The Heart and Soul of Ponyville
"Delivery!"
That was the first thing Randolph heard when he answered the door that morning. The speaker was a bulky unicorn with a cart full of crates, two of which he magically lifted off the cart along with a clipboard. "Sign here." Randolph respondd by taking a pen out before the unicorn soon left, the elderly butler pushing the crates into the mansion.
While this happened, the owners of the mansion Filthy Rich, Spoiled Rich and their daughter, Diamond Tiara walked up as the butler said, "Delivery for you, sir."
"Ah," Filthy chuckled, "My shipment of lemons and oranges! And two days early! Perfect!"
Diamond began to trot toward the door, "Alright, I'm off." Filthy nodded back while her mother just walked away, making the stallion roll his eyes. Spoiled hadn't been too happy since Diamond chose to turn away from her bratty ways and embrace the true meaning of her cutie mark.
"Alright pumpkin, have a good day." Tiara gave her father a kind smile before walking off, Filthy now turning back to the crates. "Now, how do I get you to the store?" He let out a long sigh, "Of all the days to give my movers the day off."
He then walked away as well, trying to find somepony else as he left them alone in the hallway. The crates remained still for a moment until the lemon crate began to rattle, its top slowly opening as a small fur brown arm reached out and showed off a trio of sharp black claws.
"ONE...TWO...THREE...FOUR...FIVE!" This counting lesson was made by one Flash Sentry, he and Heart being in the training room as the pegasi pair were busy running through the rudimentary positions of a basic pegasus fighting style.
"One!" The two threw a single punch, Heart a few seconds slower than Flash, the colt much less stable in the technique. "Two!" They shifted their wings with a horizontal swipe, Heart still behind his teacher. "Three!" Both extended two hooves up while the back right leg was upward, now standing on one hoof. But as they did this, Heart found himself wobbling, "Four!" As Heart tried to change positions, his wings began to rapidly flap, panicking as he tripped and fell face first.
"Augh!" He yelped, the colt stretching his face off the floor, "Ow...sorry. I messed up again."
Flash laughed and shook his head, "Don't worry about it. It's fine." He then grabbed a towel, throwing it over to Heart. "Trust me on this, it'll be impossible to master this stuff over night. You should have seen Soarin teach me this stuff...my face hurt so much." Heart chuckled at this as he stood up, Flash patting his shoulder, "Don't worry, you'll get it. You've just gotta keep trying and it'll slowly become as easy as breathing." Heart nodded as he wiped his sweat off, right as the training room doors open to show Twilight, Scootaloo and Soul.
"Hey boys," Twilight chimed in before levitating a saddlebag over to Heart. "Time for school."
Heart gulped as the bag was placed on him, his body shaking like a leaf. Today was going to be his and Soul's first day of school, the sight of the shivering colt making Flash pat his shoulder, "Hang on there kiddo. You don't have to be scared, it's just school."
"Like you'd know," Twilight added while rolling her eyes, "You never even went to school."
"No, but you always seemed to enjoy it, so it can't be that bad." Flash replied, only to rub his chin with a cocky smirk, "Then again, it was you, and you are a abnormal bookworm...and we haven't had the best times with Sunset's school and-ow!"
"Stop scaring them." Twilight grumbled as she smacked him with her tail.
"Heh heh...sorry." Flash responded as they arrived at the castle's front door.
Twilight then turned to the siblings, "Now, just remember to do what the teacher tells you and try to stay out of trouble."
"We'll be on our best behavior," Soul instantly replied as Twilight grabbed a comb and tried to brush Heart's mane.
"Hey!" He cried while pulling away, Twilight giving him a smile.
"Just want you to make a good impression."
"They'll be fine," Scootaloo added as she pushed the door open. "They'll have me and the rest of the crusaders to keep an eye on them." The filly pulled her scooter out and jumped on it. "Now come on, you might have been told to be a few minutes late, but I don't get that luxury."
With that, she beat her tiny wings as she rode away from the castle, Heart and Soul taking to the air. "See you later!" Soul yelled back at Twilight.
"Have fun!" The princess replied, she and Flash waving goodbye while the three made their way through town. Heart and Soul followed Scootaloo as she weaved through the streets, narrowly evading ponies with incredible skill and precision.
"Wow," Heart whistled, "She's got skill."
Soul nodded in agreement. "Yeah. Think she gives lessons?"
The three soon arrived at the edge of town, now outside of the Ponyville Schoolhouse. There they saw several young ponies being gathered around the entrance with the pony known as Cheerilee ushering them all inside, ticking their names off the register at the same time.
"Alright," she told them, "Everypony take your seats. I have an important announcement to make." When all but one of her regular students were accounted for, she looked up to see Scootaloo rolling up with her newest students. "Just on time," she gestured to the filly, "You can head inside." Scootaloo nodded and went in as Cheerilee turned to Heart and Soul. "Nervous?"
The two exchanged glances before Soul replied, "Um...a little."
"Yeah..." Heart added while rubbing his hoof, "We uh...haven't been around many of our age till now."
Cheerilee shook her head, "Well, you don't have to be scared. All the kids in my class are friendly, so you shouldn't have any issues making friends with them. Just stay out here until I call you in." They nodded as Cheerilee walked inside, the teacher now seeing everypony in their regular seats. However, many of the students were puzzled by the two new desks and chairs that had be placed at the back of the room. "Good morning class."
"Good morning Miss Cheerilee!" The young ponies replied in perfect unison.
"Well class, I have a very special announcement to make. We have two new students joining our class today. A few of you will know them, and some more of you may have seen them around town." The classes eyes went wide, all having an idea of who it might be. "Now...they haven't had much contact with ponies their own age, so I want you all to do your best to make them feel welcome. Understand?"
"Yes Miss Cheerilee!"
The teacher nodded before turning to the door, "You can come in now." With that, the twins sheepishly tip-hoofed in, both slowly turning toward the students as Cheerilee spoke up, "Class, please say hello to Fire Heart and Shining Soul." The class gave their various ways of saying hello while the two said hello back. "Now, I'm sure you're all curious about them, so why don't we start with a few simple questions. Who has one?" Almost every hoof in the class flew into the air, Cheerilee picking Twist first.
"Are you a princess?" She asked Soul, the filly blushing before shaking her head.
"No..." she spread her wings. "I used to be a pegasus, but then I was turned into an alicorn by a...really powerful being. I don't know if that means I'll be a princess though."
Twist nodded her head as a few more hooves went down, Cheerilee pointing to a colt next, "Rumble? You have a question?"
"Is it true you're Flash Sentry's apprentice?"
"Heck yeah," Heart replied while puffing up his chest. "Future Royal Knight right here!"
The class let out several awes as Rumble spoke up again, "And is it true what Scootaloo said about you being able to set yourself on fire?"
"Rumble," Cheerilee warned, "You had your question."
