(Collab with yodajax10.) While tending to a sickly Spike, Fluttershy recounts the story of a mare named Amire, a magic lamp, and the three genies that lived inside it. And how Amire saved ancient Saddle Arabia from the evil Garra.
(Collab with yodajax10. Artwork comissioned on Deviantart by dSana for yodajax10 and used with permission.)
Spike comes down with a bad case of Sapphire Flu, and while Twilight is away, she asks Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash to care for him.
An ancient lamp purchased from a trio of mysterious merchants, inspires Fluttershy (with help from Rainbow Dash) to tell a story she heard, a story that takes place in ancient Saddle Arabia.
Amire has traveled to Saddle Arabia in the hope of getting money for her family, but soon she finds herself trapped in a cave with a dusty, old lamp. To her surprise, she discovers that the lamp is no ordinary lamp, it contains three magic genies named Yakko, Wakko, and Dot, who will each grant her one wish.
But unknown to Amire, the magic lamp and the genies within, have caught the eye of the evil Garra, who hopes to use the wishes to become powerful enough to take over not just Saddle Arabia, but all of Equestria!
Spike sniffled, as he lay in his bed, a wet cloth pressed up to his forehead. The little dragon had contracted a case of sapphire flu, and since there were no doctors in Ponyville that had any experience with the disease, Twilight had taken it upon herself to order nothing but bed rest and medicine for a couple of days.
Unfortunately, Twilight already had royal obligations at an upcoming summit in the Crystal Empire, and she just couldn't bring herself to cancel. With Starlight out of town for the week, she was forced to make other arrangements. Said arrangements were Fluttershy, who subsequently roped Rainbow Dash into helping.
"I don't even know the first thing about dragons! How am I supposed to help him?!" Rainbow Dash complained to Fluttershy, as the two pegasi were on their way to the castle. "Don't get me wrong, it stinks that Spike is sick and all, but I don't see what I can do for him."
"Spike is our friend, Rainbow Dash. And what friends would be if we didn't visit him and make sure he was okay?" Fluttershy asked. "If you're worried about catching what he has, don't be. Twilight told me that only dragons can get sapphire flu, she knows this because she took care of Spike the last time he got it."
"That's a relief, I'd rather not have to use up anymore of my sick days with the Wonderbolts," Rainbow Dash commented.
It wasn't long before the two pegasi arrived at the castle, and they quickly made their way inside. Following Twilight's directions, they found Spike's bedroom across the hall from the throne room, and the sickly little dragon that currently occupied the lone bed.
"Hey Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash," Spike greeted, his voice sounding raspy due to his illness. "Glad you stopped by, but I'm doing okay." However, it was at that very moment that Spike sneezed. But instead of flames, there was only a puff of smoke, the sapphire flu had left Spike's fire breath more or less disabled (a relief to both pegasi, who had been worried Spike might burn down the castle by accident with his firey sneezes).
Fluttershy smiled, as she looked at Spike. In a lot of ways, seeing him like this made her feel like she was taking care of one of her animal friends, it brought out that inner caretaker within her. Setting her saddle bags down on the floor, Fluttershy approached Spike and pressed a hoof to his forehead. "Goodness, Spike, you're burning up!" She remarked.
"Maybe my head is, but my feet feel so cold!" Spike complained, coughing a bit.
"Now now, you just relax. Rainbow Dash and I will take good care of you," Fluttershy assured the little dragon, lightly patting his green scales. "I'll go get your medicine."
"And I guess I'll change the head cloth, this one's pretty warm." Rainbow Dash offered, unsure of what else she could do.
Both pegasi set to work on the tasks they'd assigned themselves, then they took Spike's temperature, and fed him some gemstone soup. Of course, nothing was an instant cure, Spike just kept coughing and sneezing. "You know what would be really nice?" He commented.
"What, Spike? You need something else?" Rainbow inquired.
Spike shook his head slowly. "Nah, I'm good for now. I just..." He coughed a bit more, before he went on. "Wish I had something to do to pass the time. Being stuck in bed like this, all I can do is stare at the ceiling, and think about how miserable I am right now," Then he sighed, as he recalled fondly. "Whenever I get sick, Twilight always reads to me. She has all kinds of stories, even some ones she made up herself. It's just too bad the book containing them burned up along with the Golden Oak Library."
"Maybe we could find something in the castle library?" Rainbow suggested. "I may not know much about what kind of egghead sorting system Twilight uses, but there's gotta be some fairytales in there somewhere."
Fluttershy was about to agree to Rainbow's suggestion, when something caught her eye. It seemed that something shiny was sticking out of her saddle bag. Fluttershy trotted over, opened up her saddle bag, and took out the object. It was a strange (and rather old looking) lamp that had clearly seen better days. "Actually, seeing this lamp reminds me of a tale I heard," Fluttershy commented, upon looking at the lamp. "A trio of strange merchants sold it to me. They said it was 'No Ordinary Lamp!', and that it came all the way from Saddle Arabia."
"If you ask me, those guys were wacko!" Rainbow commented. "I couldn't put my hoof on it, but something about them seemed rather odd, like they're not from Equestria."
"I thought they were quite nice actually," Fluttershy giggled, and fondly recalled. "They even took a picture with us, and I wish I'd asked for it so I could remember what they looked like. I don't even think I asked them for their names," Clearing her throat, Fluttershy set the lamp down where Spike could see it, and started raking her brain to recall how the story went. "I believe the merchants said the story begins in ancient Saddle Arabia, a faraway land filled with strange wonders nopony had ever seen before," Then she paused, as she struggled to remember what came next. Looking across to Rainbow Dash she asked. "Dashie? You were there when the merchants told the story. Do you recall how it went?"
Rainbow Dash put a hoof to her chin as she pondered. "I... think I got the basics of it, though their method of story telling was quite strange. They said it made more sense where they came from," Then she sighed, as she added. "Can I see you for a sec, Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy raised an eyebrow and nodded as they exited the bedroom. Once they had, Rainbow immediately whispered to her friend. "I don't know if I can really tell the story, I'm not as sentimental about things like you are, Fluttershy. Maybe Spike means a lot to you, but to me he's just a nice guy to hang out with and maybe pal around some. Does it really matter what kind of story we tell him, as long as he likes it?"
"It's okay, Dashie. I can start the story, and you can join in when you're ready," Fluttershy encouraged. "You don't need to be sentimental to tell the story. Just be yourself, that's what Spike would want. Spike loves you for who you are, even if you're not sentimental like I am." The two then returned to the bedroom, with Fluttershy turning her attention to Spike, she began to narrate, and this is how the story went:
This is the story of a lamp, but it is no ordinary lamp! This lamp was quite magical, for it could grant any wish its owner desired, or so it was said. As a result, it was sought out by many a ponies. But although many tried, and searched the dessert around Saddle Arabia relentlessly for it, none had ever found it. Some said the lamp would only reveal itself to one that it deemed worthy, and that pony (whoever it might be) would stand out from the rest.
However, the lamp is not what drew the hero of this story to Saddle Arabia. The hero of this story, was a mare called Amire, who had left her home and traveled to Saddle Arabia in the hopes of obtaining money for her family.
The mare had a coat as orange as the desert sun at sunset, a mane and tail the most brilliant blonde you had ever seen, and green eyes that were as lush and full of life as the trees of a desert oasis.
"Hey, that sounds like Applejack!" Spike interrupted. "Is this gonna be one of those stories where I'm supposed to imagine my friends as the characters?"
Fluttershy chuckled. "I had the same reaction when the merchants told me the story. But the very words they told to me, I'll repeat to you: 'Any resemblance to any ponies past or present is purely coincidence.' And she then resumed the story:
Amire had hoped to find a job and make enough money to return home to her family within two months time, for after that the heat of the Saddle Arabian summer would be unbearable. Alas, Amire was not used to the work customs of Saddle Arabia, and her passion for honesty only made things more difficult. Her first job was working at a fruit stand, selling things such as apples, oranges, bananas, and even pears. One day while working at the stand, Amire noticed a scrawny looking orange coated filly, who was pocketing some apples and bananas when she thought nopony was looking.
Amire quickly grabbed the filly by the hoof, and looked her square in the eyes. "Just what do you think you're doing, kid?!" She growled. "Don't you know what the penalty for stealing is around these parts?"
But to Amire's surprise, the filly immediately threw herself on the ground and pleaded. "Please, you must understand! I wouldn't do this if I could pay for the fruit, but I have no money! My parents are too sick to work, and I am not old enough to have a job! Stealing is the only way I can put food on the table."
