Maya Pyrexia comes to Ponyville and makes three new friends.
Maya Pyrexia. A young nekomata with a curiosity for what lies beyond her home. While exploring with her friend, Selena Flare, she comes to Ponyville for a short visit where she gets separated from her friend, but comes across three fillies that are well known through out Ponyville. She soon, she starts to bond with them, but how long will she stay, will Selena be able to find her, and will Maya's new friends find out her secret?
Within the Everfree Forest is a two-tailed cat creature called a nekomata named Maya Pyrexia. She comes from a secret place in the forest where nekomatas live in peace. There is a ritual where a nekomata on their tenth birthday will gain small flames on their tails which are symbols to them. Each flame is colored and what color they will be is unknown until they appear. During her tenth birthday, her flames were revealed to be pink which symbolize sensitivity and playfulness. Two years later, she went out for walk with her friend, Selena Flare. "So Maya, where are we going?" she asked.
"I've always wanted to see more parts of the forest and I wanted to bring you with me," she responded.
"Well, let's not forget we shouldn't stray too far and if we do, you know how to shapeshift, right?"
"Uh-huh, practiced every day," Maya answered as she then used her flames to envelop her and in her place, was a red unicorn filly with a dark pink mane, yellow eyes, pink ears, white hooves, and a pink and white flame Cutie Mark.
“Impressive, want to see my pony form?” Selena then shapeshifted into a slightly taller black earth pony with a dark blue mane and eyes, white hooves and ears and a lantern Cutie Mark. As they continued to walk, they soon came across the edge of the forest and saw what was ahead. "Wow, what's that?" Maya asked.
"Looks like a town of ponies to me," Selena asked. "I've never really been there before actually; you want to go and check it out?" Maya nodded and the two walked over to the town. "Oh, before I forget, do you know what your pony name is?"
"I went with Fire Dance, what's yours?"
"You can call me Lantern Light, Fire Dance," she answered with a wink. Soon, they came across the edge of the town and saw so many ponies walking around and talking to each other. "We might get lost here so we should stay close to each other, got it Maya?" Selena asked waiting for a response. "Maya?" she asked as she turned around to find that Maya has vanished. "Oh no, she's gone!" she said as she ran off to find where she went. "I know she tends to wander off, I just wish it didn't happen now!"
Meanwhile, Maya was wondering around seeing all the sights in the town with a happy and awe-struck expression, "Wow, this place is kinda pretty, isn't it? Selena?" She then turned around to see that Selena was not with her and that she was at the middle of a park. "Uh oh, I can't believe I just wandered off like that." She then saw a bench and sat on it hoping that Selena would find her soon.
Near at the edge of the park were three fillies who were well known throughout Ponyville, a team called the Cutie Mark Crusaders, consisting of Apple Bloom, an earth pony, Sweetie Belle, a unicorn, and Scootaloo, a pegasus. They were known for helping other ponies with any problems involving their Cutie Marks, whether it was helping them find their special talent or if it was to help them look at them from a different angle, they were more than happy to help. "So, what are we going to today?" Apple Bloom asked.
Sweetie Belle then looked ahead, "Maybe we should help her?" The other two then turned to look and saw a sad unicorn filly sitting on a bench and walked towards her.
"Hey, are you alright?" Scootaloo asked.
"Not really, I wandered off and now I probably have my best friend worried," the filly said.
"We could help you find your friend if you like," Sweetie Belle offered. The unicorn then cracked a small smile.
"Thanks, I was hoping she would find me here because I don’t really know my way around here, but I've been here for a few minutes, so I guess I should start finding her. I just hope she’s not lost like me"
"Great, I'm Sweetie Belle by the way.
"I'm Apple Bloom."
"Name's Scootaloo."
"My name is Fire Dance, nice to meet you. I'm actually new here, so I don't really know my way around here." After they got introductions out of the way, the group then started to search for Fire Dance's friend.
"So, who is your friend anyway?" Scootaloo asked.
