Living where the crossing life leads

by Warioexpert

4 - A Unicorn Joins The Chestnut Festival

“Okay, so let me get this straight...” said Jack as he walked with Twilight. “Pinkie Pie is a happy party goer, Rarity is a dedicated fashionista, Fluttershy is a shy animal lover, Rainbow Dash is a speedy daredevil and Applejack is a rowdy cowgirl am I right?” he said, counting each name out with his fingers.

“Cowpony” corrected Twilight, fixing the blue bow concealing her horn.

“Ah... right... and what's the difference again?” Jack tilted his head.

“Ugh...” Twilight groaned. “Why do I have to keep telling you this? Most of our pronouns in Equestria end with ‘pony’ for obvious reasons”

“Hey! Don't try to lecture me like some kid!” Jack snapped at her.

Twilight tilted her head for a moment “But you're not a goat...”

Jack then slapped his forehead, leaving a red hand mark. “Take it easy Jack... It’ll take awhile to get use to her craziness.” he whispered under his breath, but apparently not quiet enough

“Why are you talking to yourself?” Twilight looked at Jack inquisitively.

“It helps me think... Alright no more questions, we’re here” Jack said, evading the question, as he walked up to a white and red house with a green roof. A blue tailoring sign confirmed the house as a shop.

“Able Sisters”, Twilight read out loud. “Is this the design place you told me about?” she asked with a smile on her face.

“Yeah that's right.” Jack said as he opened the door and walked in, letting Twilight walk into the opened door

“Hey! What about lady’s first?” Twilight scowled as she entered, rubbing her hurt muzzle.

“Oh I'm sorry, I thought you were a ‘Pony’ not a lady.” Jack chuckled with a smirk receiving a unimpressed glare from Twilight.

"I'm a mare to be specific, so yes I'm a lady." she responded through gritted teeth.

A blue porcupine with red powdered cheeks and a green checkered apron walked up to Jack with a smile.

“Hello there Jack!” said the cheery porcupine in a welcoming tone. “You're just in time, your yukata is sown and ready for the festival!”

“Ah, good” Jack smiled back as Twilight peeked over at the porcupine.

“Well hello there!” the porcupine said slightly surprised seeing a unknown girl with Jack. “Welcome to the Able Sisters shop, I'm Mable” Mable said with a humble bow. “Are you new here in town?” she asked.

“Yes! She’s a new citizen.” Jack quickly answered hoping that was a good enough excuse. “I'm helping her get some clothes to wear.”

“Oh, I see! Welcome to Smashville then miss?...” Mabel asked with a tilt of her head.

“Twilight, just call me Twilight” she said sheepishly.

Mable nodded, seeming to accept Jack's partial truth. “Well, feel free to browse the store then Twilight, if you have any questions feel free to ask.”

Twilight nodded back as she started to look around, rubbing her chin curiously as she browsed through the different clothing and designs they had on display.

“Rarity would definitely like it here...” she said before noticing another porcupine sitting in front of a running sewing machine.

This one was brown and wore a pink checkered apron, she didn't seem as perky as Mable at first glance.

“Um... Hello there” Twilight said to the working porcupine.

As Twilight waited for a response, she started to feel a bit awkward and edged towards the next rack of clothes. Hearing the sewing machine stop, Twilight turned her head as a tired voice spoke up.

“O-Oh... I'm sorry” she apologized “I've been so busy with this last Kimono I got stuck in a sewing trance again.” she held out a paw towards Twilight. “I’m Sable, nice to meet you.” Sable said with a tired smile.

“Its nice to meet you too Sable.” Twilight said before shaking her paw. “I’ve never heard of these kinds of dresses before, are they exotic?” she asked looking at the partially done dress.

“No, not at all...”, answered Sable. “There actually traditional dresses used for the town festivals that go on every year.”

Twilight nodded as she rubbed her chin. “Hmm...Is there any chance I could get one?” she asked politely before feeling a shiver up her spine.