Just by looking at how much dirt clung to the filly's coat, and how disheveled her mane and tail were, Amire could sense that the filly was telling the truth. And Amire wasn't about to let a poor little filly starve, that just wasn't right. "Tell ya what," Amire whispered to the filly. "I'll let you keep all that fruit and I won't charge ya for it. In fact, here," Amire hoofed the filly all the money she'd made that week. "This oughta be enough to keep ya fed and off the streets for the next two months. Maybe you could even buy some medicine for your folks."
"Oh, thank you! You don't know how much I needed this!" The filly eagerly replied, and dashed away.
Unfortunately for Amire, her boss (a light yellow coated stallion with a red mane and tail, and a mustache) soon found out what she'd done. "That kid was stealing from us, and you just gave her a free pass to do it again!" He complained. "You're fired, I don't need somepony who will give away my fruit to some street rat that can't afford to pay!"
Amire tried her hoof at merchant stand after merchant stand, and even briefly attempted to work as a manure salespony (she quit after the first day, the stench was too rancid for her to tolerate). But alas, her strong commitment to honesty, and unwillingness to say no to those in need worked against her. She would often give away her hard earned bits, so that an orphaned pony could buy food or medicine. And every time she did so, she would usually end up fired by the next day.
By the end of the first month, Amire had almost nothing to show for her efforts. She had barely a bit to her name, and she was too proud to even think of trying to steal (not to mention the harsh penalty that stealers payed if caught).
"What am I gonna do?!" Amire thought to herself, as she lay in a cot overlooking the city of Saddle Arabia one night. "I've only got about three more weeks, and then it'll be too hot for me to stay here. But I can't go back without enough money to help my family! I promised them I'd come back with enough money to end all our woes, and I ain't about to break a promise like that!"
As luck would have it, at that very moment the dessert wind picked up, blowing a flyer right into Amire's face! She quickly picked it up and looked at it, and when she did her eyes lit up like the night sky. The flyer displayed lavish, bright colors, and depicted the Queen of Saddle Arabia, Queen Desert Rose in the center. On the bottom was an advertisement that read as follows: Hear ye, hear ye! Queen Desert Rose is pleased to announce, the arrival of her majesty, Princess Celestia, to the majestic land of Saddle Arabia! In honor of this grand occasion, the queen has invited the royal princess to the annual royal banquet, to be held in two days time.
Amire could hardly believe her luck, she'd heard stories about Princess Celestia. About the kind heart that the sun princess was famous for. But Amire's heart quickly sank, as she realized that Princess Celestia would not attend alone, she would be accompanied by royal guards. And if the guards of the royal palace Queen Desert Rose (named for her pink coat, and likewise pink colored mane and tail, that stood out amidst the yellows, reds, oranges, and browns of the of the dessert sun and sands) resided in were quick to shoo away any uninvited guests, the royal guards of Princess Celestia would surely not allow a common begger to draw near their leader. The only way she could hope to meet with the princess, was if she could attend the royal banquet, and alas the requirement was that one had to be royalty to attend said banquet (otherwise, why call it a royal banquet?).
"If only I had some way to pose as royalty, even just for a day," Amire said with a sigh. "I would give anything to be able to go to that banquet. I'm sure I could convince Princess Celestia to give me a small sum from her royal treasury."
It was then that Amire heard a faint cackle, as a dark black coated griffon with eyes a faded gold in color, stepped forward from the shadows. He was dressed from head to talons in red silk garments.
"Black?! Don't tell me, that griffon is the bad guy!" Spike commented, coughing a bit, as he interrupted the story. "I swear, dark colored guys who emerge from shadows always end up being the bad guy in the stories."
"Well, he is, but that's not the point, Spike," Rainbow replied, trying to hide how frustrated she was with his constant interruptions. "So, if you wouldn't mind, I think Fluttershy would like to continue telling the story."
"Actually, Dashie, I think this is the perfect part for you to take over!" Fluttershy encouraged, pointing a hoof to her friend. "I need to change Spike's head cloth."
Rainbow was most surprised at Fluttershy's sudden decision, a few faint beads of sweat started to work their way down her face. "B-b-but I'm not good with telling stories like that. I only really like ghost stories. Besides, my memory's kind of foggy at the moment." She insisted, hoping to back out of telling the story.
Fluttershy only laughed. "Come now, Rainbow. I told you, just be yourself. I know you know how the story goes. It doesn't even have to be for that long, I can take over when I come back," And she nudged her childhood friend forward with a wing. "Go on. If it helps you get in the mood at all, imagine you're telling the story at a campfire."
Rainbow sighed. "Fine, guess I'll give it a try. But no promises," She moved closer to Spike, and looked at the lamp. Miraculously, she could actually remember what part of the story Fluttershy had left on, as she began to narrate. "Amire turned her to greet her unexpected visitor."
"Who are you?!" Amire demanded of her guest. "And what do you want with me?!"
The griffon cleared his throat and coughed a few times. "Sorry, had something in my throat there," He apologized, and bowed as he introduced himself. "I am Garra. Queen Desert Rose sends me on her behalf to pass out invitations to her parties when she is too busy to do so, for I am the most trusted member of her royal court."
"Have you come to invite me to the royal banquet?" Amire asked, hopefully.
Gara laughed again, this time in a more jolly manner. "No, that would be silly. But, you wish to have money, do you not?"
"Yeah," Amire nodded. "Why do you ask?"
Gara looked both ways. "Follow me." He whispered.
Amire followed Gara behind a building, where he changed his tone of voice to a lower pitch before he spoke. "I know of a magic lamp that can grant its owner any wish their heart desires. Legend says it is hidden away in a cave, that only reveals itself one night every thirty years."
Amire's eyes widened. "A magic lamp?"
Gara nodded. "Naturally, a lamp that powerful must not be allowed to fall into the wrong hooves. But I'm not as physically gifted as I was in the prime of my youth, thus I lack the strength to enter the cave and find the lamp myself. But, if you will get the lamp for me, we can share its power together. Heck, I'll even let you make the wish."
"Shouldn't the lamp be given to the queen?" Amire asked, raising an eyebrow.
"The queen is a fool, she doesn't even know the lamp exists!" Gara protested, a bit too loudly. In a softer tone of voice he added. "Besides, why should she concern herself with such trivial affairs? She is already rich and powerful enough as it is. If such power exists, then shouldn't it be given to someponies worthy, like us?...well...some pony and griffon, if you will."
Amire paused, she hadn't considered that. "Where is this cave, and will it reveal itself before the banquet?" She asked Gara.
Gara smiled, as he nodded. "You're in luck, my friend. For tomorrow night is the one night when that cave will reveal itself. But be warned, the cave contains many riches. But you may only touch the lamp, touch anything else and you won't live to see the light of day! Many a fool have disregarded this warning, and payed the ultimate price for it."
The next day came and went quick as a flash for Amire. Before she knew it, it was sunset, and Gara arrived to take her to the cave in the mountains. Just as night fell, the two reached the cave entrance, which stood out amidst the vast emptiness in the heart of the dessert. Was it Amire's imagination, or did the cave look like a gigantic pony head?
"What are you waiting for?! Go!" Gara urged. "The cave won't be open for very long, and I can't wait another thirty years for that lamp!"
"You mean we?" Amire corrected.
"Yes yes, I was getting to that," Gara replied, brushing off the comment without concern. "And remember my warning, touch only the lamp, nothing else!"
Amire stepped forward into the cave, quickly noticing two things. One, the vast treasures that lined the sides of the cave lit up the interior like millions of lightning bugs. And two, the top of the cave was full of large rock and stalactites, which looked like they could break loose at any moment. Despite the temptation of the countless piles of gold and jewelry, Amire heeded Gara's warning and stayed as far away from them as possible. The cave seemed to stretch on for miles with no end in sight, but at last Amire noticed something up ahead.
There, under a small hole that allowed moonlight to shine down on the cave, stood two rocks. And on each rock rested a lamp. However, when Amire got closer, she saw that the lamps were not the same, and neither was it a trick of the light. The lamp that rested on the left rock was shiny and clean, as if it had never been touched at all. But the lamp that rested on the right rock looked very old, dusty, and dull.
Amire felt she was tempting fate, trying to think which lamp she should take. “Well,” Amire said when looking at the nice lamp. “It looks nicer. This has got to be the one.” Amire then grabbed the nice lamp. But when she did, the lamp melted in her hooves!