"Her name is Lantern Light, she's a black earth pony with a dark blue mane and a lantern Cutie Mark," Fire Dance answered. “She’s very nice and fun and about three years older than me. She’s actually kinda like an older sister to me.”
"Aw, that so nice," Sweetie Belle commented.
“We’ve known each other for a few years, I couldn’t have asked for a better friend to grow up with,” Fire Dance continued.
“Maybe, you could introduce us to her when we find her,” Apple Bloom said.
“Oh, I bet you’d get along great.” The small group then started to search all over town, from Sugar Cube Corner to Carousel Boutique, from Twilight’s Castle to Sweet Apple Acres. While at said apple farm, Fire Dance started to get more worried little by little the longer they took to find her friend.
“Not here either,” Sweetie said looking over the view of the orchard. Soon, an orange earth pony with a blonde mane, Stenson hat, and three apples Cutie Mark came trotting over to the barn.
“Apple Bloom, who’s the new filly?” she asked.
“Oh, Applejack, this is Fire Dance. Fire Dance, this is my big sister, Applejack,” Apple Bloom introduced.
“Howdy Fire Dance, pleasure to meet ya,” Applejack greeted.
“Nice to meet you to Applejack,” Fire Dance replied.
“We were just helping her find her friend,” Sweetie said. “Have you seen a black earth pony with a lantern Cutie Mark?”
“Can’t say I have, sorry I couldn’t help you here.”
“It’s fine, I just wish I didn’t wander off like that when I did,” Fire Dance said frowning.
"Well, it's getting late," Applejack said looking of into the sunset. "Do you have a place to stay?"
"Not really, me and Lantern just came here today."
"Well, your welcome to stay here for the night, and don't worry about finding your friend, I can tell my friends the situation and we can all help," Applejack offered.
"Really? That makes me feel so much better," Fire Dance said happily.
"We could have a sleepover," Apple Bloom said. "Can we Applejack?"
"Well, if it's alright with you, it's alright with me. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, you're welcome to sleep here too."
"Yay!" The four fillies then went upstairs to Apple Bloom's room and got out three sleeping bags. Soon after, Fire Dance looked out the window.
"Hey, are you OK?" Apple Bloom asked her.
"Yeah, just still worried about Lantern. Wonder if she's doing fine."
"Don't worry, Applejack said she and her friends are going to help look for her. But right now, we should get some sleep."
"You're right." The two then went to go to sleep so they can continue to look for Lantern Light tomorrow morning.
Late at night, on the rooftop of one of the houses, Selena, who wasn't disguised anymore, was looking our for Maya. "I hope she's not hurt or in danger, I should've been looking out for her more." She then started to jump from roof to roof looking for Maya, wondering where she could have gone by now.
The next morning, the four fillies woke up and went downstairs into the kitchen for breakfast which consisted of pancakes and apple juice. "Ooh, looks good," Fire Dance said.
"Well, if you're going to find your friend, you need some energy," Applejack said. Everyone then sat down and began eating. Fire Dance then started to tell Applejack about Lantern Light, what she looks like and about how she acts.
"Thank you again for helping me find her Miss Applejack," she thanked.
"Aw shucks, just Applejack is fine," she replied slightly blushing.
"So, where are you and your friend from anyway," Apple Bloom asked.
"Oh, we're from... uh... a pretty far place," Fire Dance answered nervously.
"Where? Manehatten?"
"Trottingham?"
"Vanhoover?"
"Uh... the place where I'm from isn't really well known, so I don't think you'll know what I'm talking about," Fire Dance said in response.
"Aw, oh well, you don't have to tell us now," Sweetie Belle said surprised. Applejack became a little skeptical over why Fire Dance was so vague about where she's from, but then shook it off.
"So, any idea on where your friend is?" Scootaloo asked.
"Well, Lantern and I were heard that there was an inn here somewhere and we were trying to find it."
"I've heard of that place, The Sparrow's Nest," Applejack said. "I can go ask the desk clerk if they checked in your friend yesterday."
"Thanks, she's probably worried and I hate it when I make her worry," Fire Dance said with a frown.