However, Heart nodded back, "Yeah, I can do that. I'd show you right now, but..." He bit his lip as he said his next words, "Uh...maybe when we're outside."
The next hoof to fly into the air was that of a colt named Button Mash, Cheerilee choosing him. "Is it true you two are a thousand years old?" The rest of the class turned to him with raised eyebrows, making him bark back, "What?! I heard Sweetie say something to Apple Bloom about them being the same age as Princess Celestia."
The class turned to Sweetie, then the twins. "Well..." Soul rubbed the back of her head, "I guess...technically we are?"
"It's um....really weird." Heart added, "We were born like...two thousand years ago, but something happened and we got sent to this time without ageing." Half the class went wide-eyed while the others just gave them deadpan stares.
"Alright, I think that's enough questions." She turned to the twins, "Why don't you sit down at the empty seats in the back, then we'll start today's lesson."
The two nodded and trotted over to their desks as Cheerilee tapped a stick on the chalkboard. What followed was a few hours of learning, the two trying to remain quiet for the most part, not talking or answering a question unless asked. Luckily, the crash courses Twilight had put them through allowed the pair to answer a few of the questions, making so they didn't look like total idiots. But it was clear they still had much to learn about life in Equestria.
Eventually, lunch time came around, the ponies running out to the schoolyard to enjoy themselves. Heart and Soul were the last out, the two soon finding the CMC sitting at a bench, moving over to the three.
"Hey," Heart caught their attention, "Mind if we join you?"
"Sure," Sweetie replied before moving to make room for the two. "You don't have to ask. We're all friends."
"Thanks," Soul responded as she sat down and took out their lunches. Scootaloo, Heart and Soul had a lunch Spike had prepared for them, that being a simple daffodil and daisy sandwich along with a sweet potato muffin. Apple Bloom had a jam sandwich with an apple and Sweetie had a small salad.
"So how you liking school so far?" Sweetie asked while snacking on her salad.
"And don't worry if you say you're bored," Scootaloo added, "That's natural for school."
Soul gave them a sheepish smile, "Actually...I'm enjoying it."
"Meh, it's alright," Heart added as he gulped down his sandwich. "Though I think Flash's lessons are more fun."
"You just wanna do sweaty workouts and burn things." Soul giggled, making Heart roll his eyes.
"Hey, I like my fire powers, and I bet that Flash is doing something way cooler than what we're doing right now!"
"I wouldn't say that." Scootaloo chimed in, "My bro tells me the patrols he does around town are usually pretty boring."
"No way!" Heart barked back, "I bet he's doing something super awesome with the town's defenders!"
Meanwhile...
Flash, Iron, Lightning and Grand sat there in the middle of the town square, staring at the village as its inhabitants walk around while they had bottles of apple cider in their hooves. Pure peace and quiet embraced the area as the four stared out at the town, all of them beginning to speak up.
"Yep." Flash said first.
"Yup." Iron added.
"Yup." Lightning continued.
"Mhmm." Grand finished.
Flash turned to the group, "Hey, wanna play a round of Go Fish?"
"Sure. Its not like any monster attacks are happening today."
"I bet Flash is doing some crazy action-packed adventure of him fighting a bunch of monsters attacking the town right now!" Heart yelled while waving his hooves around.
"Ponyville isn't that chaotic." Scootaloo replied, "And that's even when Discord does visit us."
"But-"
"Hey dude!" interrupted a sudden voice, making Heart turn around to see Rumble, his tail wagging as he added, "Can you show us that fire stuff now?!"
"Rumble!" Apple Bloom yelled, "He's eating his lunch!"
"Aw, come on! Show us before Miss Cheerilee comes out and stops you!" The others glared at him while Heart simply wolfed down his food before wiping his lips.
"Alright," he then flared his wings, "But I'll have to do it in the air so I don't burn anything."
"Heart..." Soul grabbed his hoof, "That might not be a good idea."
"It'll only be for a minute." He quickly took flight next, flapping above them before morphing into his fire form. This caught the attention of the rest of the schoolyard, most gawking at him as he flew down and hovered above the ground so he didn't set the grass on fire. "Pretty cool, huh?"
"That's awesome!" Rumble cheered as Button Mash walked up and nodded, seeing Heart turn back to normal.
"Dude, you're like a video game character!"
This statement made Heart raise an eyebrow, making him ask, "Video...game? What's that?"
Button's eyes slowly went wide, "You...don't know what a video game is?!" Heart did a slow nod back, only to be suddenly hugged by the brown colt. "You poor soul!" Literal tears began to flow out of his eyes, "To never know the joy of playing a video game! Its too horrible!" Heart tried to push him off, but was no match for his earth pony strength, only for Button to suddenly release him and look him in the eye. "You're coming to my house after school! I'll show you all the best games!"
"Huh?!" Heart yelped before falling over, Rumble helping back up.
"Button, you can't just force him to-" Sweetie started, only for Heart to speak up.
"Okay." Everypony turned to the colt, seeing him sheepishly smile, "What? I wanna know what those video games are."
"YES!" Button cheered before turning to Rumble, "You wanna come?"
"Um...sure," Rumble replied, "I'm always up for playing video games."
Soul watched as the three colts broke into a conversation, happy to see her brother was starting to make friends. But as she did this, she turned to the crusaders and saw they were deep in conversation as well, already seeing she couldn't follow it.
"Wait! Come back!" yelled a sudden voice, the alicorn turning to see a gray earth pony with glasses running up to her. She appeared to be chasing a rolling orange, Soul spreading her wings to shoot a small breeze to stop the fruit. And as the filly got up to her, "Thanks." The girl took the fruit in her hooves, only to gasp at the sight of the filly, "Oh uh...you're Soul, right?"
"Yes," Soul nodded while the CMC turned to the two.
"Oh. Hey Silver Spoon." Apple Bloom said in a low tone, Soul turning to see uncomfortable looks on the four fillies faces.
"Hello...crusaders," Spoon replied while starting to backpedal, only for another filly to walk up.
This one was pink and wearing a tiara on her head, which she quickly spoke up as she stared at Soul, "Hey. Wow, you're even cooler up close!"
"Oh, um..." Soul began to shuffle her hooves, "Thank...you?"
The filly flinched at Soul's reaction, making her look away before saying, "Sorry, don't mean to make you feel uncomfortable. I uh...I'm still getting used to...being nice."
Soul raised an eyebrow at this while the CMC stifled a laugh, only for Soul to hold out a hoof, "It's fine. It's nice to meet you."
"You too," the filly shook her hoof. "I'm Diamond Tiara, and this is Silver Spoon." She then shined a big smile, "Hey, do you maybe wanna come over to my house after school?"
This made Soul go wide-eyed, the crusaders quickly hopping off the bench as Scootaloo spoke up, "Diamond...you're not trying another Twilight Time incident, are you?"
"No!" she rapidly shook her head. "Tell you what, why don't you all come to my house? We could go swimming." This made all four raise eyebrows, the fillies soon nodding back.