To make matters worse, the rocks and stalactites broke free and started to fall down! Frantically dodging the falling objects, Amire scooped up the other lamp and ran off! She rushed back the way she had come, only to discover that the falling rocks and stalactites weren't stopping! That meant only one thing, the cave was collapsing!
Amire ran and ran as fast as her legs could carry her, all the while dodging the rock and stalactites that rained down without end. The cave was collapsing fast, and Amire knew if she didn't get out soon, she wouldn't ever be able to get out at all! But all of a sudden, Amire failed to notice a small pebble sticking out on the cave floor. She tripped, and the lamp fell from her grasp as Amire was flung forward. "The lamp!" Amire cried, but it was too late, the lamp appeared to be lost amidst the falling rocks and stalactites.
Picking herself up, Amire ran back to the cave entrance as fast as she could. But when she got there, Gara immediately demanded. "The lamp! Give me the lamp!"
"I don't have it, I dropped it while I was running away!" Amire confessed.
Gara's reaction, was not what Amire had been expecting at all. He angrily grabbed Amire, and held her close, with his claws digging into her hoof, causing her to yelp in pain. "I gave you simple instructions to follow, peasant! Yet you didn't return with what I asked for. Now, you are of no use to me anymore."
He then held Amire over the edge of the cave with a devilish grin. “This cave will be your tomb."
He then threw Amire back into the cave, just before a pile of rocks and stalactites buried the entrance, preventing anypony from getting in or out.
“MY LAAAAAAAAAAMP!!!!!” Gara screamed in fury as he pounded his claws on the ground, with his yell echoing through the mountains.
"I knew it, I knew it all along! I KNEW Gara was evil!" Spike shouted in fury, actually managing to breath a small flame. "But is that how the story ends? With Amire being crushed to death?! Please tell me that isn't so, Twilight's stories always have a happy ending."
"There's more to the story then that, Spike. Otherwise, why would Fluttershy remember it?" Rainbow nervously chuckled. "I uh... don't really remember what happens next though. The details are... kinda fuzzy."
"It's okay," Fluttershy called, trotting back into Spike's bedroom with a cold washcloth, and pressing it up to Spike's forehead. "It's a good thing I remembered."
"Alright, now that's what I like to hear!" Spike cheered, even as he coughed some more.
Fluttershy took her place besides Spike, as she cleared her throat and narrated. "Unknown to anypony, Amire was alive. But unfortunately, she was trapped in the cave with no way out. However, that was all about to change."
Amire was quite furious, she couldn't believe her luck. "I never should've listened to that Gara fellow! Mom and Dad always used to say 'There's no shortcuts in life.', and now I see what they meant."
Then Amire noticed the lamp, the source of all her troubles. "You stupid, good nothing for lamp!" She complained, kicking it with one of her hooves. She soon regretted it, as the lamp was made of metal, and kicking it hurt like crazy. "Ow! Ow! Ow!" Amire winced in pain. "Not only did you cause me to get stuck down here, but I can't even take my anger out on you! I doubt you're even magical! What kind of magic lamp looks all old and dusty?! A broken one, that's what!"
But, just as Amire was about to pick the lamp up and throw it against the rocks blocking the entrance (hoping for some kind of chain reaction that might clear the entrance and set her free), she noticed something that appeared to loosely scribbled on it. They seemed to be words, which read: "Want a Wish?"
Unable to determine if the words were really there, or if her eyes were just playing tricks on her, Amire decided there was only one thing to do. Carefully, she took the lamp into her front hooves, and began to rub it to clear the dust away. Suddenly, the lamp began to shake and sputter. There were puffs of blue, red, pink, black, and white colored smoke! And then, all of a sudden, three strange (and quite funny looking) creatures emerged from the lamp. "Hellllllllllllllloooooooooo master!" The three figures shouted at once, causing Amire to back up in fright.
Everything was silent for a couple seconds, before Amire screamed in fear. The three figures did the same. Amire then quickly hid behind a rock.
Amire was shaking in fear. She then smacked herself a couple times. “It’s just a dream, it’s just a dream.” She turned around and saw the figures looking at her. She quickly hid again. But she slowly turned around and got a good look at them
Two of the figures seemed to be male, and one of the male ones was wearing some kind of funny pants with a purple turban with a blue feather in it. The second male was smaller, but had a blue shirt, a red fez and a blue whisp for a tail. The third figure was clearly female, if the pink skirt, bow and vale were anything to go by. But all three of them had black fur and noses, with white colored faces and gloves (not to mention feet. Actual feet and not hooves). "Boy, I tell you, it is good to be free of that dusty old lamp," The second male spoke, talking to the other two. “Guess Discovery Family couldn’t get rid of us that easily.”
The first male then whistled, and shouted. "Hey, siblings! Don't look now, but I think our little friend over here is freaking out and scratching her little head in confusion."
"Gosh, I think you're right, Yakko," The female. commented. "Here we are, talking to ourselves, instead of paying attention to our new master."
"M-master?" Amire asked in complete confusion.
The first male nodded firmly. "That's right, Amire. It's your lucky day, or I guess I should say 'night'," Giggling, he then added. "You made the "right" choice when you rubbed the "right" lamp. Sorry about the left lamp being fake and all, but it wasn't the "right" lamp, get the joke? Anyway, I'm Yakko."
"I'm Wakko." The first male greeted.
"And I'm Princess Angelina Contessa Louisa Francesca Banana Fana Bo Besca Genie the Third," The female figure added. “But you can call me Dot!”
"And we'll be your genies," Wakko smiled, firmly shaking Amire's hoof. "So, master, how can we serve you? After all, we're contractly obligated under the Rules of Geniedom, which specifically states:" Pulling out a gigantic scroll from his hat, Wakko read aloud. "'All genies shall officially be in service to the individual who rubs their lamp, thus releasing them from within said lamp. All genies must grant their master whatever three wishes he or she requests, then they must return to the lamp until called on to serve their next master.'. So, whadya wanna wish for?"
"Hold on a minute there, Wakko!" Yakko cautioned. "We've got clear a few things up first so Amire doesn't go getting any ideas! Don't forget, there's some genie rules that can't be broken no matter what!" To Amire he apologized. "Sorry about Wakko, he can get a bit carried away. Happens to the best of us."
"Anywho," Dot announced, clearing her throat. "Before you start making wishes, you need to understand that we're a bit different from your typical genies. First of all, you DO get three wishes. But, since there's three of us and only of you, you only get one wish from each genie. Oh, and don't bother with the whole 'Wishing for more wishes trick', we're not allowed to grant that."
"Second, there are two other types of wishes we can't grant," Yakko advised. "We can't make anyone fall in love with anyone."
"Why not?" Amire asked.
"It's forbidden," Wakko explained. "Besides, we're not good at playing cupid."
“If we were, we’d help Stephenie Meyer write a good book!” Dot beamed.
"And we can't kill anyone, or harm or maim them, or anything that could put them in pain," Wakko cautioned.
“But we still keep stuff like this in case of emergencies!” Dot held up a chainsaw, before tossing it into a huge box filled with other weapons.
"So, Amire. Whadya wanna wish for? I get to grant the first wish, so make it a good one!" Yakko encouraged. "Heck, you can even ask me if you need some suggestions, I've got a long list of stuff you could wish for!"
Amire pondered deeply, and sighed. "Well, I was thinking about wishing for money. My family is very poor, we seldom make enough to just get by. I ended up in this here cave because I originally came to Saddle Arabia to get a job. But I just don't appreciate the customs and traditions that Saddle Arabia has, anyone who's caught stealing has to pay an arm and a leg, literally. And yet that queen seems to throw lavish balls and banquets all the time. I ain't sure if she's aware of what goes on in her kingdom or not, but I'm pretty much stuck with no money. And now I couldn't even go to the palace and beg if I wanted to."
"Ah, so you wanna wish for money huh? That's an easy wish!" Yakko boasted. "I was kind of hoping for something more challenging, but that's fair enough! Now, say the magic words, master."
"Hold on a second!" Amire protested. "I said I was thinking about wishing for money, but I never said that's what I wanted to wish for. You just assumed."
Yakko's mouth dropped open, as he realized Amire was right. "Oh you clever little pony! Well, mind telling me why you're not gonna wish for riches?"
"Yeah, who in their right mind wouldn't wanna be rich and famous?" Wakko asked Amire.
"Well, somepony's eventually going to take notice that I wasn't always rich," Amire explained. "And if ponies started asking about where I got the money from, it could get me in trouble. I assume that once I use up my three wishes, you guys go back in the lamp, right?"
