Sugarcube Racesby Stormie-squallChaptersPrologueChapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6PrologueIt was a pleasant day, the kind of day when anypony who could spare the time would like nothing more than to recline in the shade of a tree and enjoy the warmth of the day and the warm breeze. One certain earth pony was doing just this when the king of chaos decided to have a little fun. A slight breeze ruffled his light brown mane as he stretched his neck out to feel the sunshine on his face. It felt so very pleasant, so peaceful... and then a shadow fell over him. “Such a kind, gentle giant. Wouldn’t it be fun if you weren’t so gentle?” a claw poked the dark orange earth pony’s head and suddenly his eyes spun, turning different colours as his coat faded. And then the greatest rage he’d ever felt overcame him and he ran into the nearby town of Pleasantville, destroying buildings and terrorising the residents. Ralph couldn’t remember what had happened. One moment he’d been relaxing and enjoying the sunny day, and the next he was waking up amidst the rubble of a destroyed building. He sat up, rubbing his forehead with a hoof and dislodging some dirt and dust. He coughed. Who had done this? “Ralph, what have you done?” That was his little brother, Felix. The small pegasus was picking his way over the rubble, wincing as he dislodged a small pile of crumbled cement. “I did this?” the earth pony replied, looking around in confusion. Sure enough, ponies around them were looking at him with disdain and some mares were comforting their foals while looking at him with terror clear to see in their wide eyes. “Yes,” the mayor confirmed. Ralph looked towards the buck who was standing on the other side of the rubble, decidedly not getting his hooves dirty in the literal sense. “I didn’t mean to,” Ralph protested. “I swear I don’t even remember what happened! I was just sleeping under a tree and then...” But even Felix was shaking his head sadly. “I’m sorry brother, but you wrecked the whole town. There’s no other huge earth ponies around,” he confirmed, reaching a comforting hoof up to rest on Ralph’s shoulder. “But how?” Ralph wondered, confusion all that he could feel. “Beats me,” Felix shrugged apologetically. “But you know the penalty for destroying public property.” “Banishment?” Ralph guessed, his spirits lower than they’d ever been. And he’d been so happy... As he was led away to the Everfree forest, Ralph had never felt quite so unhappy. Author's Note It gets better, I promise. Chapter 2The early morning sunshine managed to infiltrate the dense foliage of the Everfree Forest, slowly waking the giant pony who rested near the swamp. Groaning, he covered his face with his hooves and managed to fall off his stump and into the mud. He muttered angrily as he pulled himself out of the mud and shook as much of the offending substance as possible off his coat. Great, now he had to go back to Pleasantville to get more shampoo. It wasn’t like he made a habit of keeping perfectly clean, but mud was not at all pleasant once it had dried. And so he began his trek through the forest and into the nearby village of Pleasantville. With any luck, his brother would be the first pony he bumped into. Along the way, he nodded to a friendly zebra out picking some plants and picked up the pace a little to hurry past a sleeping Timberwolf. At least most of the residents of the Everfree slept during the day. The light began to get brighter as the edge of the forest got closer, and before too long Ralph was trotting into Pleasantville. He hung his head out of habit as he passed some residents, trying to ignore their whispers and the way they all seemed to hurry back into their homes. He was used to it by now, of course- three years of being banished would do that to a pony. And now he looked like the monster that the mayor had made him out to be- shaggy mane, unshorn fetlocks, and large muscles working under his unkempt coat. “Why hello there, brother,” his brother greeted him cheerfully, flying in beside him and joining him in walking through the town. “You look well.” “Hey, Felix,” Ralph greeted him in return, his spirits brightening just slightly at the one friendly face in town. Felix still occasionally visited him, but ever since he’d got his golden hammer cutie mark, he’d been in high demand. “How have you been? It’s been a while.” “I’ve been quite well, thank you,” Felix replied, chipper as ever. “You look like you’ve grown a little since I last saw you.” “Well, I did battle a Hydra a few weeks back,” Ralph recalled. “I barely managed to defeat it so after that, I decided to start practicing on trees.” That was how he’d gotten his stump, by bucking down a particularly large tree. “Congratulations,” Felix beamed. “That’s quite a feat, Hydras are quite strong.” “It would’ve been nice to have not had to battle it at all,” Ralph muttered sourly. “I wish you’d find a way to get me out of banishment.” “Now, you know that I would if I could,” Felix assured him, but he’d heard it a thousand times before. No matter how much the pegasus begged, the mayor would not allow his brother back into the village. “I appreciate the concern,” Ralph sighed. “The mayor just hates me, that’s all there is to it.” “Well, there’s nothing