Twinkle/TOCP's Thirty Minute Ponies Stories

by Twinkletail

Prompt #19: Taking Charge

Prompt: One of the pets is gone.

At first, it seemed like a typical pony pet playdate. Maybe it was because they were all used to this being how it was for a while. It was only the five of them for the longest time, so it was no major surprise that nothing seemed out of the ordinary at first. However, it only took a few minutes before they began to wonder just where their newest little friend was. Rainbow would have normally arrived with him by this point, but Tank was nowhere to be found.

Angel was the first to notice. He'd often boss the turtle...tortoise...around, lying down on his shell and expecting a ride. The rides were slow and uneventful, but it was one of his favorite things to do, and he felt nice and important when he was able to demand things from Tank like that. So when it got to the point where he was sick of using his own paws to get around, the distinct lack of Tank was an issue that was pushed to the forefront of his attention. Angel frowned. He hoped that nothing bad had happened to Tank. He quickly justified this into his usual "I am most important" thought pattern by convincing himself that he simply missed his ride and nothing more. Either way, though, Tank had to be found.

Angel gathered the others together. It was a tougher feat than he'd expected. Owloysious was the toughest to gain the attention of, as he was the only one that could fly. Opal and Winona were no easy feat either; Winona often spent a fair amount of time chasing Opal around, hoping to get some playtime with her. For some reason, though, Opal never took it quite the way that Winona intended, though. Most cats didn't take well to dogs running at them at full speed. Gummy was a completely different situation; it was difficult to get him to do ANYTHING sometimes. Angel thought quickly, grabbing a stick from the ground. This instantly garnered Winona's attention. He tossed the stick high into the air, near where Owloysious was flying. A quick wave to Opal, who was no longer distracted by a happily rampaging dog, was enough to get her over. And to make things easiest, he'd organized the meetup next to Gummy. That way, the alligator didn't even have to move.

Angel looked at his ragtag team. It would be hard to get them to work together, but darn it, he had to try if he wanted to see his good friend...erm, his occasional method of transport...Tank ever again. The bunny waved to the group before getting on all fours and walking forward very slowly. Owloysious caught on quickly; he was a very wise owl. The rest of the group slowly caught on as well, and noticed that their playmate was indeed missing. Angel pointed to each of the others and saluted. No words were needed (thankfully, as Angel could speak no words). The five animals nodded simultaneously. They had to find Tank.

Angel pointed to Winona and Opal. The dog and cat stood at attention as Angel pointed them in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres. The two looked at each other. They did not particularly wish to team up, but in a situation like this, where the safety of a friend was at stake, they had to put aside their differences. They ran off towards the farm.

Angel then pointed to Owloysious and Gummy. They were to be the air team, heading in a straight line from the park to Sugarcube Corner and searching for any signs of Tank. Owloysious picked Gummy up in his talons, and the two took off as well.

Angel smiled. He was a natural born leader. The bunny closed his eyes and crossed his forelegs, waiting for his ride to carry him off towards Fluttershy's cottage. When he remembered that his chariot was MIA, he sighed lightly and ran off on his own.

One by one, each pony realized that their pets were running off. After a moment of initial confusion between the friends, they each took off after their own pets, calling out for them. None of the pets looked back; this mission was too important to be slowed down by their owners. If they got a hold of them, they would surely be brought back to the park, and none of them could afford that right now.

Winona ran towards Sweet Apple Acres, using her keen sense of smell to try and track down the missing tortoise. Tank had a very distinct scent; she could pick it up from a fair distance. However, it didn't take her long before realizing that Tank had not been anywhere near Sweet Apple Acres any time recently. She was also slowed down somewhat by Opal, who had insisted on resting on her back. The spoiled cat was not used to so much manual labor, and it only took a tiny bit of running before she'd opted to ride her usual rival. Winona really didn't mind too much; she liked the kitty, despite how she'd always run away from her. It was playing in a way, after all. The two eventually had to admit defeat, though; Tank had not been anywhere near here. It was only a moment later that Applejack and Rarity caught up with their pets and gathered them up, bringing them back towards the park.

Owloysious and Gummy did their best to scan the path between the park and Sugarcube Corner. Owls had very good eyesight, and Owloysious was no exception. Gummy provided whatever help he could by snapping his jaw in a direction whenever he saw something that he thought could be Tank. Try as they might, though, the two just couldn't find the missing tortoise. After reaching Sugarcube Corner with no sight of Tank, the two touched down on the ground, as a worried Twilight and Pinkie met up with them. Their search had proved fruitless.

Angel looked left. Angel looked right. Angel looked everywhere, trying to find his frie-...transport. His paws were getting tired; he had gotten so used to rides from Tank that he was no longer used to really running this much. Still, he persevered. He would do it for Tank's sake. He couldn't stand to think of the poor tortoise being hurt or in any manner of danger. Luckily, his worries were relieved, as he ran smack into the shell of his big, slow friend. Angel beamed and hugged Tank tightly, before realizing what he was doing and letting go, giving a cool nod to the tortoise. Tank smiled slowly. Angel's concern for him was their secret.

---TIME LIMIT---

Fluttershy panted as she finally caught up to Angel. The little guy really was a hoof-ful. She caught the very end of Angel hugging Tank, and almost awwwwed, but decided to hold it in and pretend that she hadn't seen it. She knew how much pride Angel took in his toughness. Fluttershy caught her breath, then smiled to Rainbow Dash, who had also witnessed the scene.

"Oh...um, hello, Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy said. "We were wondering why you weren't at the park already for our pony pet playdate."

"Oh, I decided to let Tank go at his own pace today," Dash said with a groan. "Maaaaaajor mistake. I am soooo bored." Fluttershy smiled warmly at Dash.

"That's very sweet of you, Rainbow Dash," the yellow pegasus said. "I never knew you could be so considerate." Rainbow rolled her eyes and tried to play it cool.

"Uh, yeah, whatever," Dash said. "So, do you wanna walk back to the park with me?" Fluttershy smiled and nodded, and the two resumed Rainbow's previous leisurely stroll. Angel had climbed into his usual position on Tank's shell. He tried acting like he usually did, pointing insistently forward as if to demand Tank to do what he wanted. Tank just plodded along, a smile on his face.

Comments

[Makokam]

"-Time Limit-"
...that's new. I never really gave any thought to how tough these would be to complete in a half hour. Guess the clock beat you this time.

But this a fun little tale. The thing I liked the most was that I didn't realise this was from the pets perspective, so of course that was a fun surprise. I think Angel's ...thing with Tank didn't come off as well as it could have though, since this didn't really give you the opportunity to build that up. It was still cute to have him hug Tank when he finally found him though.

[FLUTTERPIEROXS]

903277 These are so dificult i tried one once myself it was a special 50 min. one and i still went over. It wasnt even close to this par (never got to submit it the box was closed when i got there.)

[Focusphobia]

What followed the --TIME LIMIT-- made this-
...
...
20% COOLER!!! And some D'awww for good measure.