spread across Surprise's face. "Tricks are something I'm really good at!"

As the two fillies continued to plot and plan, Cadance looked to Twilight. "I certainly hope you are right about this whole thing."

"Don't worry, Aunt Cadance," the pink filly replied confidently. "I am so certain in these matters, I'd stake my life on them!"

"That's good, Twiley," the alicorn replied nervously. "Because that is exactly what you might be doing."

Comments

[shutaro]

Calling Twilight Shine by the pet name Shining Armor used for his sister? Cadence isn't going senile, is she?

[StarshythePegasus]

<- -_- AJ u makin me confused. POSEY SRSLY?????

[Pinklestia]

1176676

I think she is just really, really nostalgic.

[Leave a Whisper]

Hmm I do enjoy a good intrigue

[Paradise Oasis]

8626861
Or maybe talking, intelligent, pastel colored ponies with wings and magic age differently, or don't have human culture and values. We're talking a species that can live thousands of years, such as with alicorns, I don't recall humans able to do that. In other fanfic, when Princess Celestia takes a mortal consort who's only a few decades old compared to her thousands of years old, nopony says anything. Baby ponies in G1 can talk and walk on their own in a few mere months. this story is set decades before my other stories, in those neither Tornado orTwilight have aged at all.

MLP ponies are a fantasy race, they aren't human; human ages and values don't apply here.