I Think It's Called Ponytown

by Lasairfion

Police State the Nature of the (Interdimensional) Emergency

A form 601A landed on Ma Chonglin's desk. This was a call to action. Undercover agents had traced a huge number of spurious toys back to a factory in Jiangsu Province. They had the location. There were even strange stories of a Bakery Playset purchased in stores being completely different when the buyer arrived at home. While it wasn't all that unusual for the contents of a box to be different to the picture on the front, it was very different when witnesses swore blind that although the picture and the item matched perfectly and the receipt codes were correct, it was not the same as the one that they had purchased in store.

Usually fanciful stories like this could be dismissed, but it was the factory's own packing staff, the delivery drivers and the store shelf-stackers who had corroborated this. Could there be some crack team of toy snatchers involved in some weird fraud case? It was time to send in an Audit Team. Mr Ma put on his cardigan, shined his sensible shoes and picked up the extremely slim and menacing briefcase.

---

Rainbow woke up in a guest bedroom at the Castle of Friendship. While the castle had umpteen rooms going spare what it didn't have were furnished ones. Beds were limited, so ponies had bunked up in traditional top and tail fashion. This explained why when Rainbow had woken up she was confused that she could still see stars. Luna's shimmering tail was wrapped around the smaller pony like a snuggly blanket. A blanket with its own nebulae and constellations.

Rainbow's own tail was caught in the Princess's grasp and extracting it would likely wake Luna, who was probably more exhausted than most ponies, since she had been up for the majority of the night doing her duties, as well as helping out with the Sock War during the day time. Rainbow burrowed her snout back into the cloud-soft shimmering wave of magical mane. The Queen of Naps could spare a few more minutes.

An hour later they were both up. Luna seemed a little embarrassed that she had very obviously overslept but Rainbow pointed out that no-pony would mind. Rainbow knew what self-doubt felt like and since breakfast was over, she decided that here was the perfect opportunity to help Luna feel more at ease.

"I'll make you something," she said quietly, "as long as you don't, like, tell anypony about it, okay? I gotta keep up my image you know." Luna smiled appreciatively, and Rainbow cooked up blueberry pancakes: they were surprisingly good.

---

At 6:00am the line of black Fengshen A60s pulled up outside the factory. Out stepped a group of grey-looking bespectacled bureaucrats with thin watch-straps and side-partings. They were led by an unassuming cardigan wearing man. Mr Xie, who owned a small workers café on the street corner, looked out the window and nearly wet himself.

---

After a morning meeting around the map table, the ponies all split up to instigate different sections of the plan. Starlight, Fluttershy and Rarity headed to the spa, Applejack and Pinkie Pie went to Pinkie's command centre in the bakery cellars, Rainbow and Luna went to visit Broken Record, and Twilight, Spike and Celestia waited at the castle for the arrival of the Emperor and Empress of the Crystalline Empire.

Rarity and Starlight entered the spa carrying a large container between them, followed behind by Fluttershy.
"It iz normally Vater Clover dot is bringink us our mud supply", pointed out Aloe who was staffing the reception desk.

"Ah no, darling", said Rarity. "You know how much Fluttershy and I value your services, and when Official Party Member Celestia insisted that the other... very important... government officials we have visiting the Castle today needed special treatment, I just had to recommend you. And since they always enjoy the latest in Canterlot innovations I couldn't resist in bringing you over the newest thing in spa therapy. Of course you simply must test this first yourselves."

Half an hour later, after Lotus Blossom had complimented Rarity on the new look, both Aloe and Lotus Blossom were in an empty mud bath. Starlight and Rarity heaved the container's opening to the edge and poured in the metallic looking goo, whilst channelling reinforcements for the stasis spells.

"It works best if you get yourself fully immersed", stated the white unicorn. The two spa ponies held their breath and dived under before breaching the surface with a splotch.
"It iz beink very tingly," said Lotus Blossom, just before both goo-soaked ponies fainted.
"Oh dear", murmered Fluttershy.
"Perhaps it's a tad too potent?" queried Starlight, holding the two spa ponies above the surface in her field.
"Maybe", conceded Rarity, "but we did aim for fast-acting." Starlight carried the two ponies over to massage tables and laid them out to rest.

A short while later, after the spa ponies had awakened, Rarity and Starlight explained the entire situation to the now flux-fixed pair. After somehow convincing Wholesale Muscles to 'test this new mud for us' they also got some muscle on board as Bulk Biceps joined in the plan to waylay and convert the incoming government officials. He also had special dispensation to forcibly detain Blueblood if necessary.

Meanwhile back at the Castle of Friendship, the Emperor and Empress had arrived. The pair (having left their heir in the capable hands of the royal nanny) walked briskly across the foyer towards Twilight and Celestia, eager to see their friends again.

Cadence grabbed Twilight; pulling her towards her with both forelegs as she sang

Ba luobo
Ba luobo
Hei yo hei yo ba luobo
Hei yo hei yo ba budong!
Lao taipo
Kuai kuai lai
Kuai lai bang women ba luobo!

Twilight who was about to break into a rendition of 'Ladybugs Awake' was momentarily confused, and then concerned as she hurriedly pointed out to Mi Amore Cadenza that changelings hadn't taken over again, but that the entire reason for her coming over at Celestia's request was proven by the fact that something had gone wrong. It took some explaining, but Celestia was good at that, and Twilight made great tea. Of course it took a lot more explaining before the regents of an entire Empire consented to being smothered in specially structured matrix-twisted glowing goo. It was a good job they were essentially family.

Rainbow and Luna got back late from visiting Vinyl Scratch. It turned out that a dubstep mud party was just way too much fun.

Author's Note:

'Pulling the (white) Radish' is a traditional children's nursery rhyme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnD1zHblo0Q

Each successive verse entreats another to come and join in helping them to pull out the impossible radish. The old lady (lao taipo) in the verse is replaced by a small girl (xiao guniang) and then a small kitten (xiaohua mao) and adding any others you like as you go on.

I love Supergran at the end of this one.

Comments

[FanOfMostEverything]

Ah, magical ooze. Is there anything it can't do?

Also, an unexpected amount of Dash-Luna bonding. I like it!

Now, there's just the matter of those ominous bureaucrats...

[Lasairfion]

8682195
Both Rainbow and Luna are quite driven, brash and loud on the outside, but quite conflicted and lacking in self-confidence on the inside. I'm surprised we don't see the two in a supportive friendship role more often.