saying that you can’t find a new town to live in,” Felix suggested. “I know that you’d rather live with your brother but that’s just not gonna happen.” Ralph only nodded sadly and grimaced at the feeling of drying mud on his hide. It was beginning to itch. When he reached the spa, however, Ralph soon came upon another problem- he wouldn’t fit in the front door of the shop. He could’ve cried and stamped his hooves on the ground in frustration. But instead, he huffed and sat on his rump as Felix trotted into the spa and purchased some shampoo for his brother. He returned to his brother a few minutes later with a bottle clutched in his mouth. “Thanks,” Ralph said softly with a smile. Felix smiled back after setting down the bottle. “Hey, it’s the least I could do,” he nodded. “I wish you could stay a little longer. I’d come back to the forest with you but...” “It’s okay, I need to wash this mud off me anyway,” Ralph assured him, though it stung a little that his brother wouldn’t come to visit him. “I’ll see you around, Felix.” “Goodbye,” Felix smiled cheerily, and waved as Ralph trotted off with the shampoo bottle in his mouth. It was such a pity that the drying mud prevented him from fully enjoying the sunshine. Back in the Everfree Forest, Ralph found one of the rare bubbling hot springs and had to resist the urge to divebomb into it (he still wanted some water in there, after all). So, instead, he climbed in and sighed blissfully as the bubbling water enveloped him. This was truly one of the best parts of living in the Everfree Forest- it was full of surprises. Relaxing in the bubbling hot spring, Ralph had time to think. If he could only prove to the residents of Pleasantville that he wasn’t a monster, he might be accepted once again. But how would he do that? He closed his eyes, which was always risky in the dangerous Everfree, and waited for an idea to come to him. He was strong, capable of fighting off monsters. Maybe he could chase a monster into the village and then fight it off? No, that would probably go horribly wrong. Or he could try making a speech? He laughed aloud at the idea. The mayor would never let him go near town hall, let alone make a speech to the residents of Pleasantville. It wasn’t like he had a special talent for speech-making anyway- his bucking cutie mark affirmed that he was only good at bucking things. And he did have very strong hindquarters for bucking. “What am I going to do?” he sighed as he finally heaved himself out of the bubbling water. He had no way of drying himself, short of shaking most of the water off himself, and he didn’t want to still be damp by the time night fell. “Forgive me for my intrusion, but I feel that I know of a way to give you a conclusion,” the familiar rhyming zebra offered, stepping out of the foliage. “Hey, Zecora,” Ralph greeted her cheerily. She was such a pleasant zebra, the closest thing he had to a friend. “Would you like my advice? I would be glad to help a pony so nice,” she continued after smiling in greeting at him. “Sure, you might be able to help me,” Ralph nodded eagerly, trotting closer to her so he could get out of the damp patch that his dripping form had caused. Zecora nodded and then suggested, “To get back on their turf, you must prove your worth. Bring news of a good deed to Pleasantville, and love you they will.” “So you’re saying that I should travel the forest and maybe all of Equestria to find something good to do,” Ralph summed up. Zecora nodded. “That doesn’t sound too hard.” “I wish you good luck, for you are such a good buck,” Zecora commented, and with that she smiled again and disappeared back into the dense foliage. His spirits considerably lighter, Ralph departed the hot spring and headed deeper into the forest. He wanted to head out now before it got too dark, and while the idea was fresh in his mind. Maybe there was a nearby village or even a city that needed saving from a monster. The possibilities were endless, really. Author's Note Blame Fallout: Equestria (or Project Horizons, can't remember where I first saw that) for the use of 'buck' for 'stallion'. Chapter 3In the skies above the Everfree Forest, a mint-green unicorn trotted over the clouds and peered at the ground before quickly stepping backwards, her heart pounding. She looked down instead at the fluffy white cloud beneath her, willing it to calm her down. It worked and she got to her hooves for another try. She just had to remove the special amulet, fly down to earth, and not look back. Simple, really. But the ground was so far down and she didn’t trust her wings for a minute. They might have healed, considering it had been years since the incident, but then again they might not have. “Hey, what’s a unicorn doing walking on clouds?” another unicorn asked her, this one pink with a blonde mane. “I could ask you the same question,” the first unicorn replied, smirking. The pink one growled and lunged at her, causing the black-maned pony to step off the cloud as she back-pedalled. She screamed and hung onto the cloud by her front hooves, remembering the charm that kept her safe only when it was too late. Her amulet flew off her neck and landed on the cloud at the surprised unicorn’s hooves, turning the first one back into her pink-coated self. “A