"Alright, we'll be there."
"Great!" Diamond Tiara clapped her hooves before the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch.
And as the young ponies made their way back to the schoolhouse, Soul turned to the CMC, "Did something happen between you and those two? You seemed a little...suspicious of them."
"Well...you could say we that." Apple Bloom tried to reply, "We have a...history."
"Diamond Tiara wasn't always the nicest pony in Ponyville," Sweetie added, "But she's really turned over a new leaf over the last few months."
Scootaloo nodded in agreement, "She's actually the reason the three of us have our cutie marks."
"Really?" The trio nodded back as they entered the schoolhouse and took their seats, Soul turning to Diamond and Spoon, seeing the calm smiles on their faces.
Meanwhile...
Filthy had just returned to his house while being followed by a pair of unicorns. "Sorry for calling you in today lads," Filthy added as he opened the front door, "But if we don't get these crates into storage, the fruit could spoil."
"It's fine sir," one of them replied as they stepped inside.
"We're happy to help," the other added, quickly going up to the crates...only to notice their lids were off.
"What?!" Filthy yelped as he looked into the crate, his heart almost exploding when he saw both were empty. "WHAT HAPPENED?!" He screamed as Randolph walked up to the door, "Randolph, were these crates empty when they arrived?!"
He shook his head. "No sir. They were definitely full when I pushed them inside."
"So then what happened to my oranges and lemons?!" He yelled before turning to his workers, both shrugging. "Well don't just stand there! They have to be somewhere! Let's get looking!" The three nodded before they all spread out into the mansion, unaware of a small furry shadow staring down at them from the staircase.
The school bell rang, signaling the end of the school day.
As soon as they were set free, Heart and his new friends headed toward Button's house while Diamond Tiara lead the girls to hers. The colts were the first to their destination, Heart now going to a quaint little two story house that wasn't too far from the school.
"Mom!" Button yelled as he threw the door open, "I'm home!"
"I'm in the kitchen!" A feminine voice called back, the three heading into the room. There they found a light brown earth pony mare with a brown mane and tail, her cutie mark being a heart and a baby bottle. "Oh," she turned to see her son's friends, "Hello Rumble, and..."
"Heart," he replied.
"Oh. Nice to meet you." She responded while showing a big smile and pointed at herself, "My name's Heart too. Cream Heart."
The colt went wide-eyed before sighing, "I'm Fire Heart...and my name is starting to get a lot more common than I thought." He began to whisper to himself, "First an alicorn foal, and now this..."
Cream then tilted her head, only to gasp, "I remember now! Haven't I seen you hanging around with Flash Sentry?"
"Yes ma'am!" Heart nodded as Rumble chuckled.
"He's Flash's new sidekick."
"Apprentice," Heart corrected.
"Same thing. You should see him when he lights himself on fire."
Cream raised an eyebrow at this, only for Button to speak up, "We're gonna be playing games in my room. Heart's never played video games before, so I'm showing him what he's missing out on."
"That's nice dear. Hey, why don't you boys stay for dinner? I can go get us a pizza from Mr. Domino." Button and Rumble's eyes went wide before licking their lips while Heart just blinked at her.
"What's a...pizza?" This statement made them all gasp, Rumble even appearing to faint at the question.
"Where have you been living your whole life?!" Button yelped. "How can you not have had pizza before?!" Heart just shrugged as Button turned to his mother, "He needs a pizza with everything on it!"
Cream laughed while Rumble seemed to be coming around. "Coming right up. Say, why don't you three help yourself to what's in the fridge and start playing while I go get it." The boys nodded as she headed out, Rumble heading for the fridge first.
"Let's see..." his eyes darted around, "We got soda, OJ, purple stuff and-aw yeah! Sunshine D!" He pulled the large container of orange liquid out of the fridge as Button got a few glasses out of the cupboard. "Wait until you try this. It's awesome."
Heart took a quick swig of the drink next, only to go wide-eyed with oranges in his eyes. "Wow...that's good."
"I know, right? Its awesome!"
"Come on! Let's show Heart everything!" Button chimed in, gesturing to them to follow. They soon went into Button's room, which was filled with a bunch of different toys, but more than anything, it was jam-packed with video games.
"Wow..." Heart whispered before accidently kicking something, the colt looking down to see a strange device with a screen and several buttons.
Button picked it up, "That's my Game-Colt. It lets you play video games anywhere." He switched it on and showed the screen to Heart, the colt squinting his eyes at the electrical device. "Right now it's got a game called Shopumon loaded."
"Shopumon?" Heart asked, taking the game and watching as it showed the game's menu.
"Yeah!" Button nodded. "It's a really fun game were you use monsters to battle other monsters. And sometimes, when you beat the monster, you get this cool medal that you can use to make your own version of that monster."
"Huh. Cool..." Heart replied as he pressed a few of the buttons, only to see it open a folder that showed six strange creatures. The odd thing was that they were all the same creature, except they were different colors.
Button slung his head over the pegasi's shoulder, "Right now, I'm doing a run-through using the same Shopumon but each one's a different element. It's called Serpentore, and I've got a fire, water, plant, electric, wind and earth element."
"Isn't that kinda boring?" Heart asked.
"Nope!" Button shook his head. "Because Shopumon evolve when you get them strong enough, and what they become is different depending on what element it is. Like, my fire Serpentore could evolve into a fire dragon while my water Serpentore will become a leviathan."
"Oh...awesome."
Button then went over to a TV and began plugging something in. As he did this, Rumble turned to Heart, "So what's it like to be Flash Sentry's apprentice?"
"It's great!" Heart cheered as he put the device down, "Flash is super awesome! I just hope I can be like him someday..."
"He is pretty cool," Rumble replied, "Especially since he got that cool golden armor that just appears on him."
"You mean the Sacred Light?" Heart asked, Rumble shrugging back, "Wait until you see his new look. It's even cooler now, and he can even make this giant alicorn out of magic that's as tall as Twilight's castle." Rumble's eyes slowly grew wide in amazement. "It's awesome."
"Wow..." Rumble whispered.
"Hey Rumble!" They turned to Button, "You should show Heart your Flash impression."
Heart turned back to Rumble, the colt now blushing. "I don't know..."
"Really? Show me!" Heart added, soon giving him puppy dog eyes. After a few seconds of staring, Rumble let out a sigh.
"Fine," he cleared his throat and took a deep breath while closing his eyes. When he opened them, he started speaking, his voice now exactly like Flash's. If Heart shut his eyes, he could almost believe Flash was in the room. "I'm Flash Sentry, the Knight of Friendship. Feel the might of my almighty Celestic Gear, Lightbringer!"
He came to a stop and coughed, Heart clapping at the impression. "Nice! I bet Flash would love to hear that!"
"Please don't tell him," Rumble replied while looking away, "It's embarrassing."
