Chapter 8: The Tortoise and The Mare (May the Best Pet Win!/S2:E7)
My Little Pony: Nine Elements
Book 2
Written by Brandon Nell and Blake Hawkins
Chapter 8: The Tortoise and The Mare
Five days after Zap Apple Season, Fluttershy was enjoying a nice quiet day at home with nothing to do besides care for her animals. Things had been calm for the timid pegasus and her friends as of late, so, she decided to take advantage of the serenity.
However, that peace was short-lived when she heard a knock at her door.
“Hmm?” Fluttershy said to herself. “Who could that be? I wasn’t expecting anypony today.”
She walked over to her front door and opened it slightly. When she saw it was Rainbow Dash, she opened her door wider to greet her friend. She then saw a tortoise beside her.
“Hello, Rainbow,” Fluttershy smiled. “I see you brought a guest with you.”
Rainbow was unusually sheepish.
“Rainbow?” Fluttershy asked. “Did you come here for help?”
“Y-yeah,” Rainbow said. “Remember two days ago when I said I wanted a pet?”
“Oh, I certainly do,” Fluttershy smiled.
Two days ago, Rainbow was waking up from a nap. She had an unusual dream.
“That was a real doozy,” Rainbow muttered. “I dreamt I was having a flying race against Owlowiscious, but, then his head turned into Winona’s. Then, his body changed to having Angel’s head, Gummy’s body, and Owlowiscious’ wings. Then, when the creature opened its mouth, its tongue was Opalescence. I was so startled that I began to fall.” She then saw her friends’ pets gathered by the tree she was napping on. “Oh, that’s why.”
She then saw her friends coming with Spike on Twilight’s back. Spike saw Rainbow on her tree perch and waved up at her. “Hey, Rainbow!”
Rarity positioned herself so Opal could climb down the tree onto her back.
“Hey, guys,” Rainbow said, trying to shake off the fright she felt from her daytime dream. “Having some fun at the park, huh?”
“Like we do every week,” Applejack said. “We’re all gathered up for our Pony Pet Playdate.”
Rainbow was confused. “How long was this a thing?”
“It started some time after Spike and I officially adopted Owlowiscious,” Twilight said.
“That was months ago,” Rainbow said.
“We would’ve invited you,” Spike said. “But, there’s a problem with that. You don’t have a pet.”
“You don’t have a pet, either, Spike” Rainbow pointed out.
“Technically,” Twilight said. “He kind of does. Owlowscious is my pet and I see Spike as my son, so, that makes Owlowiscious Spike’s pet by proxy. Besides, it wouldn’t be fair leaving him home alone. I’ve done too much of that already.”
“Oh, yeah,” Rainbow said. “Sorry, guys.”
“We figgered ya’d be nappin’ when ya should be workin’ anyhow,” Applejack said. “So, ya wouldn’t really miss out on nothin’ nohow.”
“Hey, wait a minute,” Rainbow said. “Just because I don’t have a pet now doesn’t mean that I never want a pet. I’m responsible enough.” There was a pause of silence before Rainbow’s friends burst out into fits of uncontrollable laughter. “And what, may I ask, is so funny?”
“I’m sorry, Rainbow,” Rarity said, wiping a tear from her eye. “But, you? Responsible?”
Twilight was the first to stop laughing, though, she was clearly still amused. “No disrespect, Rainbow,” she said, trying hard not to laugh further. “But, let’s be honest here. You are the least responsible out of all of us. Even those younger than you, in other words, all of us but Applejack, are more mature.”*
“You did once kick Razer in the face,” Fluttershy said. “Which was pretty dangerous considering he was several times bigger than you.”
“You also use crass language in earshot of Scootaloo,” Rarity said. “Do you know how her aunts feel about her saying such things?”
“Proud that she learned some new adjectives?” Rainbow asked, not getting the point.
“There’s also the fact that you put off work to either nap or practice stunts,” Pinkie said. “Sometimes, both. There’s also you trying to toughen up Fluttershy to pranks by pranking her like the bullies you were supposed to be defending her from.”
“Basically,” Applejack stated bluntly. “Yer lazy.”
“Okay,” Rainbow said with a blush on her face. “I get that, but, that doesn't really mean anything.”