"Hey, did you read the script or something?" Dot remarked, but then sighed. "You're right though, once I've granted my wish, that's it. The deal's done. And the three of us go back into the lamp until someone else comes along and rubs it, then we're free to grant whoever that is three wishes."
"It's not all bad though, it's actually kind of cozy in there. It's bigger on the inside." Wakko insisted.
“That’s because you sleep on us. Yakko raised an eyebrow.
Wakko’s eyes widened. “So...I wasn’t kissing my pillows, was I?” Wakko asked, sheepishly.
Yakko blew a kiss to the audience. “Goodnight, everybody!”
Yakko turned back to his siblings. "We just gotta make the most of our time outside the lamp. And who knows, maybe eventually the guy we're doing this for will come back?"
Amire just sighed. "I could wish for whatever I wanted, but it doesn't matter. I'm stuck in this cave. I'd sure give my left hind leg to go to that royal banquet though. If I could just get a chance to talk to Princess Celestia, I'm sure she'd be willing to give me enough money to provide for my family for a while. But I'd have to be royalty to even attend the banquet."
"Yeah, well what if we told you, there's a way that could be accomplished?" Yakko slyly suggested. "A royal banquet sounds like a lot of fun!"
"We'd be great entertainers, it's always been a dream of ours!" Wakko added, chiming in.
"You just have to make the right kind of wish, Amire," Dot encouraged. "And I think you know what wish you need to make."
"Come on, I'm all ears!" Yakko encouraged. "Say the magic words, master!"
"Well, first thing's first. I can't go to that royal banquet if I'm stuck in this cave," Amire suggested. "You think maybe you three could help me get out?"
"Not unless you make a wish first, buster!" Yakko advised. "And if you're also gonna wish for what I think you're gonna wish, you'll be down by two and only Dot will have a wish left to grant!"
Then a sly smile formed on Amire's face, as she offered. "Well, what about this? If I agree to use my third wish to set you guys free, will you get me out of this cave without using up one of my wishes?"
Yakko, Wakko, and Dot, were touched. Tears started to form in their eyes. "You really mean it? You'd really be willing to set us free from that lamp?" Dot asked.
Amire nodded. "Get me out of this cave, and I promise that when my third wish rolls around, I'll use it to wish for you to be free from the lamp."
The Warner siblings immediately rushed up to Amire, and started hugging her all over. "Oh, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! You're the best master ever!" They all cheered, and then they started rushing about in hard hats, planting all sorts of explosive stuff like dynamite sticks, crates of explosives, fireworks, tnt boxes, and even a few unlit bombs. Then to top it all off, they surrounded the entire collection (pressed up against the wall of rocks and stalactites) with a massive wire tied to a big red box with a plunger.
"Alright, step back! This is gonna be a blast!" Wakko encouraged, and began to count down. "Ten, nine, eight, skip a couple, KABOOM!" All three Warner siblings plugged their ears (as did Amire), as a powerful explosion shook the cave!
"Whoa, Wakko! Talk about overkill!" Yakko commented, as the dust settled. "That's a real Warner sibling kaboom!"
"Thank you, now let's get out of here already!" Wakko encouraged.
Just as Amire and the Warner siblings emerged from the cave, there was a fierce roar, followed by a gust of wind. All of a sudden, the cave vanished, as if it had never even existed at all.
"Whoa, spooky stuff!" Dot commented.
"Yeah, well we can't worry about that right now. We've got a wish to grant," Yakko replied, and rolled up his sleeves. "Okay, Amire. You got your one freebie, your 'Get out of jail free' card if you will."
"And don't forget your promise!" Wakko reminded. "When it's Dot's turn to grant you a wish, you have to wish for our freedom."
"I know, I know!" Amire nodded, and cleared her throat. Looking at Yakko, she said clearly. "Yakko, for my first wish, I wish to appear before the palace as a princess!"
"Okay then, one royal princess coming right up!" Yakko said with a smile, as he snapped his fingers. "Get ready! You're about to get a certified Warner siblings, princess makeover!" And then he whistled to Wakko and Dot. "Come on, siblings! Let's make Amire into a princess to rival all the princesses in the world! A princess that everyone will want to buy a toy of!"
Before Amire had a chance to react, she was seated in a comically large stool, and the three Warner siblings were dressed up as tailors. Dot had a pair of sewing glasses and measuring tape, Wakko had giant scissors and a giant comb, and Yakko had a bottle of seltzer wattle and a brush covered in some kind of powder.
"Man, those genies sure do sound wacko." Spike commented, coughing some more.
"Yes, but they're wacko in a good way." Fluttershy giggled.
"So, what happens next? And why does that Queen Dessert Rose sound so much like Pinkie Pie?" Spike asked, looking at Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash.
"Well, you might wanna get comfortable, Spike," Rainbow Dash encouraged. "Cause this is when the story gets super intense!"
"Okay, you ready, Spike?" Fluttershy asked the dragon.
"You bet, I can't wait to hear what happens next!" Spike commented in excitement. He was engrossed in the story that he was actually starting to forget the fact that he was sick.
"Alright, so while Amire was being transformed into a princess, Gara was busy with his own plans." Fluttershy narrated, and resumed the story:
Gara had immediately withdrawn to his private chambers within the palace, and was currently in the process of knocking over everything and ripping up whatever he could get his claws on. He was furious! "I never should've trusted that worthless pony! Now I have to start my takeover plans from scratch again!" He growled to himself. Grabbing a quill, he started to write down a new takeover plan on a piece of paper. But upon picking up the parchment (once he'd finished writing down the plan), he saw nothing but a bunch of smears and splotches of ink. "What was I thinking?! I have terrible claw writing! Now I don't even know what I wrote down!" Gara complained, and ripped the parchment into tiny shreds. Then he ripped those shreds into even tinier shreds for good measure. And to top it all off, he tossed the shreds into out a nearby window, hoping that they'd burn up in the heat of the sun the next day.
"Come on, Gara! Think, think, think!" The griffon thought to himself, as he paced back and forth in his chambers. Suddenly, he looked out the same window he'd thrown the paper shards from, as he heard the sound of pegasus wings flapping in the breeze. And he saw a majestic chariot being pulled by two white coated pegasus stallions, inside said chariot sat none other than Princess Celestia herself. It was then that Gara remembered the royal banquet that was to be held the next night, per the request of Queen Desert Rose. "That's it! Why didn't I think of it before?!" Gara loudly proclaimed to himself, rubbing his claws together. "I'll whip up an enchanted cupcake to serve the queen, she never could resist a tasty treat. And when she's out like a light, I'll stuff her in a closet somewhere, and disguise myself as her," Then he added. "I'd better start practicing how to throw my voice, otherwise ponies are sure to suspect something."
The next evening, Princess Celestia and Queen Desert Rose gathered in the palace's main hallway, where Queen Desert Rose addressed the crowd. "Greetings to you all, my faithful subjects!" The queen spoke in a bubbly voice, addressing the palace guards and royal chefs. "It is my great pleasure to declare the official start of this royal banquet, to honor her majesty, Princess Celestia herself! Now, enough with the chit chat! It's time to PAAAAARTY!"
Gara eyed the two royal leaders from afar. He knew Queen Desert Rose would be easy to trick, but he was trying to determine just how much of a threat Princess Celestia was. "If only I still had the lamp, I wouldn't have to worry about pretending to be nice to her, or that silly old queen," He thought to himself. "Oh well, within a few short hours, Saddle Arabia will be mine! And soon afterward, so shall all of Equestria! King Gara The First has a nice ring to it, actually."
Meanwhile, outside the palace, Amire (now dressed up like a beautiful princess named Amurra. Her face had been cleaned and polished, she wore a magnificent yellow gown with a pink bow, and even wore a veil to cover her face) and the Warner siblings, were making quite the show. The siblings had gone around town, posing as various individuals to draw attention to Amire and make it seem like she was not a princess who had appeared literally overnight. "They say she comes from a far away land that no one has ever seen before," They would boast. "Amire is a princess without equal, even the mightiest of beasts are no match for her impressive strength. And she's so gorgeous, and generous, did we mention generous?"
It worked better than anyone could've imagined, Amire had quite the following of random Saddle Arabians (many of whom were following simply to collect the small helping of bits she kept tossing out), as she and the three genies approached the palace gates. Even so, Amire was quite nervous. "I've never been to a royal banquet before. Heck, I've never even mingled with any kind of high class before," She whispered to the Warners. "I just don't know if I can do this. I mean, what if I slip up and make a fool of myself? This is the only chance I'm gonna get to talk to Princess Celestia, without her guards chasing me away. I don't want to blow the only opportunity my family may have to get the money they need."