"Alright..." Heart responded while rolling his eyes. "But if they ever think of doing a play or a movie with Flash as a character, you should so try out for him."
Rumble continued to blush as Button finally got the game working, "Yes! We're in business!" He took out three controllers and threw them two of them. "Here, why don't we play one of my racing games? That way we can all play together." This sounded more Heart's style and took the controller Rumble gave him. He had a feeling he was gonna like this video game thing.
"Hope Soul's having as much fun as me."
Soul had the biggest smile on her face. Diamond and Silver had treated them all to a cupcake and milkshake as Sugarcube Corner. There she got to enjoy the two telling her about the many mishaps the CMC had gone through before they managed to get their cutie marks that they chose to leave hidden when they told her about the events.
"HAHAHAHA!" Soul laughed after hearing about an event involving renegade farm equipment, almost falling off her stool while the CMC all pouted and drank their shakes. "I can't believe that actually happened."
Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. "Well, we were young and foolhardy."
"Yeah! Cut us some slack!" Scootaloo nodded as Soul picked herself up, "Now that we've got our cutie marks, that's not gonna happen anymore."
Soul glanced over at the fillies' flanks before a question popped into her head, "Say, you never told me how you got your cutie marks." This made the CMC smirk as they finished off their milkshakes and began to actually head for Diamond's house, all the while telling Soul the story of how they got their butt tattoos.
"And then we high-hoofed, and the next thing we knew, we've got our cutie marks!" Sweetie finished as they walked up the road to the mansion.
"Wow," Soul whispered before turning to Diamond Tiara. "So in a way, you helped them get their cutie marks."
Diamond shrugged back, "I guess I did. I mean, it was karma for me making fun of them not having marks." This made Soul tilt her head as she continued, "Though they did help me realize what my mark was meant for."
"So what's it for?" Soul asked next.
"Getting ponies to do what I want," Diamond replied, "I used to just do that for my own benefit, but it was the crusaders that helped me see I didn't want to do that. That's when I realized I could get ponies to do things that help others."
"Oh..." Soul put a hoof to her chin, "So how are you gonna make a career out of that?" This made Diamond turn to her with a raised eyebrow, "I thought cutie marks were supposed to help ponies find out what jobs and things they're meant to do. Like Apple Bloom's brother and sister have apple marks, so they work in an orchard. Sweetie's sister uses gems in the clothes she makes and Rainbow Dash is gonna be a Wonderbolt. So how is bossing ponies around gonna become a job?"
"Huh..." Diamond showed a small frown, "I hadn't thought of that."
"Neither did...we?" Scootaloo added.
"Ah'm sure there's something that yer special talent could become," Apple Bloom responded as they arrived at the gate of the mansion. "There's lots of jobs that require you to order ponies around. Like...um..."
"Being mayor!" Sweetie chimed in, "Mayor Mare's always giving out orders to the ponies that help keep the town going."
The others quickly nodded at this, Diamond humming, "Being mayor..."
"That sounds awesome!" Silver Spoon cheered, "And maybe I could be your deputy mayor." They all turned to Diamond, all imagining what Diamond being mayor of Ponyville would be like before Spoon pointed at Soul's flank, "Hey Soul, what does your cutie mark represent?"
The others turned to stare at the pink series of lines that formed a flower shape. Soul looked at it as well before replying, "Honestly, I'm not sure. I got it the day I became an alicorn, so I guess it must have something to do with that."
"I guess that makes sense," Diamond responded, "You are gonna be a princess one day, right?"
Soul sighed and shook her head, "Like I said in class, I don't know if I'll ever get that title. I guess it depends on what I'm able to use my magic for."
"What can you use your magic for?" Spoon asked.
"Well..." Soul sparked her horn and used it to pick up a small rock off the ground. "That's pretty much it. The bigger it is, the harder it is to hold it without losing control."
"I get that," Sweetie added, "I remember how hard it was when I was first learning to use magic. But with Twilight's help, I'm sure you'll figure the rest out."
As she said that, Diamond opened the door to the mansion, only to see her father and his employees running around the place. "Daddy?" Filthy came to a stop and stared at them, "What's going on?"
"Thieves!" Filthy yelled, "Something or somepony has stolen my supply of oranges and lemons! We've looked all over the place, but there's nothing!"
"Huh..." Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow, "Ya'll want some help looking?"
"If you wouldn't mind," Filthy replied, "Whatever's done this can't have gotten far." With that, the fillies spread out, Soul using her wings to fly up to the higher spots others couldn't check. And as they helped, a certain creature stared at the flying filly while hiding in a ceiling light's bowl.
"Go, go, go, go, go!" Button yelled as the three colts raced, he and Rumble unable to believe Heart had never played a video game before.
"Ha-ha!" The fire colt cheered as he pressed a button, "Fear my blue carrot of doom!"
"NO!" The boys cried as they were caught up in the explosion, allowing Heart's character to zip past them and cross the finish line.
"YES!" Heart leapt up and started doing a victory dance, his friends rolling their eyes. "I won! I'm the best! Me the winner, you the loser."
"How is he so good?" Rumble complained as Heart flew back down.
"Luck," Button guessed.
"Nah," Heart chuckled, "I just have better hoof eye coordination." He then turned to the other games Button had all over the room, stars in his eyes as he said, "I can't wait to show Soul all of these. I bet she'll love to play 'em."
The statement made Button growl, "You can't bring her to play. Girls ruin video games."
This made Heart turn to him while Rumble just rolled his eyes, "Don't mind him. He's just being a foal about something that happened a while back."
"Six hours wasted because of Sweetie Belle," Button hissed, "It should have been the greatest video gaming accomplishment of my life, but instead it was all for nothing."
"Boys!" they suddenly heard Cream call out, "Pizza's here!" Button and Rumble gasped and ran downstairs with Heart behind them, the three arriving in the kitchen to see Cream putting a box on the table. "You should have seen Mr. Domino's reaction when I told him you've never had a pizza before. He said he put extra effort into making this the best pizza he'd ever made."
"Huh." Heart sat at the table as Cream opened the box. The food he saw had several vegetables, including onions, red peppers, baby spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, and black olives, all of which were covered in a layer of cheese. "So this is a pizza?"
"Uh-huh!" Button nodded as he pulled off a slice and gave it to him. "Try it."
"Alright..." Heart took the slice, blinking at the food before saying, "But I'm not sure if I'll even like it." The other three shared a knowing look as Heart took a bite out of the slice, a small one, but enough for the flavor to flow through him.
"Well?" Rumble asked as tears formed in Heart's eyes and looked up at ceiling, the three almost swearing they saw a heavenly light shine down upon his face.
"I have seen the face of Faust."
"Who?" Cream asked.
"Find anything?" Scootaloo asked as she and Silver Spoon returned from the library.
"Nothing in the kitchen," Apple Bloom replied after she and Sweetie walked into the room. She turned to Diamond and her father, "Anything?"