“Face it, Dashie,” Spike said. “Even Snips and Snails are more responsible than you are and look at them now.”
The mares followed Spike’s point and saw Snips and Snails dangling from a tree branch by their tails with their bewildered brother trying to figure things out.
“So, neither of you have any idea how this happened?” Tails asked.
“Believe me,” Snips said with a shrug. “We have no idea.”
“I think it’s time to retrace your steps,” Tails said. “First, it started with you two each getting a glass of lemonade…”
“Uh huh,” Snails said, nodding.
“You put sour crystals in said lemonade…” Tails continued.
“Yeah~” Snips said in an almost ashamed tone.
“And now,” Tails concluded. “You’re both dangling by your tails from a tree branch somehow.”
“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Snails said at last.
“I think we’re missing a few key steps here,” Tails said. His brothers shrugged. “Come on, you two!” Tails exclaimed. “This is like your biggest fail ever and you don’t even remember what you did?!”**
Back with the group, they saw the whole display.
“Okay,” Rainbow said. “So, maybe I do need to work on being more responsible.”
“Ya got yer work cut out fer ya,” Applejack said.
“But,” Rainbow said. “I hope I can count on you guys to help me.”
“Spike, girls besides Rainbow, huddle,” Twilight said.
So, the group, sans Rainbow, huddled together.
“You think we should let her prove she can be responsible?” Fluttershy asked in a whisper.
“Well, maybe,” Twilight said. “But, it’ll be amusing to see how long she can go without doing something stupid.”
“Twilight,” Fluttershy whispered. “That wasn’t a very nice thing to say.”
“You’ve known Rainbow longer than the rest of us,” Twilight said. “You know first-hoof how lazy and reckless she can be.”
“A leopard might not be able to change its spots,” Fluttershy said. “But, ponies can change. After all, I’m getting out of my shell a bit more with help from all of you. So, I think we should give it a try. Besides, it wouldn’t feel right of us to leave her out when she does finally get a pet.”
“Okay,” Twilight said. “But, the second she starts doing something dangerous, we’re calling it off.”
So, the group breaks apart from the huddle. “We’ll give you a chance to prove you can be responsible, Rainbow,” Twilight said.
“Yeah!” Rainbow cheered before she caught herself. “Oh, uh, I mean… how delightful.”
“The second ya start yer stunts,” Applejack said. “Ya can ferget ‘bout havin’ a pet.”
“You’re not my parents,” Rainbow said.
“The way we put up with you sometimes, we might as well be,” Rarity said.
Back in the present day, Fluttershy was listening to the end of Rainbow's story.
“I also Pinkie Promised I would try to be more responsible,” Rainbow said.
“So,” Fluttershy said. “What about this tortoise friend of yours?”
“Well, an embarrassing thing happened to me the other day,” Rainbow said. “Can I trust you not to tell anypony?”
“You can,” Fluttershy said.
“The other day,” Rainbow said. “After we couldn’t find the right pet for me, I was flying around, looking for stray clouds when I saw this eagle.”
“Oh?” Fluttershy asked.
“Yeah,” Rainbow confirmed. “I had the urge to race it and wouldn’t you know, we were over Ghastly Gorge.”
Fluttershy gasped. “Ghastly Gorge?! That place is very dangerous! Even with the Quarray Eels being gentle towards me, I hardly ever go there if I can help it.”
“It’s not that dangerous or scary,” Rainbow said. “I’ve flown through it plenty of times before.”
“I guess it would be helpful to someone who’s more used to it,” Fluttershy said. “Sorry, you were saying?”
Back when Rainbow was on her cloud patrol, she spotted an eagle flying by. The speedster was overtaken by the urge to race. The eagle fled through the air and Rainbow followed it trying to overtake it. She soon found they were flying over Ghastly Gorge.
Rainbow flew just high enough to avoid the hazards that would plague any earth ponies or unicorns that would try to navigate it.
“Okay,” Rainbow said to herself. “Stay on course and stay safe.” She looked back to see the eagle. “Yeah, I’m overtaking him!” Then, there was trouble. Because she wasn’t looking ahead of her, she didn’t see the wall of the gorge was behind her. So, she slammed her back against the cavernous wall.