"Well, while Applejack goes to The Sparrow's Nest to check for Lantern Light, we can help you search all over town," Apple Bloom offered.
"Plus, since you're new, we can also give you a tour," Sweetie Belle added.
"We know Ponyville like the back of our hooves," Scootaloo said.
"Thanks, I'd love that," the red unicorn said with a big smile. After breakfast, Applejack went off to the inn while the CMC gave Fire Dance a tour around Ponyville. As the tour was being given, Fire Dance, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom were riding in a wagon that was being pulled by Scootaloo with her scooter.
"And if you look over to your right, you'll see Sugar Cube Corner," Sweetie said pointer her hoof to the pink candy themed building. "There's a lot of really great sweets there."
"Mmm, I do love me a good cookie," Fire Dance said. She then noticed a giant castle in the shape of a tree made out of crystal. "What's that?" she asked pointing to the castle.
"That's Twilight's castle," Apple Bloom answered. "You know about Princess Twilight, right?"
"Uh, oh yeah, I've heard about her before, I just never thought I would get to see her castle," Fire Dance said.
"And right in front of us is town hall," Scootaloo said pointing to the tall building coming into view.
"Wait... do you guys smell... smoke?" Sweetie Belle asked. The other three just noticed the scent of smoke in the air and followed it to their left into the market place and saw the ashes of a burnt up vendor stall surrounded my a group of ponies.
"Don't worry everypony, the fire has been dowsed, no need to panic," a firefighter said trying to calm the crowd down.
Fire Dance then came out of the wagon and walked up to the firefighter and asked, "Excuse me, what happened here?"
"Well, I think Ms. Radiant Tapestry, who owned this vendor stall, can give you an explanation," he said gesturing to a crimson Earth Pony with an ivory white mane and a Cutie Mark of a rolled up tapestry.
"All I was doing was selling my wares when all of a sudden, I took notice to the smell of smoke. It was only at the very last minute did I find out the source of the smoke."
"We haven't found out what the cause was and considering the circumstances, I would advice that everypony be cautious of any potential fire hazards. We also have Princess Twilight on her way to investigate the cause," the firefighter announced to the crowd. Fire Dance then walked back to the CMC with a worried expression.
"Are you okay?" Scootaloo asked.
"Oh, I'm fine. Just a little worried is all," she responded.
"Well, don't worry, Twilight is the smartest pony we know, she'll figure it out," Sweetie Belle said.
"Maybe somepony was using a fire spell?" Apple Bloom guessed.
"It wasn't me, I swear, I'm always careful," Fire Dance said anxiously.
"Don't worry, we believe you," Sweetie Belle reassured.
"If you don't mind, I need a little time to clear out my thoughts," Fire Dance said while walking behind a bench. The CMC then looked at each other with worried looks with concern for the red unicorn.
"Maybe we should give her some alone time," Apple Bloom said.
"I hope she's okay," Sweetie Belle commented.
Maya sat down on the bench deep in thought, 'Selena, did you really... No, I know more than anyone else that she wouldn't just burn for no reason. Maybe she dropped her disguise and some embers from her flames accidentally fell and caused the fire. I need to find her and get my answer.'
Meanwhile, at The Sparrow's Nest, Applejack is at the front desk wanting to know if a pony named Lantern Light checked in. "I'm sorry Applejack, we never checked in anypony named Lantern Light before," the desk clerk said checking her clipboard.
"It's fine, don't worry," Applejack replied.
Just then, a voice from outside the building yelling,"Hey! AJ!" Applejack looked out the door to see Rainbow Dash flying above.
"Down here sugarcube!" she yelled. Rainbow came flying down towards her. "What's wrong?"
"Twilight needs us down at the castle, she says it's important." The two then started making their way to the castle to hear what Twilight had to say.
Selena was still searching for any sign of Maya and because it was daylight out, she disguised herself again as Lantern Light. She tried searching every nook and cranny of town in hopes of finding her friend, she eventually sees two random ponies talking to each other about something interesting. "Did you hear about the fire that spontaneously appeared in the market place?" the first one asked.