"Hey, don't sweat it. You just be yourself and everything will be fine." Yakko encouraged.
"Besides, that's why you've got us!" Wakko boasted. "Everyone's gonna be so distracted by our antics, they're not gonna have time to notice what you say and do. You just go up to that princess, tell her what you told us, and she'll be sure to give you the money. And if worse comes to worse, you've still got my wish to bail you out."
"But remember, once Wakko uses up his wish, you have to use my wish to set us free," Dot reminded Amire. "You promised, even did the whole 'Cross my heart' part."
Amire smiled, as she nodded. "Don't worry, I ain't about to go back on my promise. I'm really grateful to you three. When this is all over and I think about what I wanna use the second wish for, I'll use my third wish to make you all officially entertainers throughout all of Equestria. You'll no longer be tied to that lamp, you'll be three to live your lives. And who knows, maybe Princess Celestia will hire you three to be her court jesters?"
"You heard the mare, Warners!" Yakko proclaimed. "Amire's not the only one who's gotta a lot riding on tonight! This is our chance to really expand our horizons!"
"Just wait til they got a load of our comedy, they'll wonder how they ever lived without it!" Wakko boasted. "And maybe we'll even find some pretty ladies that'll fawn over us." He and Yakko had hearts appear in their eyes.
Dot's response was to simply roll her eyes and remark. "Boys."
As Queen Desert Rose and Princess Celestia were seated in the palace dining room, there suddenly came the sound of trumpets blaring. Everyone turned to the dining room door, and all of a sudden it burst open! Three mysterious (and funny looking) figures came rushing in, rolling out a red carpet. The first male figure spoke (as the second male figure and the female figure continued to play their trumpets), while holding up a scroll. "Hellllllllooooooooo, Equestria!" He greeted. "I, Yakko Warner, along with my brother and sister, am pleased to introduce to you all: Princess Amurra!"
The second male figure and the female figure clapped and cheered, loudly chanting things such as. "Go Amurra!" And, "Amurra, Amurra, she's our gal! If she can't do it, no one shall!" While the first male figure pulled out a set of drums, and started banging the sticks against them, as confetti and flowers rained down from out of nowhere. And then at least, Princess Amurra came trotting in all her glory, causing the three figures to swoon and aah.
Princess Celestia didn't know what to think, either of Princess Amurra, or of the mysterious figures that had preceded her. But Queen Desert Rose was practically standing on the dining room table, leaping up and down while shouting. "Wahoo! More, more!"
"That's definitely Pinkie Pie alright," Spike commented, coughing a bit. "You sure I'm not supposed to imagine my friends in the roles? What's next? Is Rarity gonna be in the story, or maybe Twilight?"
"Once again, I assure you that any resemblance to anypony at all is purely coincidence," Fluttershy replied, again issuing the disclaimer she'd been given by the merchants. Then, turning to Rainbow Dash, she suggested. "Why don't you take over the story for a little bit? What happens next is right up your alley!"
"Uh, okay. But why the sudden request?" Rainbow asked, she was still struggling to get settled into the role of storyteller.
"Because, I need to use the little fillies room," Fluttershy confessed. "I shouldn't be gone for more than a few minutes. And I seem to recall you enjoyed this particular part of the story."
"I... guess I did," Rainbow shrugged, rubbing the back of her neck with a hoof. "Okay, I'll take over until you get back. Just don't take too long, this is the only part I really bothered to memorize. Everything else I only remember bits and parts of."
Fluttershy nodded. "I know you'll do great." And she left Spike's bedroom without another word.
"Well, I'm all ears." Spike commented, laying back in his head.
"O-kay," Rainbow nervously chuckled. "So, uh. Princess Amurra, er I mean Amire, was now at the royal banquet with Queen Desert Rose, who is NOT Pinkie Pie by the way."
"Yeah, and Amire isn't Applejack, I know," Spike replied. "So, does she get found out by Princess Celestia?"
Rainbow shook her head. "No. Something else happened to her instead. Something far worse. Or at least, that's what was going to happen. There's a whole lot of stuff in the story about the royal banquet."
"Does anything interesting happen during it?" Spike asked.
"Kind of, I'll just skip to the interesting part though." Rainbow quickly replied, and the story resumed:
Things were going pretty well at the royal banquet. As time went by, Amire (Princess Amurra to everyone but the genies) slowly began to relax. Like the genies had promised, everyone was so caught up in the funny (and otherworldly) humor of the three, that hardly anyone paid any attention to the last minute guest.
Queen Desert Rose didn't ask any questions about Princess Amurra, she just asked what kind of foods the princess liked, and if she enjoyed parties. Then she occupied herself with the food at the banquet, leaving Princess Amurra and Princess Celestia to chat with each other.
But, unknown to Amire or the genies, someone was watching her from afar. Someone who could sense that Princess Amurra wasn't what she seemed. It was none other than Garra, now disguised as if he were a sultan or a king. "There's no way it's just coincidence that Princess Amurra and that Amire peasant look the same," He thought to himself. "How in tartarus did she just transform overnight into a princess?! And why would she show up here?! She's going to ruin my plan, and I worked so hard on it too!" It was then that Garra noticed something faintly sticking out from Princess Amurra's dress. He quickly noticed it as the same lamp that alluded him the previous night! "The lamp! Of course!" Garra realized. "I should've known that pony would want the lamp's powers all to herself! And those 'entertainers' must be the genies that live inside the lamp! I must find a way to get my claws on that lamp! I will not let it elude me a second time!"
Taking notice of the fact that Amire (or Princess Amurra as others knew her) was talking to Princess Celestia, and that she seemed to be mentioning something about money. Garra's eyes lit up, and a sinister smile crossed his face. "Yes," He said to himself. "That foolish little pony is about to play right into my claws. That lamp will soon be mine!" Turning to the enchanted cupcake he'd intended to slip to Queen Desert Rose, Garra commented softly. "Guess I won't be needing this anymore. A shame, it turned out quite well, actually." He proceeded to throw the cupcake on the ground and smear it with one of his claws. Then he crept towards the two talking princesses, waiting for the right moment to insert himself into the conversation and steal the lamp.
"You mean to tell me that these entertainers are your royal advisors, Princess Amurra?" Princess Celestia asked Amire, unable to suppress her giggles at the comedic antics of the Warner siblings. "I must say, they sure do know how to make me laugh. It feels like it's been ages since I last had reason to be happy about anything."
"Why is that, your majesty?" Amire asked Celestia.
Celestia sighed, as she confessed to Amire. "It was not long ago that I was forced to banish my own sister. She vowed to cast Equestria in eternal nighttime, and I could not reason with her. Since then, I've been very lonely. Not a day goes by where I don't wish I had tried to reach out to my sister sooner. Very little has amused me since that fateful day, but it seems those advisors of yours have found a way to do so."
"I'm quite sorry to hear that, your majesty," Amire commented, suddenly gaining a new respect for the princess. "Perhaps if you ask nicely, I might be willing to talk them into coming to your palace to entertain you. And I think a few of your subjects might grow to like their humor as well. Trust me, after a while, their antics start to grow on you," Sensing that she'd managed to break the ice with Celestia, Amire decided that now would be the time to ask the important question. Her entire reason for coming to the banquet in the first place. "Say, Princess Celestia. Is it alright if I may ask you for a favor?"
"Of course, Princess Amurra," Celestia nodded with a smile. "What is it you desire?"
"I came to this banquet to talk to you, specifically because I've heard how generous and kind hearted you are," Amire began, hoping that those accounts were true. "My.... subjects have recently fallen onto hard times, and I have almost depleted my royal treasury trying to help them out. I was wondering if, I might trouble you for just a small amount of the vast wealth you posses, so that I may help my subjects."
Before Princess Celestia could respond, the disguised Garra stepped before Amire and quickly said. "If it's money you need, your majesty, why didn't you simply ask Queen Desert Rose? Or more specifically, her royal treasurer? I can grant you as much wealth as your heart desires and then some."
"Really?!" Amire asked, her eyes lighting up! This was working out even better than she'd expected.
Garra nodded through his disguise. "But, there's one thing I need to know first," Pointing to the lamp in Amire's dress, he asked her. "May I see that lamp of yours for a moment? I wish to know where it is you found it."
"This old lamp?" Amire asked, pulling it out. "Why do you care about it so much?"