This caused rocks to start tumbling. “Uh, oh!” Rainbow said as she reoriented herself. As she tried to escape the falling rocks, one of them caught onto her open wings and she collapsed onto the ground at the bottom of the gorge. She looked up and saw the eagle fly on. “Hey, come back!” she called. Though, it was no use. The eagle had flown so far away that it couldn’t hear her.
The reality of the situation began to sink in. “Oh, no,” Rainbow said to herself. “I could be stuck down here forever! And nopony else knows I’m here!” She sighed sadly to herself. “Spike and the others were right. If I’m not responsible enough to look after myself, then I wouldn’t be responsible enough to look after a pet.” She made a vow. “If I get out of this, I’ll work harder on being responsible and start with cleaning my cloudo.” She then remembered the rocks on her wings. “That’ll be a big if.”
After some time, someone did come to her rescue. Although, it wasn’t anyone Rainbow was expecting or even knew. It was a tortoise slowly making its way to her.
“Huh?” Rainbow said. “A tortoise? I haven’t seen an actual one unlike the one that was on my inspirational poster.” The tortoise dug at the base of one rock enough to stick its head in. The tortoise continued to dig until finally there was a divot big enough for Rainbow to move her wing out from under the rock. Rainbow was surprised by the smaller creature’s strength. “Wow, that was amazing!” With one wing freed, Rainbow pushed another rock off her other wing. “My wings are going to be a little sore, but, I can carry on.” She then turned her attention towards the tortoise. “Thanks, little guy. I owe you one.” She picked the tortoise up. “I’ll take you to the vet and get my wings checked.”
Back to present day, Rainbow wrapped up her story.
“The doctors said nothing was broken, thankfully,” she said.
“Thank goodness for that,” Fluttershy smiled. “And it was responsible of you taking the tortoise to the vet so that he can be looked after.”
“You can tell the tortoise is a guy?” Rainbow asked.
“Mm, hmm,” Fluttershy nodded. “I’ve seen him around Ghastly Gorge before. Though, he doesn’t have a name yet. He once told me that he’s waiting for his future owner to bless him with one.”
“I didn’t know tortoises made noises,” Rainbow said.
“As a matter of fact, they do,” Fluttershy said. “They make all sorts of varying sounds similar to other animals. They cluck, grunt, hoot, moan, hiss, roar, and whine. To me, they sound like they overenunciate.”
“I see,” Rainbow said in a fascinated tone. “Anyway, remember how I decided to have a competition for the top pet options?”
“Oh, yes,” Fluttershy said with a nod.
“Well,” Rainbow said. “Can I enter this little guy?”
Fluttershy considered this. “It might not be easy for him to compete. But, it would be a way for you to repay him for his efforts in rescuing you. That is kind of you to give him a chance.”
“I know pets need stuff like food, water, and attention,” Rainbow said. “And it involves doing things like taking them for walks or cleaning up after them. But, I want to make sure that whatever pet I get is a pet that suits me, a pet that really gets me. I'm feeling kind of strong about the tortoise after he saved me. He kind of reminds me a lot of myself. But, if I don't put this tortoise through the same tests as the other potential pets, how will I know for sure if he's truly right for me? That’s where I need your help."
“I suppose I can help with that,” Fluttershy said. “I can get Twilight to keep track of every candidate’s performance. But, I can't decide for you what animal would make the best pet. That's something you'll have to decide for yourself. And I can't guarantee every potential pet will live up to your high expectations."
“That’s why I’m holding this contest,” Rainbow said. “I want to see for myself who the right pet is.”
Sometime later, after Fluttershy had managed to wrangle up all the potential candidates, she brought them to a patch of land not far from the town hall. Rainbow Dash had chosen it specifically for the fact that it would be easy to spot from afar and with the exception of her, Spike, and Twilight, there was currently nopony around to interrupt anything.
“Alright, everyone,” Rainbow announced in a dark blue ball cap hat that had a white section in the middle and a white front that extended past her mane and a shiny red whistle that hung around her neck on a white string. “You’re all here because we’re going to decide who is fit to be my perfect pet.”
Twilight, Spike, and Fluttershy watched from afar with mixes of interest and concern.
“I’m sure the animals will do their best,” Fluttershy said.
