A Cozy Tale

by Leondude

Chapter 23 - The Friendship Festival

It was a sunny day as Ribbon wandered around the courtyard where the Friendship Festival will take place, with her niece hovering right behind her. She could tell from the way Cozy was wobbling about that her wing hadn't entirely healed.

"Is your wing still sore?" Ribbon asked.

Cozy nodded.

"You can ride on my back if you like," Ribbon said.

"Thank you," Cozy said as she gently positioned herself on Ribbon's back.

As Ribbon continued to trot about, Cozy looked around the area. Despite her aunt picking out a dress for her mother, everypony around her wasn't even wearing a single piece of formal clothing. Maybe her mother and aunt just liked to look good regardless of the occasion. As she looked around, she saw a dark cloud in the sky.

"Auntie Ribbon?" Cozy asked as she pointed at the dark cloud, "What's that?"

As Ribbon looked up, an airship emerged from the dark cloud. Even though there was nothing to suggest such a thing, she knew the element bearers had something to do with this. Or at least their friend, Discord.

"It's nothing good, that's for sure," Ribbon replied.

The entire sky was covered in nothing but dark clouds as the airship made its descent. Curious as to what it was, even though she knew it was going to be another monster attack or something just as bad, Ribbon cautiously trotted closer towards the ship. At a safe enough distance, she saw a small grey hedgehog-looking thing exit the ship with a weird-looking loud-speaker.

"Ponies of Equestria," the small hedgehog thing announced, "We come on behalf of the fearsome, the powerful, the almighty...Storm King!"

A banner on the airship unfurled to reveal what both Cozy and Ribbon assumed to be the Storm King.

"And now," the hedgehog thing continued, "To deliver this evil, evil message, put your hooves together for Commander Tempest!"

From the airship stepped out a dark purple unicorn with a spiky dark red mane and tail and a broken horn. Despite the unicorn's rugged looks, Ribbon can't help but admire how good she looked in that armour.

"What's up with her horn?" Cozy asked.

"No idea but she does look good in that armour, don't you think?" Ribbon replied.

Cozy gave her aunt an odd look.

"What?" Ribbon said defensively, "I have an eye for fashion. Anyway, we better get out of here."

---

It was another day at the flea market as Facade wandered about with a suitcase full of used goods. Normally, he would sell golden watches and other high-priced valuables but recent events had drilled two things into his head. It wasn't smart to sell expensive items in a marketplace where ponies are looking for cheap hoof-me-downs and it was even less smart to bet an entire supply of golden watches in a poker game, even though Facade was drunk during that particular poker game and therefore couldn't be held accountable for the resulting loss.

"Still hangin' around the flea market?" a voice called out to him.

Facade turned around and saw a grey unicorn with a brown moustache. He knew the unicorn in front of him was one of his poker buddies but he couldn't quite remember what his name was.

"Hondooooo...Am I right?" Facade asked.

"Yep," Hondo replied, "Been a while since I've seen ya. Everything okay?"

"Couldn't be better," Facade replied.

"How's the wife?" Hondo asked.

"She's in the hospital," Facade casually replied, "An accident with some bookshelves, you see."

"Geez, sorry to hear that," Hondo said, "Anything I can do to help?"

"No need," Facade replied, "I already got hospital bills covered."

Hondo stroked his moustache, "Yeah, I'm not so sure about that. I heard you got in trouble with some loan sharks."

Facade chuckled, "No, that's just a rumour. The tabloids will say anything to tarnish my good image."

"I wouldn't go as far as to say you have a good image," Hondo pointed out, "A friend of mine saw you hangin' around the red light district at night. Even wrote a newspaper article about it."

"Pretty sure I sued that friend of yours for libel," Facade stated, "And I will tell you exactly what I told Buried Lede in court. I was just visiting the nightclub I used to work at and those mares that I allegedly 'solicited' were drunk and needed somepony to take them home."

Hondo nodded, "Good point. But what about that guy who wrote 'Please Kill Mr Facade'?"

"That guy was an idiot," Facade explained, "Besides, if I was as bad as ponies say I am, would I be friends with the mayor of Manehatten?"

Facade put down his suitcase and opened it before showing Hondo a picture of him and the mayor.

"I helped fund her campaign," Facade bragged, "If anypony could vouch for me, it would be her."

"What about your wife?" Hondo asked, "Wouldn't she vouch for you?"

"Oh, yeah, and her," Facade quickly replied.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a slew of pictures burst out of Facade's suitcase.

"More pictures of ponies you know?" Hondo jokingly asked before chuckling.

As Facade scurried around to pick up the sudden swarm of pictures. As he did so, he looked at one that was very incriminating. It was of his stabbing his wife. He looked at another one at it was of him chasing that hooker with a chainsaw. And then he saw Hondo holding up a picture.

"What the Tartarus?!" Hondo exclaimed.

On the back of the picture Hondo was holding, Facade could see a note written in cursive.

I know what you did.
- Discord

Author's Note:

Look at that, I finally wrote a new chapter.

Seems fair that I do, though. I've been spending this week and the previous one cleaning house. Well, 'cleaning house' as in getting whatever fics I've written over and done with, not actually cleaning my own home.

Anyway, stay tuned every Thursday for the last couple of chapters of A Cozy Tale.

Comments

[Hawkrine]

Yes! It's nice to see facade get what's coming to him!
This is also a good way to excuse discord for not helping out with the whole storm king thing. He was keeping a promise!