Garra quickly snatched the lamp out of Amire's unsuspecting hooves, and held it up! Then he ripped off his disguise, as he loudly shouted. "YOU FOOL!" And he cackled with glee as he explained. "I've been searching all my life for this magic lamp, and now you've brought it right to me! At long last, I shall posses power the likes of which no one will surpass!"
"Quick, somepony stop him!" Amire shouted, as she made a desperate lunge for Garra, while Princess Celestia tried to grab the lamp with her magic! (Queen Desert Rose had passed out, she'd stuffed herself full.) But Garra only laughed, and flapped his wings, as he grasped the lamp tightly and began to rub it! "Okay you genies, it's time for you to meet your new master, me!" He boasted.
"What?! Serve you, you must be crazy!" Dot exclaimed. "You're stupid and ugly, not to mention you've clearly never heard of a bath."
But a saddened Yakko commented. "We don't have a choice, siblings. The rules state, whoever rubs the lamp is our master. And like it or not, Garra's our master now." And the genies looked at each other in horror and sadness of the awful truth.
"I'm back!" Fluttershy called, as she entered Spike's bedroom with another cold headcloth to replace the old one. "How's the story going so far?"
"Great! I think Rainbow Dash is a better storyteller than anyone would've guessed!" Spike commented, before he sneezed and produced a faint puff of smoke. "She just got to the part where Garra stole the lamp, and was probably about to make his first wish!"
"Yeah, it's a real twist! First time I heard it, I was shocked!" Rainbow boasted.
Fluttershy changed Spike's headcloth. "Well, I'll take over the story from here. Unless you'd like to keep telling it, Dashie."
"No thanks, I'm good!" Rainbow insisted.
Fluttershy smiled, she was glad to see Rainbow was slowly warming up to the storyteller role, and that she was drawing closer to Spike (that was the entire reason why she'd roped Dashie into this in the first place). "Well, before I can resume the story, I need to give you your medicine, Spike." She told the little dragon.
Spike groaned. "Ah, really?! I hate that stuff, it tastes so icky!"
"Hey, be thankful you don't have to get shots!" Rainbow quickly replied. "Last time I got them, my rump was sore for weeks."
Reluctantly, Spike cooperated as best he could, as Fluttershy fed him a spoonful of brown colored liquid medicine. The taste was incredibly overwhelming, making Spike cough quite a bit (to the point where his eyes watered). "Ugh, glad I only have to take that twice a day! Stupid sapphire flu!" He remarked, quickly helping himself to the glass of water Fluttershy had provided him with. Once the taste had left his tongue, he snuggled deeper into his sheets as he said to Fluttershy. "Okay, so what happens next? Does Garra get away with it? Or does Amire manage to steal the lamp back and put Garra in his place?!"
Fluttershy sighed. "Well, the answer to both is kind of yes and kind of no. It'll make sense as the story goes on." And with that, she resumed telling the story from where Rainbow had left off:
Garra wasted no time in making his first wish! "You!" He barked out to Yakko. "You grant the first wish, right?!" Yakko reluctantly nodded. "Then for my first wish, I wish to be the ruler of all of Equestria! King Garra The First!" Garra commanded.
Yakko reluctantly granted the wish with a snap of his fingers, as Celestia's royal armor was removed and ended up on Garra, prompting everyone but Celestia and Amire (who had changed back into her normal street clothes) to bow down before him. Garra laughed, as he looked at Amire. "Guards, heed my commands! Throw this pathetic street rat into the dungeon! She has made a mockery of this high court with her masquerade as a princess!"
Two guards walked over to Amire, and grabbed her by her legs and dragged her away. The genies tried to run after her but Gara stepped in their way.
“Just hold on a minute!” Gara grinned, evilly. “You belong to me now.”
Amire was dragged to the dungeon, and was thrown in, with the door slamming shut behind her!
Amire furiously grabbed the bars on the dungeon door and shook them. "Please, you're making a mistake!" She pleaded. "Garra is evil!"
As soon as the guards were gone, Amire tried to shake the bars of the dungeon door. Reluctantly, Amire realized that no one was coming to help her. She was on her own once again.
But just as this realization was slowly sinking in for Amire, she heard what sounded like hoofsteps approaching from afar. "I gotta get outta here!" She thought, and started to shake the bars loudly, in the hopes of drawing attention to herself.
However, the source of the hoofsteps soon revealed itself. And when it did, Amire's heart sank. It was only Queen Desert Rose, sleep walking (or rather sleep trotting) about, and mumbling to herself. "No, Garra, I don't want another cupcake. I already ate forty of them."
"Just great! Out of all the ponies who could've come by, it had to be her!" Amire unhappily thought, and decided it was best to just give up on the hope of being rescued. She was stuck in this dungeon until Garra said otherwise, and there wasn't much she could do about it. But then, Amire noticed something sticking out of the queen's dress on the right hoof side. It looked like a set of keys, likely to the dungeon! "Maybe there's a way I can talk the queen into letting me out!" She thought, though she wasn't sure how that might be done.
"I am so sleepy," Queen Desert Rose muttered, as if she were in a trance (despite her eyes being closed). "I keep hearing voices calling out to me, telling me to do things. I knew I shouldn't have made that left turn leaving the throne room."
Hearing that comment caused the gears in Amire's head to turn. She had an idea, a rather good one at that. "Your majesty," She called in a hypnotic tone of voice. "It is I, your faithful servant. Please, free me from the dungeon, so that I may serve you again."
"Garra?" Queen Desert Rose asked, still sleepwalking. "How did you end up in the dungeon? I thought you were trying to feed me a cupcake?"
"It's a long story, your royalness," Amire replied. "Please, let me out! I beg of you!"
"Alright, Garra, but this is the last time. I swear, you end up in here all the time for the silliest of reasons." Queen Desert Rose sleepily muttered, as she walked towards the dungeon door, pulled out one of the keys from the keychain, and inserted said key into the keyhole. There was a faint "click", and the dungeon door swung open, Amire was free! "Alright, time to get that lamp back from Garra and make everything right again!" She thought to herself.
"Ugh, so sleepy." Queen Desert Rose remarked, still stumbling about in her sleepwalking state.
Amire sighed. Garra would have to wait, she'd need to wake up the queen first. She'd need the help of the queen (and Princess Celestia) to arrest Garra once all of this was over. Besides, she couldn't risk anything happening to the queen before she woke up.
Garra was quite content with how things were working out for him. He was currently seated on the very throne that Queen Desert Rose usually occupied. "Ah, it's so good to be bad." He cackled to himself, lounging on his throne.
"Not any longer, this madness ends now!" Celestia demanded, her horn lighting up and surging with magical energy. "Garra, this is your only warning! I order you to stop your tyranny at once! Failure to heed will leave me with no choice but to stop you by force!"
If Garra was at all worried by Celestia's comments, he sure didn't show it. He just looked at her with a fiendish grin, as he made sure to deliver the following sentence with as much malice as possible. "Oh, but you won't! Want to know why?"
"Why?! What possible reason could you have as to why I shouldn't just yank that crown right off your head and pluck your feathers as punishment for your act of treason?!" Celestia demanded, her eyes narrowing in anger.
"If you try to take any actions against me, I'll just order my genies here to hurt innocent ponies!" Garra simply chuckled. “Look down there for instance.”
Celestia looked where Garra was pointing to, a mother pegasus with her fearful child behind her legs, with the mother defending him. “Oh, dear,” Gara spoke in false sympathy. “I couldn’t sleep if anything were to happen to them."
"You're bluffing!" Celestia retorted.
"Am I?" Garra put on puppy dog eyes as he held up the lamp, as if he were to wish something terrible were to happen that instant.
Celestia eyed Garra, seemingly locked into a staring contest with him for a moment. But then, her horn stopped glowing, and she sighed as she hung her head. "No, I won't risk the wellbeing of my faithful subjects. Not even to stop a tyrant like you," Reluctantly, she lowered her head, and said to Garra. "You have me beaten."
"Good girl" Garra smirkedas he petted Celestia’s head like a dog, then he turned to his lamp, and rubbed it again. "Come out, come out! Wherever you are!”
In a puff of smoke, the genies emerged from the lamp, startled like they just woke up from a nap.
“Are we on Nickelodeon again?!” Wakko rubbed his eyes.
Yakko turned and saw Garra. “Oh, it’s worse...it’s you.”
“Yes...me.” Garra grinned.
"Well," Yakko raised an eyebrow. "What do you need? .To be compared to Mariah Carey?"
Garra raised an eyebrow. “No, but I would like to make my second wish.”