“I just hope Rainbow doesn’t make them do something dangerous,” Twilight said.
The brash speedster, for her part, simply addressed the gathered crowd of animals assembled before her.
“These games will determine who has what it takes to be my pet,” she explained. “They will test you on various qualities. Speed, agility, guts, style, coolness, awesomeness, and radicalness.”
“Aren’t those last three the same thing?” Twilight asked.
“You would think that, Twilight,” Rainbow said. “But, to me, they’re very different.”
“You have a very vague definition of what ‘being cool’ is, Rainbow,” Twilight said. “Rarity has mentioned that you were the least helpful of us all when you kept insisting that she make your dress cooler without explaining further.”
“Trust me, Twilight,” Rainbow said. “I’ll know the difference.”
Later, the pets were lined up at a race track to test their speed.
“Ready,” Rainbow began to call. “Set… go!” She blew her whistle and started her stopwatch. The animals raced around the course as fast as possible. Even the tortoise gave it the old college try, though he didn’t travel very fast. Rainbow shook her head when the race was over with the falcon winning. "Look, I know speed's not your thing, buddy. But, come on, you have to be faster than that! If you're going to be my pet, you have to be able to keep up! So, please tell me that wasn't your best." The tortoise didn't give her an answer. Even if he could, only Fluttershy would understand.
The next quality was agility. The animals were to go through an obstacle course. The hummingbird managed to outmaneuver the other pets. The tortoise didn’t really get far at all, but, he was still determined to continue. Rainbow frowned a bit. “Look,” she said. “I get it, you're a tortoise. But, even you must be able to do something." Again, however, she got no reply.
The next challenge was guts. Spike was setting down a pet cage. “I can’t believe you managed to talk Rarity into lending Opal for this challenge,” he said.
“I know Opal isn’t too happy with the idea,” Rainbow said. “But, I did promise Rarity I would make things better for her after this.”
“Luckily,” Spike said. “I was able to keep her from clawing at my stomach. That would’ve been agonizing for me.”
“That is lucky that didn’t happen,” Rainbow smiled. She then turned her attention back to the animals. “Okay, here’s your test in guts. You have to get Opal’s favorite toy away from her.” She set down a dark purple stuffed mouse before Opal’s cage was opened.
Most of the animals tried to creep closer to the mouse, but, some of them were afraid to get too close out of fear of the ferocious white Persian. However, some (including the tortoise) decided they were brave enough to chance it. The monarch butterfly flew ahead. It flapped its wings, hypnotizing Opal. While Opal was dazed, the butterfly tried to carry the toy, but, the toy was too heavy for it.*** The tortoise, in an inexplicable boost of speed, got behind the cage and tilted it over the still hypnotized Opal. He waltzed over to the mouse toy and picked it up with his mouth. Needless to say, Rainbow was surprised. “Hey, that was pretty gutsy,” Rainbow smiled. “But, how’d that tortoise manage to move so fast?” He must really be determined to be my pet that he’s defying all odds, she thought to herself.
The next few challenges flew by in the blink of an eye until only radicalness was left. After that, Rainbow Dash was expected to check with Twilight and then make an announcement about which animal had won both the overall competition and the right to be her pet.
“So, Twilight,” Rainbow said. “How’s it looking?”
“Well,” Twilight said. “The falcon scored highest in speed, the hummingbird scored highest in agility, the tortoise and butterfly tied for highest in guts, you didn’t really give a score for style, and since I have no way to tell coolness and awesomeness apart, I just put the winners of those together.”
Rainbow looked at the checklist. “Ah,” She said. “The eagle and the owl.” She whispered to Twilight. “Between you and me, I’m not really eager to accept the eagle.”
“Why not?” Twilight whispered in return.
“Let’s just say I had a bad experience with one recently,” Rainbow whispered.
“I see,” Twilight whispered in return.
“Now, for radicalness,” Rainbow said aloud.
“I still can’t tell the difference,” Twilight said.
The radicalness contest turned out to be a talent contest. The tortoise was the last of the animals to compete on the stage. He had somehow managed to get a small obstacle course of sorts set up, including a hoop of fire. He took one step forward and in doing so caused a spring to give way. It launched the tortoise into the air and somehow he managed to land just right to make it past every obstacle and land safely in a net that symbolized the finish line. He then slowly poked his head out from his shell, looking none the worse for wear.