"Nothing," he sighed, "I might have to summon the police."
"For some stolen oranges and lemons?" Scootaloo asked, Filthy turning to glare at her.
"Those oranges and lemon were inventory for Barnyard Bargains! It'd be like somepony stealing a field of your friend's apples." Scootaloo flinched at his response, only to hesitantly nod, the stallion now sighing, "I hope Randolph and the boys are having better luck in the garden."
As he said that, Soul flew in from outside. "I didn't see anything on the roof."
"Thank you for looking anyway." Filthy replied before going wide-eyed at the alicorn, "Wait...aren't you Princess Twilight's new student?"
Soul did a small nod, slightly blushing as he shined a big smile at his daughter. He was about to tell her how proud he was of her of becoming friends with such an important pony, only for Soul to point at the ceiling's light, seeing a brown furball in it. "What's that?"
They all looked up, only to see a brown creature covered in brown fur staring down at them with its three large black claws on its hands and feet. It had large googly eyes and a large mouth that was constantly smiling, though the fur around its mouth was stained orange. On its back were several long black needle-like bristles.
The creature gave her the cutest face she had ever seen. "Aw..." Soul replied as she hovered up to it, "Hello little guy." She reached out for it, "What are you doing here?" But before she could grab it, the creature suddenly shot past her. "WHOA!" She yelped as the creature hopped onto the roof, clinging to it with its claws.
This allowed the others to see it, Spoon asking, "What is that thing?"
"Never seen anything like it," Scootaloo responded, only for Filthy to see the stain around the creature's mouth.
"Its the thief!" The others turned to him, "Look at its mouth! It must have eaten my oranges, and I bet it ate the lemons too!" The others looked back at the creature as it began to scurry along the ceiling until it reached the wall.
"How could that little thing eat two crates of lemon and oranges?" Apple Bloom asked as Filthy ran up to the wall.
"Get back here, you profit pilfer!" The creature then jumped off the wall, flying over Filthy's head and curling itself up into a furry ball as it hit the ground and rolled away. Filthy turned to chase it, "Grab it!"
"Sweetie," Scootaloo turned to the unicorn, "Try getting it in your magic!" Sweetie nodded and sparked her horn, only for the creature to suddenly zigzag all over the place.
"Hold it still!" She cried as the other tried to jump in front of it, only for the beast to zip past them.
"Gotcha!" Apple Bloom blocked it from escaping through a door, only for it turn to roll toward the stairs.
"No you don't!" Soul landed on the stairs, only for it roll away again.
"I don't think so!" Scootaloo ran to the front door as the creature went for it, "Sweetie!" The unicorn was able to grab the door in her magic and slam it shut, Diamond skidding up and turning the lock.
"There!" she turned to the beast as it stopped spinning and unfurled itself, now finding itself surrounded on all sides. "Now what do we do with it?"
"We should take it ta Twilight," Apple Bloom suggested as they moved in closer, "Or Fluttershy. They should know what it is and what we need to do with it."
"Err...girls?" they turned to Scootaloo as she pointed at the beast. "What's it doing?" They looked back at the animal and saw its entire body was shaking like a leaf, its pupils going small while the rest of its eyes stayed the same size and the tips of its mouth went up and down.
"It's just trying to distract us so we don't punish it," Filthy told them. "Don't let it-" He stopped when he noticed the creature curl up again, likely about to roll away....only to start glowing, "What in Celestia's name?!"
The creature quickly grew from a small furball to a furball larger than Filthy. Everypony began to backpedal, Diamond hitting the door and quickly opening it to jump outside. She turned back to the house and watched as the furball filled up the entire doorway, still growing as the ponies gulped at the sight as the beast hit the ceiling. But even when this happened, its growth didn't stop, the creature's sides beginning to push against the walls.
"Everypony out!" Filthy yelled before running to a nearby window and throwing it open, moving aside so the girls could jump out. First Spoon, then Soul, Sweetie, Applebloom and Scootaloo. As soon as they were outside, the girls ran around the side of the building and watched as Diamond continued to stare at her house.
The pink filly gasped as the front of her house suddenly broke apart, freeing the creature but sending tons of debris flying at her, "AAAAAHHHHH!" She screamed as concrete and wood was about to hit her, only to feel something grab her and pull her away.
"GOTCHA!" She looked up to see Soul had grabbed her and flew her safely out of the debris' line of fire. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Diamond nodded, "Thanks." Soul smiled back before flying down and dropping her into her father's hooves.
"Oh sweetheart!" He hugged her tightly, "Thank Celestia you're alright."
He then glared up at the beast that had destroyed the front of his house and almost crushed his daughter. And as he did, something began to unfurl from around the furball, soon showing a long skinny arm with black claws three times the size of a pony. It reached out and grabbed the ground, sinking its claws into it as another arm unfurled and did the same. The creature then pushed itself up next, unfurling itself to reveal its now giant eyes and mouth. It appeared to have an almost drunk expression on itself as it completely unfurled, placing its large feet in the wreckage of the Rich's mansion before pulling itself along the ground using its arms.
"It's heading into town!" Scootaloo yelped as the creature pulled itself a good twenty feet before needing to stretch out its arms again. And as it did this, Scootaloo turned to the others, "What do we do?!"
She got her answer when Soul began to fly after it. "SOUL!" She stopped at Diamond's cry and turned to her, "What are you doing?!"
"We have to stop that thing!"
"You should leave this to the defenders!" Filthy instantly replied, "You're just a child. What can you do against something like that?"
Soul gaze shifted between them and the creature, Filthy's words echoing in her head. Her mind then flashed to Twilight and Cadance when they stayed behind to try and repair the Crystal Heart while Celestia and Luna worked to fight off the deadly storm clouds. Her eyes shifted up to look at the horn on her head, and then down at her cutie mark.
"Whatever I can." With that, she flew off as fast as she could, knowing she would either find a way or somepony that could help.
Back with Heart, he was stuffing another slice of pizza into his mouth and crying every second.
"Why!?" He almost screamed between bites. "Why did I have to go so long without knowing the beauty of this delectable fusion of dough, sauce, cheese and veggies?" He glared up at the ceiling. "Why is everything here so good?! Why didn't me and Soul have this kind of heavenly food?! Pizza, Pinkie's cakes and cookies...even that ramen stuff Flash showed me yesterday was awesome! Why didn't we have all these awesome, sweet tasting food and was stuck with salads and milkshakes back at the city?!"
Button and Rumble exchanged glances before Button raised a hoof, "Aren't milkshakes really sweet food?" Button then flinched as Heart glared at him with wet eyes.
"You don't understand!" He cried before gulping down another slice. "You don't understand!"
Cream, Rumble and Button simply stared at the colt, barely eating their food as Cream commented, "Somepony's clearly had a very sheltered foalhood. I'm sure if you let Flash and the princess know about your new love, they'd be willing to let you have it more often."