“What?” Jack added as he cut into their conversation “Why would you want one?” he asked with a scowl.

“Well, I am going to join this little festival of your’s, aren't I?” Twilight said as she crossed her arms.

Mable smiled at the two while walking towards the small group. “Well we can certainly squeeze in one more before the festival starts, right Sable?” Mable asked her sister.

“U-Um... I could start working on one as soon as I’m done with the other orders...” Sable said with a small nod.

“Mable! You know better than to exert Sable like that!” Jack scolded Mable.

Sable looked up at Jack. “Don't worry... She knows that already, I can get this done and be able to join all of you for the festival.” Sable said fiddling with her thumbs.

With a sigh, Jack walked over to Sable and carefully patted her on the head, oblivious of the light blush on her face.

“Whatever you say Sable... Alright, I’ll be taking my yukata with me” Jack said to Mable before she walked to the register with his clothes, leaving the two girls alone.

“So what kind of kimono would you like Twilight?” Sable asked with a smile.

"Kimono, don't you mean a yukata?" Twilight asked with a puzzled expression.

"The yukata's are made of a strong cotton blend for the boys while the kimono's are made of a beautiful silk weave for the girls." Sable replied, her eyes sparkling.

"Aahh... That does make a difference. A star pattern stars would be fine with me” Twilight said thinking how much Sable resembled Rarity in that moment.

“That sounds like an interesting kimono design choice.” Mable said loudly from across the store, while punching out numbers “We here at the Able Sister’s shop pride ourselves in bringing out the inner designer in our customers! Anything else you'd like embroidered into the weave?”

“Don't get ahead of yourself Mabel...” Jack said picturing the cost of a detailed kimono draining his wallet. “We still need some regular clothes for her”

Mable crossed her arms and nodded “Right-right, that white dress she’s wearing doesn't compliment her violet fur at all.”

“TOGA!” Jack quickly corrected.

---

As the sun began to set over the horizon, the town’s folk were putting the final touches for the annual chestnut festival. Different stalls were being set up in front of town hall, grills were flaring to life and the light glowed from the many game vendors.

“Alfonso! Where’s the lumber?” hollered Mayor Tortimer towards the panting gator.

“I’m coming sir!” Alfonso said as he ran up with a cart full of dry lumber. “Phew...” the gator wiped his forehead before he looked over to a green stall, that was being set up by a shady looking fox.

I sure hope Jack show’s up, he thought to himself.

“Alfonso!”

The mayor's shout called again quickly snapping him out of thoughts as he rushed after the mayor with the cart. “Coming!”

About this same time Jack and Twilight were walking out of the Able Sisters shop, laden down with outfits for the evenings festivities and Twilight.

“I still can't believe how quickly Sable was able to make my dress!” Twilight said cheerfully as she held a bag with her new clothes in one hand, and a box with her outfit under her other arm with care.

“I still can't believe Mable let you have it free of charge to...” Jack said in a dry tone. “I had to shell out 8,000 bells for my outfit plus the clothes I bought you!” he grimaced looking over the receipt.

“Um... Thanks?” Twilight said with her ears pinned back.

“Don't mention it.” Jack deadpanned. “At least I can wash your stink from my toga.”

“Hmph... I’ll have you know that I bathe daily Mister!” she scolded him with her head held high as she walked past.

“Well you still smell like a hundred year old library mixed with a hint of writing Ink to me.” Jack mocked while covering his nose.

“Hmph...”, Twilight huffed. “...So is that what your currency is called here? These ‘Bells’?” Twilight asked trying to change the subject.

Jack looked at Twilight slightly shocked. “Fudge, I forgot to tell you about that. If you're gonna start working you’ll need to know what you're paying with.” he said while reaching into his pocket. “Here take a gander at this” he pulled out his wallet. “This here is a Bell” he said pulling out a gold coin with a star engraved on it.

Twilight looked at it closely “Oh! There just like bits!” she exclaimed.