“Wow!” Rainbow said in amazement. “That was something!” She looked over at Spike, Fluttershy, and Twilight. “Which of you helped him set that up?”
“I didn’t,” Fluttershy said. “Do you really think I would put animals in a position where they could get hurt?”
“I didn’t set it up, either,” Spike said. “Twilight didn’t ask me to.”
“And I didn’t set it up either,” Twilight said. “Honestly, we're not sure how that was set up.”
With that, the contests were over.
Rainbow and Twilight went over the score. The rest of their friends gathered to hear the winner.
“So,” Fluttershy said. “Now that you have the score ready, have you decided which one of the animals is your number one pet?”
“The winner is…” Rainbow paused for dramatic effect. “The tortoise!”
This caught most of everyone by surprise, especially the tortoise.
“Believe me,” Rainbow said. “I’m as surprised as the rest of you, but, I can’t deny it.” She turned her gaze to the tortoise. "The way you were willing to go through this whole competition, even when you knew you didn't have a chance of winning a single contest, it really means a lot to me," she explained. "Until a while ago, I thought that the most important traits to look for in a pet were all physical competitive abilities. But, now I can see how short-sighted and shallow that really was. You saving me in Ghastly Gorge really opened my eyes, kind of reminded me a lot of myself."
“What do ya mean by he saved ya in Ghastly Gorge?” Applejack asked.
“What were you doing there in the first place?” Pinkie asked.
Rainbow took a deep breath and explained what had happened the day before. Applejack used her Mystic Eyes of Truth to analyze her words. After she finished, she expected her friends to mock her, saying that she really was irresponsible. “Go ahead and say it,” Rainbow said. “I Rainbowed it up.”
“Racin’ that eagle n’ gettin’ trapped at Ghastly Gorge was a reckless, irresponsible, n’ stupid thing ta do,” Applejack said bluntly before shifting to a softer tone. “But, what was responsible was takin’ the tortoise ta the vet n’ gettin’ yer wings checked when they didn’t feel right.”
“It really shows that you are capable of being responsible when you put your mind to it,” Rarity added. “With that, we think you’re ready to have that tortoise as a pet, especially as an act of gratitude towards him.”
Pinkie nudged Twilight, who begrudgingly gave her five gold bits.
“We’re sorry we misjudged you before, Rainbow,” Spike said.
“That’s okay,” Rainbow said. “Honestly, I kind of needed to hear those words. They gave me the kick in the flank I needed. So did getting trapped in Ghastly Gorge.” She then turned her attention to the tortoise. “Little guy, I promise to be the best pet owner I can be towards you and I’m going to take the best care of you. You have a lot of determination and a real tough-as-nails attitude like me. You have a certain… um… stick-to-it-iveness? No, that’s not a word.”
“Tenacity,” Twilight said.
“Thanks,” Rainbow said. “Little guy, you’re as strong as the tanks that tortoises and turtles can be kept in.” Rainbow suddenly gasped excitedly. “That’s it! I’ll call you ‘Tank!’”****
“I can put the Icarus Cloudwalking Spell on him,” Twilight said.
“Great idea, Twilight,” Rainbow said.
“There’s something you should know about tortoises,” Fluttershy said.
“What’s that?” Rainbow asked.
“Well, you know how Spike gets drowsier the colder he gets?” Fluttershy said. “Tortoises are also cold-blooded.”*****
“Oh, yeah,” Rainbow said. “With my cloudo home being higher in the air, Tank might get cold, too, right?”
“If you don’t give him external ways of keeping warm,” Fluttershy said. “Especially in the winter when he goes into hibernation.”
“Hmm,” Rainbow considered. “I think I can find ways to help maintain his temperature, but, I will need your guys’ help.”
“I could make Tank some warm clothes,” Rarity offered.
“And I know of a few vegetarian soup recipes that Tank will love,” Fluttershy said.
“I think we should also make Tank something to let him fly on his own,” Spike said.
“Yeah,” Rainbow said. “No offense, Tank, but, you would be a little heavy for me to carry around all the time.”
Tank made noises that Fluttershy translated as, “No… offense… taken.”