Yakko thought for a second and grinned. “Well, how about we get you a pretty girl, so she can run away screaming after looking at you?”
“No.” Garra frowned.
“How about a mirror that can shatter when you look at it?” Wakko jumped up to him.
“No!” Garra growled.
“Or we can give you a face transplant!” Dot pulled out her chainsaw.
“NOOOO!!!!!!” Garra roared, shutting up the genies.
"Can't we go out of order, just this once?" Wakko pleaded.
Garra then walked towards his window. "Now let's see, what do I want to use the other two wishes for? I've already got unlimited riches as the ruler of Equestria, and even Celestia can't lift a hoof against me. I can't wish for more wishes, or love, or for anyone to die or be killed."
"Maybe you could use your wish to not have anymore wishes?" Wakko suggested.
"I like his idea!" Yakko grinned.
Garra walked towards the genies and stared down at them. "...Stop that."
"Was worth a shot." Wakko commented.
"Speaking of shots, I'd say this is the perfect time for a few photos. Gotta make the best of a bad situation, am I right?" Yakko encouraged, as he pulled out a gigantic camera and held it in front of himself, his siblings, and Garra. "Okay, big smiles, everyone! This is for the album, so let's make it look good!"
"What are you-" Garra began!
"-Say cheese!" Yakko interrupted, as he pressed a button, and the camera flashed (while the Warner siblings made a bunch of funny faces). Looking at the photo, Yakko frowned, when he noticed Garra's expression. "Hey, you were supposed to smile!" He told Garra.
Dot grabbed the camera, as she suggested. "Let's try it again, maybe with something more old fashioned? Perhaps he just needs the right kind of setting to bring out his smile? I mean really, who in their right mind just wants to see sand and nothing but sand?"
"Yeah, that sand is a real pain. It gets everywhere!" Wakko complained. "My hat, my pants, my hands and feet, and everywhere in between. It's really uncomfortable!"
Yakko blew a kiss to the audience. "Goodnight everybody!"
"That is it, I can't take this anymore! You three are so annoying!" Garra complained, very nearly ripping off some of his feathers. Looking at Celestia, an idea came to him. "Okay, Wakko! For my second wish, I wish to be more powerful than even Princess Celestia herself! More powerful than any alicorn in the world!"
Wakko prepared to snap his fingers, even as both Yakko and Dot pleaded with him. "No! Don't grant the wish, Wakko!"
But Wakko, with a sad look in his eyes, replied. "I gotta do it, rules are rules, and wishes are wishes." And then he snapped his fingers.
While Garra was having his second wish granted, Amire was in the process of trying to wake up Queen Dessert Rose. She'd been trying nonstop for the past several minutes, but nothing seemed to be working. "Come on, come on! Wake up already!" Amire grunted in frustration.
"And that's how Equestria was made," Queen Desert Rose mumbled, still sleepwalking about. "Any questions?"
"I swear, this queen could sleep right through an elephant stampede without waking up even once!" Amire thought to herself, her frustration increasing by the second. "What is it gonna take to get her to wake up?! I'm gonna need her to distract Garra if I want to stand any chance of getting that lamp back."
Suddenly, there was a loud rumble that echoed through the castle hallways. And Queen Desert Rose muttered. "Hungry, need food!" But she didn't open her eyes, she just keep right on sleepwalking.
"Food?!" Amire pondered, then suddenly she got an idea. "Of course, why didn't I just do that from the start?" Digging into her saddlebags, she pulled out a block of fresh smelling cheese. The smell quickly wafted through the air, and in a matter of seconds it had reached Queen Desert Rose's nostrils.
Queen Desert Rose slowly opened her eyes. "Is that cheese I smell?" She asked, before her eyes fell upon the block of cheese held in Amire's hooves. She zipped over and snatched it up, swallowing the cheese in one bite. "Yummy!" She exclaimed, before she looked around. "Wait?! Where am I?! This isn't the royal banquet!" Looking at Amire, she added. "And where the heck is Princess Amurra? What did you do with her?!"
"It's a long story!" Amire sheepishly replied.
Just then, there came a loud rumble, and the entire palace started to shake! It felt like something (or rather someone) was grabbing the building and carrying it afloat. Amire and Queen Dessert Rose dashed towards the nearest window, and their worst fears were confirmed! The palace was being lifted up by an immense magical power!
"What's going on?!" Queen Desert Rose gasped.
"It must be Garra, he used his second wish!" Amire realized, grabbing Queen Desert Rose and rushing to the throne room. Along the way, she explained everything that had happened at the banquet to the best of her ability.
"You know, I always did find that Garra to be somewhat strange. Guess his name should've told me something." Queen Desert Rose commented, as the two approached the throne room.
Sure enough, there was Garra, who now had a big horn and alicorn like wings, in addition to the crown that used to belong to Princess Celestia. Princess Celestia was currently locked up in a cage, thanks to Garra's magic. And despite how much she banged against it, she could not break free. The Warner siblings didn't look happy either, their faces seemed to contain expressions of sadness, regret, and most of all horror.
Amire's eyes fell upon the lamp resting besides Garra (but currently not in his grasp). She knew what she had to do, and turned to Queen Desert Rose. "I've got to get that lamp back, it's the only way Garra can be stopped! But I need you to keep him distracted."
Queen Desert Rose beamed, as a wide smile formed on her face. "You didn't even have to ask. One distraction, coming right up!" She immediately dashed into the throne room!
"Wait, we didn't even agree on the distraction part!" Amire cried, but it was too late to stop the queen!
"Hm, I still have that one wish left," Garra commented to himself, looking at the Warners. "What should I use it for?"
Just then, Queen Desert Rose quickly drew attention to herself, as she shouted in a loud voice. "Hey, Garra! That's right, I'm calling you out, you big, dumb, feather brain!"
Garra glared at Queen Desert Rose. "What are you trying to pull?! You're powerless against me! You should be bowing down before your new master."
"And why would I bow to you, hm?" Queen Desert Rose asked, commanding Garra's attention. "You may have all that power, but there's still one big old problem that'll stop you. Age."
"What?!" Garra hissed.
Queen Desert Rose chuckled, as she made a funny face. "Yes indeedy. You're already pretty old, and it probably won't be long until you kick the bucket and to go that big party in the sky. When that happens, all your power will be for nothing. Even you can't live forever!"
As Queen Desert Rose distracted Garra, Amire slowly crept into the throne room, hiding behind the pillars every so often. "I can't believe that actually worked, and without even agreeing on a distraction plan." She thought to herself, watching how effortlessly the queen continued to mock and taunt Garra.
Garra stroked his chin with a claw, as he pondered what Queen Desert Rose was telling him. "You're right, I still age, and that's a problem," He commented, before a rather awful idea crossed his mind. "But, some rules were meant to be broken. So congratulations, queeny, you've just given me the perfect idea for what I want my third wish to be!" Whistling to the genies, he turned his attention to Dot and said to her. "So, you grant the third wish, right?"
"Yes," Dot nodded, barely able to lift her head to look at Garra. "So, what is you're gonna wish for?"
Garra laughed. "Simple, for my third and final wish, I wish to become immortal!"
Dot prepared to snap her fingers and grant Garra his wish, but that was when she (and her brothers) noticed something, something that Garra wasn't aware of. Amire had managed to sneak up to the throne, and was currently attempting to stealthy make off with the lamp. A smile formed on Dot's face, as she happily told Garra. "Sorry, master, no can do!"
"What?! But I made my wish! You have to grant it!" Garra demanded.
"You're right, we do! But not until you sign the proper paperwork, wishing for immortality is a very complicated process," Yakko explained, tossing out a bunch of random scrolls, and handing Garra a quill. "So, sign here!"
"And here!" Wakko encouraged.
"And here, and here, and here as well!" Dot added, as all three Warners pointed to random spots on the scrolls.
Garra was quite furious, with his terrible claw writing there was no way he'd be able to sign all those scrolls. The genies had to know that, what they were up to? Turning his head ever so slightly, Garra spotted Amire, who was still trying to slip away undetected, with the lamp in her grasp. "YOU!" He shouted, teleporting in front of Amire. "That lamp belongs to me!"
Amire yelped and quickly took off, holding onto the lamp tightly, running as fast as her legs could carry her!
"Oh no you don't!" Garra bellowed at the top of his lungs. "You won't get away from me this time, you pesky little street rat! I think it's time I did what I should've done with you in the first place! I think it's time you met my real self!" And he glowed, as he started to transform!
Fluttershy continued to narrate. "And with his new powers, Garra transformed himself into a ferocious, fire-breathing..."