“Yeeaahh... Well anyway, this coin is worth 100 bells. We have more types of coins that are worth less, but we mostly use those for change” he said while putting the coin away.

“Well, Bits in our world are valued individually. For example if I wanted a pound of apples I would have to pay 6 bits for it, depending on the economy of the apple itself.” Twilight explained before taking a big breath.

Instinctively, Jack covered his ears and knelt to the ground.

"What are you doing Jack?" Twilight asked staring at his strange pose

“Ugh...” he groaned while getting to his feet. “You sounded just like my friend Blathers for a second.”

Twilight lifted an eyebrow in confusion “Blathers?”

“He’s the town’s museum curator...” Jack said in a bored tone.

“You have a museum here!?” Twilight exclaimed “Oh! I love museums! Their so informative and exciting!" She grabbed hold of Jack's arm and gave her best puppy dog eyes before continuing. "Please, you have to take me there sometime!”

Feeling annoyed Jack rolled his eyes “Yeah-sure, I’ll take you there some other time”

“Oh I just can't wait!” She clapped her hands which led to her dropping her packages.

This girl is going to be the death of me, Jack thought to himself. “Um Twilight, you dropped your bags.” Jack said, pointing them out to the overexcited unicorn.

---

It was finally nightfall. The moon was full, the stalls were ready and the villagers were all up and about. Jack walked down the stalls, happily biting off a mouthful of grilled squid on a stick.

“Ahhh.... this is the life. A nicely charred squid in one hand, a goldfish in a bag on the other and Maple is in the city with her relatives for the holiday! Life can't get much better!”

“Jack! Hey Jack!” Alfonso shouted out.

“Hey Alfonso.” Jack said with a blissful smile as Alfonso ran up to him, the hem of his yukata of swirling pink and orange trailing.

“Wow Jack, the Able Sisters really did a great job on your yukata.” Alfonso said as he looked at Jacks outfit.

It was sewn together with golden thread with blue background with a lit black bomb imprinted on his back.

“So where’s Twilight, huh? Did she dump you or something?” Alfonso said with a suggestive smirk, right before he started seeing stars.

Alfonso fell to the ground with a steaming bump on his head. “Owww... what was that for?” The gator whined in pain as he got up rubbing the bump on his head.

“Cause I felt like it.” Jack said, blowing steam off his knuckles.

“Ehhh???” Alfonso exclaimed. “What do you mean felt like it!?” the gator growled.

“Calm down alright? Twilight’s playing some carnival games.” Jack pointed over to the disguised unicorn with his thumb.

“Darn it... I missed again” said Twilight disappointed at her loss.

“Oh...” said Alfonso “I’m glad to see that she decided to stop in for the festival” he said giving his head a scratch. “And you sure are lucky Maple isn't here to find out that you have another girl at the festival.” Alfonso smirked rubbing his chin. “Now what was I going to say?”

“Need me to bonk you on the head again to remember?” Jack raised his fist.

“No-no-no-no-no! Its fine!” Alfonso held his hands up defensively as a drop of sweat rolled down his eyebrow. “I just remembered!”

“Well then let me in on it.” Jack took another bite out of his squid as Alfonso gripped his shoulder.

“He’s here” Alfonso said, Jack suddenly swallowed with a loud gulp.

“Where?” Jack asked with a daring smirk as he followed Alfonso’s pointing claw.

What they were both looking at was someone standing in front of a green stall. Jack bit off the rest of his squid and dropped the goldfish bag in Alfonso’s claws before he started to walk towards the person.

“There you are...” Jack began to crack his knuckles as he approached the figure.

The person slowly turned his head to see Jack. He was a black wolf with red eyes and a white snout wearing a red yukata with orange flames.

“Jack...” said the wolf with a stiff nod.

“Seth...” said Jack returning the nod.

“I see you're here for another loss at Ol’ Redd’s target game?” Seth remarked with a sharp toothed smirk.

“Not this time Seth. This time I'll send you home with your tail between your legs!” Jack held up a challenging fist.