A bit later, Tank was fitted with a magical propeller that could carry him off the ground. He also had a pair of tiny aviator goggles on to keep dust and other debris out of his eyes.
“Hey,” Rainbow smiled. “Looking good, buddy!” She turned to Twilight. “For a mare who’s not that skilled with machines, you didn’t do half bad.”
“Uh, thanks, I guess,” Twilight said, uncertain of how to take the compliment with the slight jab.
“Hey, Spike,” Rainbow said. “How about writing me a letter to the princess?”
“Sure thing,” Spike said, readying a quill and scroll. Rainbow then began saying what she wanted written.
“Dear Princess Celestia,
I used to think that the most important quality to look for in a pet or any best friend, was all about physical and competitive abilities. But, now I can see how short-sighted and shallow that is. After all, all of my best friends are vastly different from me, but, they all have important qualities that we have in common. When it comes to finding a pet, finding a pet is all about a pet that has a certain spirit, true tenacity, and a never give up attitude that’s the mark of a true winner. The tortoise that I adopted and named Tank has those spirits and more. My friends have even pushed me into being more responsible. I’m definitely going to need help with working on that, but, I know I can count on my friends to push me further in the right direction.
Yours truly,
Rainbow Dash”
Fluttershy was carefully looking at Tank. She had a studious look on her face. Rainbow and Applejack took notice.
“Whatcha doin’, Fluttershy?” Applejack asked.
“I’ve seen Tank before Rainbow adopted him,” Fluttershy said. “He barely moved an inch a minute whenever I looked at him. Then, when I take my eyes off him for a few seconds, he would travel at least two hooves further than he was before I took my eyes off him without making a sound.”
“Yeah,” Rainbow said. “I noticed something like that before with him. I thought that was just sheer determination.”
“I think I have an idea to explain that,” Twilight said. “I read about a creature called the Shy Cheetah Tortoise.”
“A what-now?” Applejack asked.
“Shy Cheetah Tortoise,” Twilight explained. “They look like regular tortoises, but, they can move as fast as a cheetah as long as they’re not being properly observed.”******
“Wait,” Rainbow said. “So, Tank was the one who set up that stunt show before, wasn't he?”
“Possibly,” Twilight said. “Why don’t you ask him, Fluttershy?”
“Tank,” Fluttershy said to Tank. “Did you set up your stunt show during the radicalness test?” Tank responded with positive tortoise noises. “I see. That was quite innovative on your part, even if it might have been dangerous.” Fluttershy turned back towards her friends. “He said yes.”
“But, how did he manage?” Spike asked.
“I read that Shy Cheetah Tortoises are quite dexterous with their mouths,” Twilight said.
“Oh, that makes sense,” Spike said.
Tank nuzzled Rainbow. Rainbow and Tank couldn’t help but smile for each other.
“Tank,” Rainbow said at last. “Looks like this is the start of a beautiful friendship.”
End of chapter.
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Hello there. Again, the dialogue, characterizations, (limited) action and future chapter set-up are wonderfully done. And thanks for using my dialogue idea enough to use it. Anyway, really liked Rainbow taking her friends' point outs concerning her irresponsibility to heart (to an extent) as well as the logical alterations concerning how Rainbow first met Tank as well as Fluttershy letting Rainbow know about Tank's hibernation time a lot earlier and the more logical (for Equestria standards) reason for the name.
VERY definitely looking forward to more of this.
11685728
Thanks.
I love love this chapter. I love how you did tank and rainbow dash. And Spike Twilight and Fluttershy too. I love the way rainbow dash was portrayed. And I love how you are developing her character. Making her more into the rainbow dash we love on the show. And I love how the pets portrayed. And I love love love this chapter and keep up the good work and please make more chapters and more stories. And keep on doing rainbow dash good. And can you keep on with other characters making good. And please do the school of friendship I like to see how that's going to work out can you please make that chapter. And keep up the good work I love your stories.
11685736
I'm going to make more chapters. You don't have to keep asking.
I am tank-ful at this new chapter. I can't wait to read The Mysterious Mare Do Well.
Moments like these force us to try harder, dig deeper, and discover gifts we never knew we had—to find the greatness within each of us.
