Bad Company

by Symphony

Ch. 36 - Code Pink

Author's Note:

Once again, sorry for making you guys wait for this chapter, work has been beating me back into submission by waking up at 6 in the morning again. Anyhoo, this chapter really gets things moving.

I shot to my feet and the chattering in the other room stopped. I stared back at Pinkie on the other side of the window, holding a hand to my chest and breathing heavy.

“What was that, Jay?” I heard mom call from the other room.

“Uh... Nothing, I just got scratched by Opal! I'm fine!” I lied, making a zipping motion over my mouth to Pinkie.

“Okay, we'll come out in a bit!”

Their talking continued and I stepped toward the front door and opened it. Pinkie attempted to zip past me but I was quick enough to grab her in the scruff of her neck and lift her back outside.

“Hey, what gives! I just wanted to say hello to that other hyu-mane!” Pinkie pouted. I dropped her, she bounced and did a backflip to land on her hooves and looked at me with her lower lip sticking out.

I crossed my arms. “Nnnope, you're not going anywhere near her until I set some ground rules.” Her eyes met mine and held them for a few seconds. I slowly raised an eyebrow and her eyes averted.

“But you said that rules are meant to be broken...” She muttered.

“I did but this is different.” I glanced behind to see that the door to them was still closed. “That human? She's my mom and she's not completely used to ponies yet so she's still a bit jumpy around you guys.”

“Oooh, I get it!” Pinkie beamed and bounced to my head-level. “Can I just have a teeny tiny party then? I won't invite everypony I know, promise!”

I crossed my arms and chewed on my lip. She stared right back up at me, pouting and her lower lip quivering. She almost looked like she was about to cry. God dammit...

I pinched the bridge of my nose and sighed. “Oh, alright... Fuck. Okay, you can do it but I have two rules then that need to be set." I raised a finger. "One, it will be at my house." I raised a second finger. "Two, invite only the girls, Spike, and ponies that I know.”

“All of the ponies that you know?” Another giant grin split her face.

“What? No! That's not what I meant...” I glared down at her, she was just staring up at me with twinkling eyes. “Local ponies, keep it on the down-low and don't go crazy about it...”

She blew some air out of her mouth and frowned but almost immediately bounced back to the same grin as before. “Got it! I'll go and get everything set up, see you later!”

She zoomed off and left a pony-shaped cloud of dust that disappeared a few seconds after. I blinked and sighed, walking back into the store and slumping back down to the couch just as the door opened.

Mom was smiling and talking with Rarity about some detailing. I didn't have much interest so I stood back up and rolled my shoulders.

“Who were you talking to?” Mom asked after she finished talking to Rarity, she also seemed interested in knowing who was at the door.

I bit my lip. “Well... You know what I said about Pinkie really liking meeting new people?” They nodded. “She showed up at the door and I stopped her, then she talked me into letting her throw a welcome-to-Ponyville-party for you.” I scratched the back of my head. “Sorry that I wasn't able to talk her out of it, I told her to dial it down and it'll be at home though.”

Mom waved a hand dismissingly. “Don't worry, I can take it.” She smiled. “Thank you for looking after me but this will be good for me.”

“Alright, as long as you're fine with it.” I smiled and we started walking to the door.

“Besides,” Mom said as she reached for the doorknob. “How bad can it be?”

I pursed my lips and glanced back at Rarity, she met my eyes and we held it for a few seconds.

“Uh... Yeah...”

---

We walked back home in silence, as both of us didn't really have anything to talk about. After we left her, she said that Rarity was a nice pony and that she really liked her work. Eventually, we made it to the gate and I tapped the code.

We beelined to the door, both eager to sit down and rest for a while until we either got bored or when Strawberry came back home from work.

Whatever came first, really.

Mom walked to the kitchen. “I'm gonna get some coffee made, do you want some?”

“Sure, I'm just gonna head upstairs to the office to see if I've gotten anything from work. I'll be down in five!” I jogged up the stairs and tapped a hand on the wall as I made my way to my workplace.

I hummed, opened to door and left it open when I walked inside. I made my way around the desk to my chair and sat down, doing a twirl before settling in it. I opened a drawer and pulled out a box of matches that were enchanted or some shit.

I didn't really ask how it worked, to be honest.