“Gentlemen-gentlemen!” hollered a fox as he meticulously rubbed his hands together “You can both take your frustration out on the targets instead of each other... for a mere 1,000 bells!” the fox grinned.

“Hey! That's 500 bells more than last year Redd!” Jack snapped at the fox “What are you trying to pull!?”

Seth laughed “You're not afraid of a little inflation are ya Kid?” Jack then shot back a cold glare that collided with the wolf's.

“Hey Alfonso.” said Twilight, walking over to the gator As she walked, the royal purple kimono swayed with her movements, giving glimpses of sparkling constellations skillfully sewn so the silver thread made them look alive. “What's up?” she asked.

“Hey Twilight...” Alfonso said trying to keep his eyes on the other two as she stood next to him. “Here you can have this, I'd just break the bag with my claws.” he said before placing the bagged goldfish into Twilight's hands.

“Oh thanks Alfonso! I've been trying to win one of these in one of those weird target games” she said with a warm smile, before feeling her fur stand up. “...Why do I feel a sudden electricity in the air? Is there going to be an earthquake?” she said frightfully.

“No Twilight, what you sense is a duel.” Alfonso said turning her head towards the two challengers as the fox manning the booth held up his hands to quiet the crowd.

“The reason I raise and lower prices every year is depends on the prize dear boy! And the prize this year is worth every Bell.” Redd snickered as he placed a chest on the counter with a flourish.

To draw all eyes on him, Redd slowly opened the lid as a golden shimmer emanated from the chest. Fully opening the chest both Jack and Seth beheld the treasure that was the first place prize, a slingshot made of a red, wood handle and a fork of solid gold.

Jack’s eyes shot open in recognition. “No... it can't be! H-How did you get this!?” he started to interrogate Redd before hearing Seth interrupt.

“Yes! I've finally found it! After all this time searching!” the wolf said with a toothy grin.

“What do you mean YOU found it!?” Jack scowled at Seth.

“Please, I just need to beat you like last year” Seth chuckled smugly.

Twilight quickly walked up to Jack oblivious to all the tension. “Jack, what are you doing?” she whispered tugging on his sleeve.

“Beat it Twilight, can't you see I'm in the middle of something here?” Jack whispered back at her.

“My-my-my Jack!” Seth said walking up to Twilight as she 'eeped' in surprise. “That's no way to talk to a young lady, especially such a pretty young mare.”

“Excuse me!?” Both Jack and Twilight said in a synchronized fashion but with opposing expressions.

“You heard me..."'Seth's eyes lit-up as an idea came to mind. "...How about we make this wager a little more interesting Jack?” he said to Jack.

He chuckled boldly before answering the wolf “How so?” Jack replied in a taunting voice.

Seth reached into his pocket and tossed a burlap bag onto the counter top, spilling a few of the contents. “30,000 bells, 'if' you can beat me" he shouted, getting a collective gasp from the growing crowd. Murmurs soon started to circulate throughout the crowd.

Never seen so many bells in one place before...

Jack could beat him easily...

I will sell you a sidewalk...

“What's the catch?” Jack asked staring down his rival.

Seth glanced over Jack's shoulder at the blushing purple pony with a grin.“If I win... I get to take your pretty friend out on a date. Movies, an expensive dinner and gifts..." shifting his gaze back to Jack. "...with you paying the bills.” he finished ominously

Twilight's eyes widened, trying to keep track of the unfolding events. "30,000 bells... date...wager...pretty?" steam poured from her ears as she tried to understand how she'd been roped into this rivalry.

“I can't understand how such an adorable beauty ended up with..." Seth waved a paw in Jacks general direction, seemingly at a loss for words.

Alfonso walked over to Jack and pulled him aside. "You can't do this!" the gator hissed, turning to point at the befuddled Twilight. "If you lose he'll find out about her being a unic--" turning back to look at Jack, Alfonso noticed he was gone. “Oh-no...”

"Your on!" Jack shouted as he gripped the wolf's paw tightly.