Spike looked up. "What?"
Fluttershy was silent. She didn't know what to say now with Spike here. "A...a fire-breathing...uh...fire-breathing-"
"Giant griffon!" Rainbow Dash quickly spoke up. "Yeah! Just a...a ferocious, fire-breathing, giant griffon!" She quickly gestured Fluttershy to go along with it.
"Oh yeah!" Fluttershy quickly nodded. "That's right! So anyway! Garra chased after Amire to stop her from getting the lamp back!"
"Cool!" Spike replied, as he listened to the rest of the story:
Amire tried to run as best she could, but Garra was close behind! And with every flap of his wings, the giant griffon breathed scorching flames, forcing Amire (and everyone in the path of said flames) to duck!
"Too hot for you to handle, Amire?! There's only way to make it stop!" Garra taunted. "Give me back the lamp!"
"Never!" Amire shouted back.
"Then prepare to die!" Garra roared, as he swooped close, and tried to swipe at Amire with his claws!
Amire ducked, but tripped and lost her balance, the lamp flying out of her hooves! To make matters worse, Garra was flying too fast to stop! He bumped straight into Amire, causing them both to tumble out of the same window the lamp went flying out of!
Time seemed to slow to a crawl, as Amire's life began to flash before her eyes. "So, this is it. This is how my story ends." She thought to herself, and shut her eyes, as she waited for the end to come.
But all of a sudden, there was a light thud, and Amire's descent stopped. Amire opened her eyes, somehow she had stopped in mid air. And when she looked at her hooves, she saw the lamp clutched firmly in them!
"And sheeeeee's safe!" Yakko called, dressed up in protective umpire gear. "What an amazing catch by Wakko Warner!"
"Aw shucks, it was nothing!" Wakko commented, holding a giant pitcher's mitt in his right hand (which is what Amire was sitting inside). Turning to Amire, he said to her. "I'm ready to grant your second wish, master. Better hurry up and make it before Garra catches you."
Amire nodded, and then she said as loudly as she could! "For my second wish, I wish for everything in Equestria to return to normal, the way it was!"
Wakko snapped his other finger, and in a flash Garra was stripped of his alicorn powers, and the armor he wore flew off him and returned to Princess Celestia. "Noooooooooooooooooooo!" Garra cried, as he reverted to his normal griffon state. "I was so close to finally ruling all of Equestria!"
"Well, you'll never get the chance ever again!" Princess Celestia said seriously, her eyes narrowed in anger, as she approached Garra with her royal guards in tow. "As princess of Equestria, I hereby place you, Garra, under arrest for your crimes! It's over."
Garra flapped his wings, preparing to escape. But that was when he felt a gigantic magical brace clamp down on him, courtesy of Celestia! When he tried to flap his wings, he couldn't. The brace weighed him down. And then a pair of magical cuffs surrounded his claws, preventing him from using them as well. "Curse you, Amire! You will rue the day you ever heard the name, Garra!" He screamed, kicking and flailing about in the sand, as he was led away.
"So, is that it? Sounds like a happy ending for all to me." Spike commented, sitting up in his bed.
Fluttershy shook her head. "It's not over quite yet. What comes next is really important."
"Yeah, so sit back, relax, and try to brace yourself," Rainbow encouraged. "This story has quite the ending!"
When Fluttershy was certain Spike was comfortable, she cleared her throat and resumed the story:
"Whew, boy am I glad that's over with." Yakko remarked, wiping some sweat from his brows.
"Yup, now Dot just has her wish to grant, and then it's all over," Wakko commented, before he realized what that meant, and his happy mood faded. "Oh." Was all he could say.
Meanwhile, Amire turned to Queen Desert Rose (Princess Celestia had left to escort Garra to prison), and immediately threw herself in front of the queen as she confessed. "I'm sorry, your majesty. This is all my fault."
"What are you talking about? You used those genies to put old meanie pants Garra in his place! You've saved all of Equestria!" Queen Desert Rose cheered.
But Amire sadly confessed. "The only reason Garra was even able to get his claws on the lamp, was because I used the first wish to become a princess. I lied to you, and to everyone. And unfortunately, I've only got the one wish left, so I can't become a princess again."
"Uh, technically you could. I still haven't granted my wish yet," Dot commented, despite the tears in her eyes. "Go on, say the magic words. We'll be okay, I'm sure someone will free us from the lamp eventually. You're not gonna get another chance like this."
Amire shook her head. "No, I made a promise and I intend to keep it," Looking at Dot, she sadly said. "For my third and final wish, I wish to free you guys from the lamp forever!"
The genies' mouths dropped open in collective shock! "But, master!" Yakko protested. "If you set us free, you can't become a princess again, and that means no money for your family."
"Come on, just make the wish to be a princess. It's what you want." Wakko encouraged, tears forming in his eyes.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear what you said the first time," Dot added, and walked closer to Amire, giving her a microphone. "Come on, make the wish we all know you want to make."
But Amire only repeated. "For my third and final wish, I wish to free you guys from the lamp forever! You're free to go."
Now there was no denying what Amire had said. Reluctantly, Dot snapped her fingers, and the wish was granted. "You didn't have to do that, master." She told Amire.
"I had no choice, I promised you guys before all of this happened. And after everything you've been through, you deserve to be free," Amire commented. "Go on, go live your dreams as entertainers for all of Equestria. I'm sure Princess Celestia will greatly appreciate having you three around."
The genies couldn't stop the water works, not one of their eyes were dry. They just approached Amire, and hugged her tightly, as they continued to cry and cry. "Thank you, master... I mean, Amire," Yakko spoke. "I hope someday we'll meet again," Then, turning to Wakko and Dot he said. "Come on, siblings. Let's see if we can't track down Princess Celestia and convince her to hire us as her royal entertainers." And in the blink of an eye, the three genies disappeared over the horizon.
Amire turned to Queen Desert Rose, surprised to see that she was crying too. "That was such a sweet thing to do, hardly anypony in your situation would've done the same," She commented, wiping the tears from her eyes and blowing her nose. "And you know what, I think that kind of selflessness deserves a reward," She zipped away to the palace, and returned shortly with a treasure chest and a small sack. Opening up the chest, the queen told Amire. "Fill this sack up with as much money as you can. It's not much, but it should be enough to help your family. Go on, you've earned it."
"I...thank you, your highness! But...are you sure?" Amire asked.
Queen Desert Rose only giggled as she placed a hoof around Amire’s shoulder. "It's not stealing if I let you have it, silly. Now come on, no good deed goes unpunished. Besides, I'm starting to think I may need to get out more and spend some of the money to help my subjects. I want Saddle Arabia to be a fun place to visit, and it's certainly not gonna be fun if ponies are out on the streets, wondering where their next meal is gonna come from."
"And so, Amire returned to her native land with enough money to help her family," Fluttershy narrated, concluding the story. "Garra was sent to prison and was never heard from again. Queen Desert Rose started using her vast wealth to host lavish parties that all of her subjects were invited to. And the genies became Princess Celestia's official royal entertainers. And they all lived happily ever after."
"So, what did you think, Spike? Was that the best story you ever heard or what?" Rainbow Dash asked, unable to contain her excitement.
"It was sure was," Spike yawned. "You should totally write it down so Twilight can tell it to me next time I have trouble sleeping, or get sick."
Fluttershy smiled, and giggled a bit. "We can worry about that tomorrow, Spike. For now, it's time for you to go to bed. It's getting quite late."
"Okay." Spike agreed, as he allowed Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash to tuck him in.
"Goodnight..." Spike started to close his eyes.
"Goodnight, Spike." Fluttershy whispered as Spike went away into dreamland.
Fluttershy walked over and kissed him gently on his forehead, and Rainbow Dash gently ruffled his scales
"Boy, that was quite the story." Rainbow commented, as the two pegasi left Spike's bedroom and closed the door.
"It was sure was," Fluttershy agreed, but then she pondered something. "How could those merchants have known all of that? Seems like an awfully detailed story to know about an old lamp."
Unknown to either Fluttershy or Rainbow Dash, the merchants had been watching the whole thing from one of the castle windows. "Boy, they sure don't know us well, do they?" One of the merchants commented, before he removed his costume, and the other merchants did the same, revealing themselves as the genies from the story.
"Well, that sure was fun. But it's time for us to get going." Wakko commented.
"Good thing we can fly." Dot added, as the three genies took off into the night, laughing all the way.
"Goodnight everypony!" Yakko called out, but nopony heard a word.