Heart nodded while sniffing, "Yeah...I'm gonna do that. How many more amazing foods does this modern day have that I haven't experienced?! I must try them all!"
"You might wanna pace yourself," Rumble chimed in, "Eat too much and you might get a stomachache." Button and his mom nodded in agreement.
"I'll be fine," Heart replied while waving his hoof, "And trust me," he held up the last slice. "This is worth a stomachache." But as he went to take another bite, the entire house suddenly shook, knocking them off their chairs. "WHOA!"
The shaking lasted a good few seconds before settling down, Cream speaking up, "Is everypony okay?"
"I'm okay," Button muffled out, his face kissing the floor.
"What was that?" Rumble asked, only for the ground to shake again. "Whoa!"
Heart leapt up and ran to the door, only to see a cloud of dust in the distance. "That can't be good." He flared his wings, about to take off before something grabbed his tail and pulled him back. "Hey!"
"Where do you think you're going?!" Cream told him as she let him go.
"There's something happening," he pointed to the fading cloud. "I'm going to go check it out."
"Absolutely not," Cream replied while shaking her head. "I've lived in this town long enough to know that when something bad is happening, and that right there is a 'Stay inside and keep your children safe scenario'."
"But ponies might be in trouble," he instantly responded.
"If they are, Flash and the rest of the defenders will handle it. You might be his new apprentice, but you're also a child. I'm sure Flash wouldn't want you putting yourself in danger like that. That and you just ate, and you don't wanna go out there and throw up what you just ate. Now come inside and let the grownups handle this."
Heart frowned as he looked back at her, only for the ground to shake again. Screams followed this, making him look back at the town before glancing at Cream, "Sorry ma'am." His body suddenly exploded into flames, shocking Cream. "I just can't sit here and let other ponies get hurt. That's not who I am, and that's not the pony Flash chose to make his apprentice." With that, he took to the air, flames bursting out his back hooves and rocketing him toward the scene of the crime.
Cream watched in both shock and awe as the colt flew off, Button and Rumble cheering for their new friend as they watched him fly off like a superhero.
Main street was in turmoil as the creature dragged itself through the town, the ponies screaming as they ran away from it. As this happened, Grand, Lightning and Iron galloped up to the creature, Lightning yelled, "Where'd this thing come from?!"
"Doesn't matter," Grand responded before raising his hammer. "What matters is stopping it before it hurts anypony." With that, he slammed his hammer down into the dirt, causing a crack to shoot out toward the beast splitting to form a circle around the creature. The ground then collapsed, dropping the beast into a hole that was the perfect size to hold it.
"Iron! Do it now!"
"Got it! This should hold yah until we figure out what to do with yah!" He thrust his spear into the ground, metal spikes coming out of the side of the hole before meeting in the middle to form bars.
"Nice," Lightning added as they all stared inside, only to see the creature beginning to shake...and start growing, "What the heck?!" The monster soon became too large for the hole, the metal bars bending. With a single spurt of growth, the beast got free, thrusting its arms out and grabbing a pair of nearby houses to pull itself out of the hole.
"No way," Iron whispered as the beast was freed, pulling itself through the town again. "Oh, no you don't!" He pointed his spear at the beast and started firing a round of Iron Lance Fury. But as the blades struck the creature, they simply bounced off its body without even giving it a hair cut. "What?!"
Lightning took this moment to pull one of his knives out of his cloak and throw it at the creature, the dagger soaring over it. But before it could completely miss it, Lightning appeared where it was and caught it in his mouth before landing on the creature's back. "You're big, strong and apparently hard to cut. So let's see what a couple million bolts does to you." With that, his horn sparked before the electricity surged through his body and into the beast.
Grand and Iron watched as it was electrocuted, only to see the creature not even be fazed by it. As this happened, it jerked its head up, knocking Lightning off, "Whoa!" He yelped before quickly teleporting back to the defenders. "Shoot! That didn't work either!"
"Wait...what's it doing?" Iron asked as the beast started sniffing the area, only to turn toward the town's market place.
It was here that Soul arrived on the scene, landing on a roof to see the beast dragging itself along. The creature then grabbed the top of a house, trying to pull itself forward...only to rip off the top of the building. Screams followed this as it threw the debris back, making Soul gasp as she flew down with her horn sparking.
The ponies on the ground flinched as they saw the rubble coming down at them, closing their eyes just as the roof was about to hit them. However, no impact happened, making them open their eyes to see a golden light wrapped around the falling roof. Sounds of grunting caught their attention next, making them turn to see Soul, the group amazed at the sight of the little alicorn holding up something this heavy. "Hurry!" She moaned, "I don't know how long I can hold this!"
They nodded back before running away, quickly getting away before Bon-Bon turned to her, "Okay, we're safe. You can let go now."
Soul nodded, taking a deep breath as she tried to turn off her magic...only for her horn to spark, the pieces of debris suddenly starting to fly everywhere while still in the golden light. "No!" She cried, closing her eyes as she tried to cut off her magic, only to feel a surge of pain in her head.
Feeling the reaction, her eyes shot open, only to see a large chunk of broken roof in her magic now flying right at her. She screamed as she closed her eyes again, bracing herself for impact. But then...nothing happened. "Huh?" She cracked her eye opened, now seeing the rubble floating in front of her, completely still as the a blue magic aura covered the debris.
"You okay?" Soul turned to see Starlight standing behind her, a smile on her face as her horn glowed the same blue color. "You looked like you were having trouble."
"You don't know the half of it," Soul breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks."
Starlight nodded back before slowly putting the pieces down, "Just be glad I was out buying haycakes when I saw what was happening. No offense, but you're not ready to lift that kind of stuff with your magic."
"I know...I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize." Starlight replied before patting the filly's shoulder, "You were just trying to help." She turned to the creature dragging itself through town. "Now, I don't suppose you know what the heck that thing is?"
Soul shook her head, "No, but I know where it came from." This made Starlight raised an eyebrow as Soul began to trot toward the beast, "Come on. I'll explain on the way."
The creature was still pulling itself through the town, Grand, Lightning and Iron following after it. Everything they had tried to do to slow it down had been useless. It was at this point the creature arrived in the market place, which had quickly been deserted when the ponies saw the monster coming.
And when it came to a stop, it sniffed the air again before reaching out to a certain stand. The defenders then saw it lift up a market stand filled of limes, which it held up as its constantly smiling mouth cracked open, the fruit dropping in with ease.
Lightning blinked at the sight, glancing at the other stands and seeing them packed with more food. "Why'd it go after that one?"
"Who cares?!" Iron barked back. "All that matters is finding a way to stop it."
"ARMORIZE!" They looked up as a bright flash of light signaled the arrival of the Knight of Friendship. Flash dove down in his Shining Guardian form, flying past the beast while slashing at it with his evolved Celestic Gear...only for the blow to do nothing, not even cut the hair. "What?!"