“There's a good sport.” Seth said with a sly grin as they both pulled out their playing bells and set them on the counter.

“Alfonso... did he just bet me off...?” Twilight asked, the steam was gone but her eyes seemed a bit askew.

The gator nodded. “I’m afraid he did... want to hightail it before he loses?” Alfonso asked before being interrupted by Redd's announcement.

“Very well then gentlemen, allow me to set things up!” the shady fox said, putting the chest away and pulled out a black box with a big red button.

Seeing this mechanism, the town folk jostled each other for better views. Twilight yelped as she and Alfonso quickly found themselves in the very front, unable to run with the other townsfolk blocking their way. Jack and Seth simultaneously reached into their pockets and pulled out their slingshots.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“At least this will be a challenge.” Seth commented, seeing Jack pull out a silver slingshot from his pocket as Redd placed two buckets of steel pellets on the counter.

“Shut your trap and show me what you got.” Jack said snidely, grabbing a few pellets from the bucket.

They both held four pellets between their fingers as they loaded the fifth in their slingshot pouches.

“I think its better to step back a little Twilight...” Alfonso said placing a claw on her shoulder, seeing both competitors gain a dangerous glint in their eyes.

“Wait one moment...” she shrugged Alfonso off and jogged over to Jack, giving the wolf a wary look. “Please don't lose. I really don't want to become dinner.” she whispered to Jack a bit scared, unsure of what a date really was.

Having his focus temporarily broken by her odd request, he pushed her back in irritation. "Give me a break Twilight!. I’ll beat this Wolf, it will be like taking candy from a baby only I'm taking his bells instead." he responded smugly, seeing Seth's ears twitch in their direction.

"Come on Twilight.” Alfonso said, awkwardly pulling her back towards the gathered crowd.

“Are you gentlemen ready?” Redd asked as the commotion died down.

“Ready!” They both shouted out, staring intently at the black box.

Everything seemed to go in slow motion as Redd slammed down on the red button.

“BREAK THE TARGETS!” the crowd cheered as targets flew from both sides of the black box.

Both Jack and Seth's eyes narrowed, before simultaneously hitting the targets dead center. With practiced precision they quickly placed another pellet in the pouch and pulled their arms back, just before the next set of targets sprang out. Pellets flied as they worked furiously to nail each target. The ground around the machine soon became littered with pieces of broken targets as Redd kept tally on a note pad. The crowd cheered loudly but both of the marksmen didn't notice. The only noise they heard was the stretch of elastic, the whistling of flying pellets and targets shattering.

“What a heated match up folks! I've never seen anything like it!” Redd shouted into a microphone, keeping a close tab on the breaking targets as the crowd cheered even louder.

“How can Jack even move like that?!” Twilight yelled over the noise, eyes glued to the two competitors.

“Jack’s been training for over a year! The first time he challenged Seth, he got beat pretty bad! If you knew Jack, you'd understand he doesn't like to lose!” Alfonso shouted back before raising his arms in the air. " GO JACK!"

After a full thirty seconds of flying pellets and bashing targets past, neither of the two sides showed signs of letting up. Midway Seth had grimaced slightly as one of his targets shattered, but his toothy grin had quickly returned.

“Here come the last two targets!” Redd shouted as the wood targets stopped and the crowd went silent.

“Oh no, that's how Jack lost last time!” Alfonso exclaimed.

“How?” Twilight looked around, still caught up in the previous excitement as she asked.

“The last two targets are made of rubber!” Alfonso covered his eyes with his claws.

“Rubber?” Twilight found herself doing the same. “Oh, I can't watch!”

“Mmmm!” Jack grunted as he loaded his last pellet. The rubber target, you won't get away like last time. He thought, waiting for the moment of truth.

Giving a dramatic pause, Redd held his paw teasingly over the red button. Without warning he pressed it and the final targets shot high into the air, punching two holes in the paper thin roof. Both Jack and Seth shifted their sights to follow the runaway targets, straining their elastics to the limit. Simultaneously the targets exploded into bits of rubber. The rubber rained down on the crowd as Seth and Jack exchanged glares, panting from the exercise.