Here's a song that will make you rise up. Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/y7dy9z-jTxM?si=9ln4CTBQUYOsrrsj
Good change up with this, and how Tank becomes Rainbow's pet
11685743
You'll have to wait for Mare-Do-Well.
11685744
Yep.
11685750
Okay, I’ll wait.
Also, I'm happy to have a friend like you who's been doing a great job making this book two story into a great hit.
11685781
Thanks.
11685787
You’re welcome
Like what everyone else said you did REALLY great with this chapter. And, did a great thing of mentioning Tank hibernation much early then the canon
11685792
Thanks.
Pretty interesting how the Ghastly Gorge scene is now repurposed as happening at the start of the episode leading Rainbow Dash to willingly enter Tank in the competition rather than Fluttershy having to ask her to do so.
Nice detail on Tank being a shy cheetah tortoise, explaining how he set up an obstacle course on his own.
Little does Spike know he'll get his own pet too with Peewee later this season (or at least temporarily since the following season shows he gave him back to his parents).
Man, Snips, Snails, and Tails' dynamic sometimes reminds me of the Eds' dynamic where Tails is the voice of reason and tries to rein in the other two's recklessness like Double D (his hypothetical VA here is even Double D's voice actor Sam Vincent), Snips is like Eddy (albeit a lot dumber) in being the more scheming one (though that only comes up when he's trying to sell merch to profit off of Snails' success as a buckball player), and Snails is the dumbest of them all like Ed.
Seeing how Rainbow Dash already knows about tortoise hibernation at the end of the episode thanks to Fluttershy, does this mean Tanks for the Memories probably isn't happening since she already knows what to expect for Tank in winter (plus this version indicates a few years will pass between seasons 2 and 5 so that episode won't even be the first time Tank has to hibernate, unless it gets placed in seasons 3 or 4)?
Next week: Halloween night as Luna tries to improve her public image among the ponies.
11685857
Tanks For The Memories will be a flashback.
STORM: *Squees, glomps Rainbow Dash and jumps up and down before realization hits* Oh sweet Fausticorn and Bonniecorn, I like a Rainbow Dash-centric story.
11686134
BRANDON: O-kay...
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STORM: What? I'm an animal lover, this is a good rewrite, but it's Rainbow Dash! The pony who's ego is bigger than all of Ponyville!
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BRANDON: At least she’s taking self-improvement here.
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STORM: Ain't that the truth.
11686177
And it’ll stick.
Now all of the Mane 6 has a pet.
Liked this version! Especially with Rainbow Dash willing to give Tank a chance and being responsible from now on! Also loved the future set up of "Tanks For the Memories"! Loved the made up species of Shy Cheetah Tortoise!
11686390
Yep.
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Thanks.
...
should i call the foundation on this? Eh nah probably not
11687569
Creatures strange here are commonplace in Equestria.
11687571
True but this is just 173 but Turtle! Or tortoise
11687574
I don't really read SCP.
11687591
Thats fine
Looking at how the Mane 6 do bring up how Rainbow Dash is the least responsible among the group in spite of being the second oldest, it certainly makes me wonder a good chunk of that could come from her being the only one who hasn't had experience in being much a role model for a younger kid like Twilight raising Spike as her son and the other four having younger siblings like Applejack having Apple Bloom, Rarity having Sweetie Belle, Fluttershy having Zephyr Breeze, and Pinkie having Marble. In a sense, Rainbow Dash learning responsibility here is preparing her for when she eventually takes Scootaloo in as her younger sister next season.
11687730
Yep.
On the subject of the next episode Luna Eclipsed, will Spike and Fluttershy be a lot less terrified of Luna than they were in the canon episode? It is shown that at least Pinkie was acting scared because she liked it and Applejack was okay with her once the initial shock wore off so they probably won't get altered much in your take. For Spike and Fluttershy though, they (along with the rest of the Mane 6) do encounter Luna a lot more between Friendship is Magic Part 2 and Luna Eclipsed with Luna also being Spike's dragonsitter and therapist so that does especially give less reason for Spike to be scared of her in Luna Eclipsed.
11690800
Wait and see.
Cres que en el episodio de ataque de avaricia puedas convertir a Spike en un Dragón Berserk cómo de la historia de Mauroz.
11692304
In English?