It was here that the rest of the Mane Seven arrived, Rainbow and Applejack running up with Rainbow kicking it while Applejack threw her lasso at it. But the pegasus simply bounced off it while Applejack was pulled around, almost swinging into a building before Flash caught her.
"You okay?" Applejack nodded as he put her down, then turned back to the creature. As he did this, a barrage of fireballs suddenly hit the creature's back. The defender looked up to see a flaming colt flying above the creature, unleashing a stream of fire with little effect on the beast. "Heart! That's not working, so come down here!"
The colt turned to his mentor, quickly landing beside him as he asked, "What the heck is that thing?!"
"It's a screebit," Twilight responded while walking up to them with Fluttershy.
"A what?" Rainbow yelped.
"It's a very rare creature," Fluttershy added. "It's usually very gentle and wouldn't hurt a fly."
"Main street would beg to differ," Lightning deadpanned while pointing at the creature. "That thing keeps growing and destroying everything!"
Twilight shook her head at this, "It's not intentional Lightning. Its using a defense mechanism it has to ward off predators. When it feels threatened, it transforms into this thing. In this state, it's almost indestructible."
"It's mind also gets overpowered," Fluttershy continued, "It won't notice anything that happens to it. It doesn't even know where it's going. It's being driven by its base instincts."
"And what are those instincts telling it to do?" Iron asked.
"Find fuel," Twilight replied. "Screebits can't undergo this transformation on their own. They need a certain type of chemical to cause the reaction, and once transformed, they'll start searching for that chemical so they can remain in that form as long as possible."
"What's the chemical?"
"Citric acid. Screebit are usually found in places that grow citrus fruits like oranges, lemons-"
"Limes?" Grand interrupted, Twilight nodding. "That explains earlier."
Fluttershy turned back to the creature as it sniffed the air, obviously trying to locate another source of citric acid. "I just wish I knew where it came from."
"I know where," they turned to see Soul and Starlight walking up. As they got close, Soul explained what had happened at the Rich Manor, Twilight going wide-eyed at her explanation.
"It ate two crates worth of oranges and lemons?!" Twilight yelped, Soul nodding. "That's not good...." As she said that, the screebit began to drag itself away again. "That much citrus will take days to burn through."
"Seriously?!" Heart asked as they raced after the Screebit. "We can't let that thing run around for days!"
"The Screebit has a very slow metabolism. From what I've read, one orange could keep it at this size for about an hour. And if its eaten two crates worth of it, it's got tons of citric acid stored up."
"So it's like a train," Grand commented, "Once it burns through one piece of fuel, it'll replenish it with stuff from its stomach."
Twilight nodded, "Exactly!"
It was here that they realized where the screebit was going, the sight making them gasp. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" Pinkie screamed when she saw it reach for Sugarcube Corner, the mare now remembering the amount of citrus they used when making desserts. Twilight quickly sparked her horn, putting a large bubble around the cake shop. The screebit tried to claw at the bubble, making Pinkie sigh in relief. "Thanks Twilight."
"No problem," Twilight replied before grunting, "But I can't keep this up forever. We need to find a way to get it away from here until the citric acid wears off."
"We could teleport it somewhere," Rarity suggested. "Someplace it can't harm anypony. Ghastly Gorge maybe? That's large enough to hold it."
"Then what?" Lightning replied, "It'll just keep trying to escape and find more citrus. If it's gonna take days, we'll be too exhausted to just keep it in Ghastly Gorge."
"Well, we have to do something!" Pinkie barked back, "If we don't, it could destroy all of Ponyville."
As the adults discussed what they could do, Heart rubbed his chin while thinking about what Twilight and Fluttershy had told them. And slowly, an idea formed in his head. "We can't hurt it, and it won't notice what we do to it..." he whispered.
And as he did this, Soul noticed a certain look in his eye. "Heart....what are you planning?" Heart turned to smile at his sister, Soul's eyes shrinking at the sight.
"Twilight," the alicorn turned to him, "I have a question. What happens to the acid the screebit isn't using. Where's it kept?"
Twilight hummed. "Well...since it mostly replenishes using juice from fruits, I guess it's possible the acid is stored where the rest of its body water is. Why?"
Heart's reply was a big stupid grin as he turned back to the screebit. "I have..."
"Oh no," Soul moaned.
"A plan!" With that, he leapt up and flew toward the screebit. The older ponies gasped at the sight, the pegasi preparing to take off after him.
"HEART! What are you doing?!"
"Put a barrier around us!" Heart called back.
"What?!" Twilight yelped as Flash spoke up next.
"Heart, you need to tell us your plan!"
"No time!" Heart yelled as he flew above the screebit, the beast still clawing at the shield around Sugarcube Corner. "Just put a barrier around us, the strongest one you can make." He saw the unsure expression on Flash's face, "I know what I'm doing. This'll work."
Him and Flash stared at each other for a few seconds, Flash smirking before turning back to Twilight and nodding. Twilight nodded back and turned to Starlight, the two quickly teleporting themselves to the opposite sides of the screebit. Once there, Twilight cut the spell protecting the bakery before she and Starlight unleashed a blast that formed a bubble around Heart and the creature.
The others watched as Heart smiled down at the screebit. "Alright you overgrown hairball, get ready to feel the heat!" With that, he unleashed a mighty burst of fire from every hoof while swiping his tail around, shooting fireballs at the creature. Like before, the screebit didn't seem at all bothered by the flames, instead just trying to trying to escape the bubble.
"What's he thinking?" Iron asked, "He knows his flames won't hurt it."
Flash was thinking the same thing, only to notice something new. It might have been the coloration from the magic bubble, but the screebit's fur was beginning to look...shiny. Almost as if the fur was damp. The others soon saw this, Grand gasping, "Of course! So that's his plan!"
"What do you mean?" Iron replied.
"He's making it sweat!" Grand responded as he pointed at Heart, the others catching on as Flash just smiled at his apprentice.
"Huh." Lightning added, "So he's making him sweat out all the juice from the fruit."
"And the citrus along with it," Rarity finished.
"That's assuming the acid hasn't been sent to some other part of that thing's body," Iron pointed out.
"All we can do is watch and hope," Flash sighed as he saw the heat wasn't just making the screebit sweat, but Heart as well. If he gave out before it, they knew it would be trouble.
And as this happened, the ponies of Ponyville that had scattered slowly came out of hiding. They watched as the young colt they barely knew was putting himself through the ringer, burning the beast with a plume of flames. A spark of respect ignited within them, all gasping at the sight.
Then, as Heart's flames were about to give up, the screebit slowly began to grow smaller, making everypony smile. It kept shrinking until it reverted back to its old form, Twilight and Starlight dropping the shield as Heart cut his flames. "Ooooh...I don't feel good." Heart moaned as sweat poured down his face, his wings folding as he started to drop like a rock.
"Hang on there, I gotcha!" Flash said as he flew up and caught Heart, slowly lowering him down as the others looked the screebit over.