“Whoa! What a big finish from our two sharpshooters here!” Redd announced into his mic. “Now let's tally up the scores!” pushing down the same red button, two screens rose up from the stall and began to flash numbers randomly.

Twilight and Alfonso slowly opened their eyes as a drum roll played for Seth's score.

“Amazing ladies and gentlemen! The champ Seth has scored an impressive 59 out of 60!” Shouted Redd into the microphone.

The villagers who sided with the wolf cheered with excitement as Twilight fell to her knees in shock. Seeing her drop, Alfonso tried to comfort her.

"Don't worry it's not a perfect score. Maybe Jack beat him!" Alfonso said trying to motivate her, but even he felt unsure about Jack's win after last year.

Twilight and Alfonso both looked up as fireworks flew from the box as Jack's score showed up on the other screen.

“This is incredible ladies and gentleman! Challenger Jack has scored a perfect 60 out of 60, we have our new champion!” Redd announced as the rest of the villagers went wild.

“He won!?” Twilight exclaimed.

“He won!” Alfonso threw his arms up before they hugged each other with cheers of excitement.

Jack gave a tired sigh as he looked over at Seth.

“You've improved, Missed the center of one of my targets." Seth said holding out a paw in good sportsmanship, which Jack shook.

“Heh... You don't seem so mad about losing.” Jack remarked with a smile.

“Naw, I'm just disappointed I didn't land that date...” Seth said, blushing slightly as Jack let out a laugh.

Both of them turned hearing someone approach

“Jack! That was amazing!” Twilight cheered as she skipped up to him.

“Course it was, I was training all year for this.” Jack huffed proudly before swaying slightly. "Not that I'm tired, but I think we should leave."

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“Are you sure you’re not going to stick around for the rest of the festival Jack?” Alfonso said as Jack pocketed his winnings.

“Yeah Jack, why can't we stay longer? Beside becoming a wager this night's been pretty fun” Twilight whined as she showed the goldfish Alfonso got her.

“Meh... You know I don't stay around long for these kinds of things after I’ve eaten my fill of good festival food” Jack answered Alfonso while wiggling three fingers in Twilight's direction. “You start work early tomorrow so I think it's time to leave, is there a problem with that?”

Twilight’s ears lay flat on her head before answering, “No”, with a scowl.

“Work?” Alfonso said, before grabbing his fist in understanding. “Oh I see, you're giving her the old Nook treatment” he said nudging Jacks arm.

“The what?” Twilight asked, looking at the gator.

“Well you see Twilight, when Jack first got here he didn't quite plan out on how he was going to live. Tom Nook, the owner of the town shop, took him in and gave him a house. In exchange Jack had to work for three months to pay the house and start his life here in Smashville.” Alfonso explained.

“Oh I see, but I'm not going to be here more than three months... right?” Twilight looked worried at Jack.

“Of course not, I can barely stand you and you haven't even started living with me yet!” Jack said, stifling a bored yawn.

Twilight scowled as he started to walk away. “Well for your information, I'm not so fond of you either... Especially after you almost bet me out to some wolf!”

“Consider it training for your job.” Jack smirked patting his pocket. “This should cover the cost of your clothes nicely I might add.” he said with a chuckle, causing Twilight to roll her eyes.

“You know I only agreed to stay with you because you were supposed to take responsibility of me right?” Twilight reminded Jack.

“I am taking responsibility. As soon as we get back to the house, I’m going to set up the room you’ll be staying in.” Jack called as he got further away

Alfonso looked down slightly “I wish I could offer you a room to stay at my place... but my house is too small for two people...” the gator said sympathetically.

Twilight gave him a pat on the back, which quickly livened his spirits.

“Awww... that's still very generous of you Alfonso.” She said with a smile, before her face scrunched up at the sound of Jack nickering.

Turning on him with a furious look, she gave chase as he continued making ponycalls.