"Yeah, I'm just glad nopony was hurt, plus, I heard that Princess Twilight was going to investigate the cause personally," the second one replied.
Selena then walked right up to them and asked, "Excuse me, but what are you talking about?"
"Didn't you hear? A vendor stall at the market place mysteriously caught on fire. Not even the pony running the stall knew how it started, she said there wasn't anything that could ignite a fire in her stall which was where the fire started," the first pony answered.
"Some say it might have been started by magic, so who better to examine the wreckage than Princess Twilight, who is an expert on magic?" the second pony added.
"Oh, I see, thank you," Selena said as she walked off. 'Fire started by magic? Even if that was the case, it couldn't have been Maya, she knows better.'
Just then, she heard a voice coming from the sky yelling, "Hey! AJ!" Selena then walked over to where she heard the voice and saw and orange earth pony calling a blue pegasus over to her.
"Down here sugarcube!" she called as the pegasus flew down to her. "What's wrong?"
"Twilight needs us down at the castle, she says it's important." The two then ran and flew off to the castle with Selena following them while making sure that they don't notice her. Soon, the two friends soon reached the castle and went inside with Selena following them quietly. The two ponies walked into the main room with four other ponies and a young dragon inside. Trying not to be detected, Selena stayed on the other side of the door and pressed her ear on it to listen.
"Applejack, Rainbow Dash, I'm glad you two could make it," a normal female sounding voice said.
"No problem Twi," a raspy voice said who Selena recognized as the pegasus with a rainbow mane.
"Anyway, I've gathered you all here because of a mysterious fire that appeared in the market place recently," the one she assumed was Princess Twilight said.
"What happened? Was anypony hurt?" a quiet voiced asked in a concerned tone.
Twilight then replied, "Fortunately no, but nopony found any object that could cause a fire which is why there's the possibility that it was caused by magic."
"How do you know the cause was magic?" the pony with a southern accent said.
"I managed to salvage some magical residue from the site of the fire and after some research, this is defiantly fire-based magic. The only thing that confuses me is that it isn't the same magic as a unicorn's."
"If it wasn't a unicorn, then what was it?" a young male asked.
"I've checked every book I have on creatures capable of creating fire from magic, but I haven't gotten any results." Selena knew that very few ponies have known about the existence on nekomatas which is why there's no record on them. She then quietly escaped the castle and ran off somewhere in Ponyville and tried to think this over what she heard. 'So it was started by magic, but was it really Maya? If only I saw what the color of the flame was when it first started. Right now, I need to find her right now.' Selena then continued her search for Maya, wishing for her safety.
The CMC and Maya left the market place and continued with the tour, however, Maya was still in deep thought about the fire worried if Selena really did start it. Suddenly, she heard someone ask, "Um, Fire Dance?" Maya then came back to reality and saw it was Sweetie Belle who spoke. "Are you okay? You've been quiet ever since we left the market place."
"Oh, uh, I'm fine really. I'm just a little on edge about the fire," Maya said. "Well, that and I'm still worried about Lantern."
"Don't worry, we'll find her," Apple Bloom said. "I know we'll run into her eventually."
Maya then nodded and tried to focus on enjoying the tour, until a familiar voice called out, "Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Fire Dance!" They then saw Applejack running towards them.
"Applejack, did you find her?" Apple Bloom asked.
"No, sorry Fire Dance," Applejack apologized.
"It's fine, I'll find her soon," Maya replied.
"Anyway, Twilight said that magic started the fire, but she doesn't know what or who," Applejack said. "Now, I want the four of you to be careful, ya'll hear?"
"Yes, Applejack," all four answered. They all went off on their own ways with Maya in deep thought again.
'Everyone back at home said that barely anyone knows about the nekomatas, so it might just be a nekomata. Selena, please be okay.
As the three fillies and one disguised nekomata ride off to their final destination, one pegasus with an emerald coat, a honeydew mane, and a Cutie Mark of a phoenix feather watches them, keeping her eyes on Maya. "Maya, Selena, you'll be back home soon," she said as she flew off into another part of town.