"Is it okay?" Soul asked Fluttershy, the pegasi nodding back at her.
"He's fine," she assure the filly. "A little dehydrated, but he should be fine once he's gotten some water in him."
"You might wanna get some for this brave colt here too," Flash chuckled as he patted the colt's head, Pinkie quickly zipping into the bakery before returning with a pair of water bottles. She gave one to Fluttershy as she she bottle-fed the screebit while Pinkie poured some of the other bottle's contents onto Heart's face.
"Hey!" he moaned before opening his eyes. When he saw the water bottle in front of him, he gasped before taking it and sucking the liquid down his throat. "Ahhh…thanks." he sighed as his thirst had been quenched, only to turn to others, "So uh...did my plan work?"
"You bet it worked!" Twilight happily cheered, "You and Soul should be very proud!"
Heart smiled while Soul raised an eyebrow, the ponies of the town now walking up to them as she asked, "Why me? I didn't do anything."
"You told us where the screebit came from and how much citrus it had eaten." Twilight replied, "If you hadn't, we would have been trying to keep it away from everypony until the fruit wore off."
"Plus you saved those other ponies," Starlight pointed out. "You might have lost control at the end, but you still saved them."
"You two saved Ponyville," Grand assured them. The young ponies blushed, only to flinch when they heard a round of clapping and cheering. They turned to see the rest of the town was cheering, Filthy Rich, Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, Cream Heart, Rumble, Button Mash and the CMC were all there, along with Bon-Bon, Lyra, Time Turner, Derpy, Octavia, Vinyl and many other ponies. They all cheered and clapped for them, making the two blush even harder.
They couldn't feel more strange. Ever since arriving in Ponyville, they hadn't been feeling the warm feeling they had when living in the Lost City of Faust...but now it was here. The feeling of belonging someplace, of joy about being there. The feeling of home.
The next morning...
Ponyville was now back to normal. Thanks to Twilight and Starlight, many of the houses that had been destroyed were magically repaired, the rest fixing the holes and trenches the screebit had created in its rampage. Twilight had contacted Celestia about the incident and the sun princess had replied by sending some guards to pick up the screebit and transport it someplace it wouldn't be a danger to anypony.
It was here that the doors of the castle of friendship opened up, Heart, Scootaloo and Soul walking out with Flash and Twilight behind them. Soul then turned to their caregivers, "Well, time for school."
"Have fun," Twilight replied, "And Soul, we have magic practice after school."
"Same with you Heart," Flash nodded before smirking. "But I think you'll have time for a small hangout with your friends. Just don't be late."
"We won't," Heart replied before he and his sister took the to skies and Scootaloo shot off on her scooter. The three made their way through the town, the ponies waving at the two newcomers as they flew past them. Heart and Soul smiled back, feeling really comfortable as they traversed their new home.
When they began to pass Sugarcube Corner, a window opened up and Pinkie stretched out of it holding paper bags with their cutie marks on them. One by one, the three grabbed their designated bags while giving their thanks before looking inside, licking their lips at the delicious treats inside before putting them into their saddlebags.
They soon arrived at the schoolhouse, getting greeted by their classmates as they came to a stop. The three split up, Heart talking to Rumble and Button while Scootaloo joined the CMC as Soul went up to Diamond and Spoon. Smiles and laughs were all around as they conversed with their friends until Miss Cheerilee called them inside.
All the nervousness Heart and Soul had been experiencing the previous day was nowhere in sight. The two had found their place in Ponyville and in Equestria too. Though there were many uncertainties about their future, they knew that they now had friends they could look to for support. Life was good.
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Okay, that Shopumon game you mentioned sounds like a mix between Pokemon and a different game. I'm also willing to bet that the racing game is based off of Mario Kart. Gosh, how is it the first thing anyone ever gushes about regarding modern Earth society is how good the food is?
By the way, don't think that I didn't notice that voice actor joke you slipped in there. 
10456686 No, they're twins.
10456687
really, because how you have written Soul, she comes off as having seen at least 1 summer solstices and 1 winter solstices more than Heart
Wow! That is the insane chapter! That creature was insanely to defeat to the point I thought "Damn! That creature is so strong!"
King of the Hill reference.
Look like Heart is a big eater-type.....
Wait! So Heart went to talk with Rumble and Button and now he’s talking with Diamond and Spoon? Huh?
Fun chapter! I’m surprised that you make Diamond and Spoon as Soul’s friends since according to one of the crew member, Hasbro thought their story ended in Crusaders of The Lost Mark.
But I guess you are not done with Diamond and Spoon yet.
I also wonder if Rumble, Button, Diamond and Spoon will have some kind of importance since they’re friends with Heart and Soul or they are just there to be friends with them and that’s it.
Wow that was a very heartwarming chapter for both Heart and Soul. I'm glad they found their place in Ponyville and feel like they belong.
That screebit was really tough, probably one of the toughest creatures that the heroes have faced yet. But Heart's plan for dealing with it was awesome and pretty brilliant too. I was a bit surprised that Springer didn't show up to help at all though, even if he probably wouldn't have been able to do much. He must have been taking care of the eggs off-screen.
I also liked a few of the references that were snuck in like King of the Hill and Mario Kart.
10456893 Don't forget my personal favourite reference. Sunny D's commercial.
This was Cool and cuts as well Too
Sweet slice-of-life chapter for the twins, glad they both started getting their own circle of friends in Ponyville.
Had a blast seeing Heart trying out pizza & video games for the first time, not to mention Soul learning about the CMC's misadventures & actually hanging out with Diamond & Silver. Plus the way they helped out during the screebit's rampage was very action-packed, well done!
And now some Highlights for your viewing pleasure :
Yep.....not ominous at all!
Not helping your case here Flash!
You should know better than to temp fate like that Flash!
Ahh glad someone else remembers the Sunny D's mantra!
Still wonder why no one went for the purple stuff though?
Welp this escalated quickly!
Poor Pinkie was about to have a heart attack there!
Overall it was a good way for the twins to really become part of Ponyville life, can't wait to see what's in store next chapter Banshee!
I really like the references used in this chapter but my favorite is the King of the Hill reference with Flash, Iron, Lightning, and Grand standing together lazily.
More importantly I really like how Soul and Heart managed to develop as characters and truly bond with the citizens of Ponyville.
Remind me again, where is Spike in all this, exactly?
10459546
If I had to guess, busy helping Springer take care of the two Jakhowl eggs.
10460057
I wonder if Springer will spend the rest of this season of taking care of 2 Jakhowl eggs and not helping the heroes out.
In that case, Springer have been Demoted to Extra for this season. (He become Gohan of the series)
He went from being Flash’s important partner to the babysitter who can’t go anywhere at all.
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DemotedToExtra
But hey, i hope it won’t be bad compare to Applejack who was Demoted to Extra in later seasons.
I’m kinda worried about Springer.