“Well... I guess I’ll see you two later” Alfonso called after the disappearing two, before heading back to the festival.

---

Too exhausted after chasing Jack, he'd had to carry her part of the way.

“You don't seem to me much of an athlete there Twilight...” Jack remarked.

"Stupid Jack..." she murmured, weakly punching his nose.

As her hand dropped back into her lap, Jack laughed at the absurdly weak punch. Finally the house came into view as a voice called out.

“Greetings Master Jack, I see you have returned from this year’s festival.” Lloyd said as he gyrated faster. “And I see that your guest from earlier today has returned, semi-conscious this time it seems”

"Wha~" Twilight started to say before she was dropped. "Ow, why'd you do that!" she said to Jack, looking annoyed.

"I carried you most of the way, you should be able to make through the door." Jack replied bluntly.

“Ah!” Twilight jumped behind Jack finally finding the source of the previous voice. “Wh-what is that?” she asked, finding herself looking over his shoulder.

“Oh, I almost forgot...” Jack said, prying Twilight off his shoulder. “This is Lloyd, he’s sort of a housekeeper even though all he can do is sit there and spin around.”

“Correction Master Jack, my prime directive is to greet guest with the utmost politeness.” Lloyd said as he stood still for a second. “And who might you be Madam?” Lloyd addressed Twilight as she inspected him.

“Hmm..You're made out of clay aren't you?” Twilight asked, ignoring Lloyd's previous question.

“Affirmative Madam, Master Jack sculpted me himself” Lloyd said.

“How are you even talking?” Twilight asked again.

Jack rolled his eyes, feeling the conversation drag-on. “It's complicated Twilight, don't try to wrap your head around it too much.” he said, tugging her away from Lloyd. “This is Twilight, Lloyd. She’ll be staying with me until I can get her back to wherever she came from.” Jack explained, trying to make the remark sound unimportant.

“Understood Master Jack.” Lloyd said, gyrating again. “Welcome to your new temporary home, Mistress Twilight.” Lloyd spun faster as Jack face palmed.

“Hmm... Mistress Twilight... I like how it sounds but why mistress instead of miss.” Twilight smiled as she asked Lloyd.

“Don't get use to it...” Jack said quickly grabbing her arm and dragging her away before getting her question answered... “Now lets go inside already.” Jack opened the door, this time he held it open for Twilight. “Mare’s first”, he chuckled.

“Thanks ‘Kid’” Twilight giggled at him as she walked inside, which immediately killed Jack’s good mood.

“Don't call me that...” he mumbled as he went inside after her with a vein pulsating on his forehead.

He quickly found her inspecting the living room. At first glance he could tell she was being judgmental of the rooms setup. She continued to pace around the different kinds of furniture and inspecting the miscellaneous things around the room.

“Where are the books?” Twilight asked after making two circuits of the room.

“The what?” Jack asked as he walked towards a flight of stairs.

"This is the house's study right, so where are the books? Are they down here?" Twilight asked jogging past him to the stairway leading downstairs.

She was about to start down the steps when a shudder crept up her spine. Turning to look at Jack, she saw a dark aura exuding from him.

"You'll regret it if you even dare taking another step down there..." he said ominously as she backed away from the steps.

He stepped onto another stairway leading upwards as his mood changed back to normal. “I’ll show you to your room.” he said cheerfully as Twilight hurried after him.

Reaching the second floor they found themselves in Jack's guest meeting room. It was half the size of the living room and was slightly less cluttered. Even so it held many assorted knick-knacks including: fish tanks full of exotic species, glass tables, dark red roses, a piggy bank, a picture frame holding a four leaf clover and what seemed to be a golden box with two bigger sets of boxes beside it.

“What’s this thing do?” Twilight said, walking up to it.

“Oh, that's just my golden stereo. I have some music in it for when I want to lounge in my chair.” Jack said, pointing to a black leather recliner. Next to it was a brick fireplace which supported a knight’s helmet.