I moved a candleholder holding a single, blue candle closer to myself and struck a match, lighting the candle with it. I rested my chin on a hand and tapped my fingers to the desk as I watched the candle flicker a few times until it started glowing a pale blue.

A wisp of smoke came from it and went down to the desk and a small pile of papers formed in it before the candle stopped glowing and the fire went out. I started thumbing through the pile until I noticed that there was a small letter in the middle of it. I pulled it out and looked it over. My eyes widened slightly when I saw Celestia's mark on the red wax seal.

I dumped the pile of papers on the other side of the desk and peeled the letter open and immediately started reading.

'Jay,

I'm writing to inform you that we have made a significant breakthrough in stabilizing the dimensional tether. This means that we have managed to create an artificial dimensional doorway that leads back to your world.

The only thing we're missing to connect to a specific point on your world is a stable point of reference. Once we figure that out, the portal will be ready to be put to use at your discretion.

I'm sending you a special match that will connect your magicandle to me for quicker correspondence. If you have any suggestions, please let us know.

Regards,

Princess Celestia of Equestria'

The match she mentioned was taped to the parchment. I peeled it off and twirled it in my fingers as I leaned back in my chair and released a breath I wasn't aware I was holding. I put the match back on the desk and ran my hands through my hair.

Thoughts exploded in my head, some were telling me that it was a relief that they were able to find a quick solution to this. The other thoughts were yelling at me to not tell mom so she can be with me for longer before I lose her again.

This time for good.

I didn't tell the princesses this at first but I want to make sure that no-one can come through the dimensions again after this. What if someone ends up somewhere that's not as welcoming as Equestria? What if several missing person cases could be solved just by looking around on this planet? Are there humans running around here that we don't know of? Hell, how can I know?

What would happen if a kid goes here and can't return..?

They have to sever the connection somehow after mom has gone home. I know that it would imply that there's no way back for me but I'm used to life here now. I'd take that bullet with a smile at this point.

My eyes were drawn to my phone lying partially covered by some folders and I stared at the USB-input on the bottom of it. So... If I was able to receive a call from mom after putting it on Celestia's horn for a few seconds, what can happen if I keep it on for longer?

…

I grabbed an empty parchment from a drawer and took a pen lying next to it.

'Celestia,

I might have an answer for the connection. Remember the device I put on your horn? On my world, it can be used for long-range communication which means if I manage to get a call out, you can hook on to that and stabilize.

What I need for this is a metal thimble, wiring and a roll or two of duct tape. Trust me, I kind of know what I'm doing.'

Jay.'

I rolled up the paper and tied it shut, then picked up the match that came with her letter and struck it. The flame flickered to life and the match was cased in a yellow aura that tickled my hand. I lit the candle again and shook out the burning match. I looked at it and it looked brand new as if it hadn't just been lit.

Fuckin' magic, man...

I waited for a while and the blue aura of the candle gradually shifted into gold. Once it was completely recolored, I put the letter to Celestia on it and it turned into a wisp of smoke that disappeared with a pop and the candle went out.

Mom peeked inside, then smiled and walked inside carrying two coffee mugs. “Hey,” she giggled. “why the long face?”

I groaned and put my face in the palm of my hands as she laughed and placed my mug in front of me. “How long have you been holding that one in?”

She hummed and tapped a finger to her chin. “Oh, just about since I got here.”

“Very funny.” I droned before adjusting in my seat and taking a sip of coffee. “If you have to ask, it's because of this letter right here.” I handed Celestia's letter to her and she started reading through it.

“Oh my goodness!” She exclaimed and nearly dropped her mug. “This is great news! Have you thought of a solution?”

“I think so, I sent my idea to her already. It's basically redneck science.” I said with a shrug. “I don't know if she'll think it's a good idea but it's what I got.”

“Does it include duct tape?”

“Yup.”

“Yeah, that sounds like redneck science...” She said with a smile. “I can't believe that they actually managed to do this so fast, though!” She laughed again. “This is amazing!”

“Yeah...” I parroted her and strained out a smile. “Amazing...”

Comments

[Miles Skywalker]

Hahaha! Sounds about like my family. Baling wire and duct tape fix everything!

[Symphony]

9128200
If duct tape doesn't fix it, it's really broken.

[D48]

9128247
Amen to that.

[Miles Skywalker]

9128247
No, you're just not using enough!!

[Igor0831]

Redneck Science.