“You use to be a guard?” Twilight asked as she picked the helmet up “Wow, this is heavy!” Twilight struggled to hold it up before Jack picked it out of her hands

“No, its just for decoration.” he dusted it off before placing it back on the fireplace. “And what did i say about rule number 2?” Jack said, scowling at her.

“I'm sorry...” she looked down “Its just that I have an older brother who’s a captain in Equestria... It’s been a long time since I last saw him...”

Jack stood there for a moment with his arms crossed. “Riveting story, does he save some princess and lives happily ever after?” Jack said with a yawn. “ Enough of the ideal chatter, I want to get to bed soon so let me show you to your room already” he said as he climbed up another flight of stairs.

Twilight gave a sigh watching him walk away without a care. “So much for trying to have a friendly conversation for once.” she thought aloud, following Jack.

After a few seconds of climbing, they reached the attic. “Hey, this is the same attic I woke up in when I arrived here.” she said, recognizing the messy bed.

“Yep”, Jack confirmed giving an over dramatic flourish. “And this is where you will be staying.” he said as he walked up to the bed.

“Oh, come on” whined Twilight. “You can't honestly expect me to live in some dusty old attic with no windows or anything!” she was going to continue before Jack held up three fingers again with a stern expression on his face.

“Don’t worry too much about it Twilight. Like I said this room is yours to do with as you please.” Jack said as he placed his hand on the golden bed.

“Fine...” she sighed. Her eyes soon shot open as the golden bed vanished before her eyes “The bed! W-where did it go!?” she looked around frantically.

“Calm down, it's right here” Jack said as he held up a green leaf.

“...You're kidding right...?” she gave an un-amused look before crossing her arms.

“Nope!” Jack said, putting the leaf away in his pocket. “And this will be your bed.” he said, pulling a slightly different leaf from his pocket.

To Twilight's amazement the leaf burst into a puff of smoke as it hit the floor. When the smoke cleared a blue colored twin sized bed had appeared.

“This world is going to drive me insane...” Twilight said as a hair on her head sprang out of place, she then saw Jack lay down another leaf, this time it exploded into what seemed to be a wardrobe.

“I have plenty of furniture here so pick what you like to decorate the place with. I even have some wallpaper and flooring in here as well. Just take your time and have fun with the decorating.” he said, strolling back to the stairs. “Good night...”

---

Twilight sighed as Jack finally left. “Okay... I guess I could make this work.” she said, looking inside the large wardrobe. “Hmm...” the first thing she pulled out was a note pad and something resembling a quill. “So do I just write or is there an ink pot.” she asked the wardrobe, looking for the missing ink. Not finding any she placed the nib of the strange quill and was happy to see black ink where it touched. “Ah-ha! So the ink is in the paper, now I can start documenting my findings at least” she exclaimed.

Remembering what Jack said before about pockets, she tried putting the notepad in the kimono's pocket. She gave a quick smile as it disappeared from view.

“I might get use to that... I just hope my friends aren't too worried about me” she said, hanging up the kimono and bow.

She gave a quick stretch, happy to be out of the fancy clothes. Plodding over to the bed, she crawled under the sheets. She lay in a ball under the sheets for a few minutes. Through her mind, thoughts of her family and friends made her cringe with homesickness.

“My friends...” she pulled the sheets back to look at the dark ceiling. “I miss you all already.” she said with a sniffle.

Comments

[Warioexpert]

Alright! fourth chapter is up! took a little longer than I anticipated though I hope you all enjoy it!

P.S. Props to my Editor Hydra

[Mother3Forever]

Can't wait for Blathers to meet Twilight.

[Hydra]

1829271 did you notice the foreshadowing X3

P.s. not talking about blathers

[NataProblem]

I hope blathers mentions something about all the donations to the museium coming from one specific person

[Theclockmaker]

NO WOMAN EVER ENTERS THE MAN-CAVE!!!

[Hydra]

1831587 Only death awaits the intruder~

[Theclockmaker]

1829026
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