changeling,” the unicorn gasped, seeing the wings adorning the alicorn’s back. “How dare you impersonate a dead princess?” “I am the princess,” Vanellope snapped at her, but Taffyta obviously didn’t believe her. “I’ll just take this back to the king. Wait here and I’ll bring back the guards,” Taffyta ordered her, and trotted off with the amulet in her mouth. “I never took orders from citizens before and I’m not starting now,” Vanellope declared in a mutter. And she vaulted over the side of the cloud, landed on the unicorn, and grabbed the amulet before leaping back off the cloud in a matter of seconds. Her wings snapped open as much as they would but didn’t help much considering they were little more than a mess of bones with feathers and skin covering them. With that plan becoming an utter failure, Vanellope stopped flailing for long enough to slip the amulet back around her neck. She was probably going to die but if she didn’t, she didn’t want one of the guards or Candy Cloud residents finding her and taking her back to that imposter king. Squinting her eyes closed, she hoped that this wouldn’t hurt too much. Ralph hadn’t had too much luck in the first few hours of his quest for something great to bring back to Pleasantville. There had been countless manticores and the odd hydra, but they were to be expected in the Everfree Forest. Once he’d stepped out of the confines of the forest, he’d felt free but also miserable. How was he going to find something dangerous outside of the most dangerous part of Equestria? “Look out!” He looked up too late to dodge the mint-green blur flying towards him and ended up being knocked onto his back with the unicorn on top of him. “Sorry about that,” the unicorn muttered, getting off him and shaking herself off. He stared at her, wondering how a unicorn could suddenly change colours. “What?” she asked, and then her hoof felt around her neck. “Oh no, my amulet! Where is it?” She searched frantically in the surrounding bushes until Ralph held up the golden amulet with the star amethyst in the middle. “Looking for this?” he asked, standing and offering it to her on his outstretched hoof. “Yeah, I was, actually,” she admitted with a sheepish grin as she clipped it back around her neck. “Thanks.” “What was a unicorn doing so high up?” Ralph wondered, looking up towards the clouds. “Cloud-walking,” Vanellope responded automatically. “Really? Because my brother’s a pegasus and he says that usually unicorns know better than to go near the edge of a cloud when the spell’s in effect,” Ralph replied with a smirk. “Oh yeah? Well what’s a monster doing out of the Everfree Forest?” Vanellope shot back. “I’m not a monster,” Ralph defended himself. “I fight monsters but I’m not one.” “So why are you so huge, then?” Vanellope replied, gesturing to his size. “Why are you so annoying?” Ralph all but growled. And he set off, muttering under his breath about annoying little unicorn brats. Vanellope watched him go, still slightly frightened from her fall and from almost revealing her true identity to this monster of a stranger. He could be working for the king for all she knew! Now she just had to think of somewhere to go now that she was effectively grounded. She looked at the retreating figure of the stallion that she’d fallen on and wondered where he was going. Now, there was an idea that she could use! “Hey! Hey, big guy!” she called to him, running after him. Running on the ground was a lot different to running on clouds, and she almost tripped several times. “What?” he sighed, stopping abruptly so she ran into him. Scowling, she replaced her amulet for what felt like the hundredth time and stepped around to stand in front of him. “Where are you going?” she asked, grinning at him. “I don’t know. Anywhere,” he admitted, looking away from her bi-coloured eyes. He felt like he’d fall into them if he looked for too long. “Well then, I’ll go with you,” she declared. “I don’t really know where to go either. Heck, I haven’t ever set hoof around these parts before.” “Neither have I,” Ralph agreed. “I’ll take you along with me. It can’t hurt to have a travelling companion, right?” “That’s right,” Vanellope grinned. “What’s your name, anyway? If I’m gonna be travelling with you, I should know your name.” “Ralph,” he replied, watching for a spark of recognition. But there was none. “Well, it’s nice to meet ya, Ralph. I’m Vanellope,” she supplied, and waited for him to recognise her. But he didn’t, he just smiled. “I’m surprised you haven’t heard of me,” Ralph admitted as they continued down the road, trotting side-by-side. “Me too,” Vanellope agreed. “I mean, I’m surprised you haven’t heard of me. Have you heard of Candy Cloud? Sugarcube Races?” He looked confused at both names. “They’re in the sky,” she clarified, pointing upwards. “Oh, well that’s why I’ve never heard of them, then. I’m an earth pony, if that isn’t already obvious,” Ralph pointed out. Vanellope giggled. “So where are ya from?” she asked, settling into a comfortable gait where she wasn’t lifting her hooves too much. She attempted to copy his stride. “I’ll tell you if you tell me where you’re from,” he responded, causing her to stumble and fall. This time, when she got up, Ralph repositioned her amulet around her neck and this time clipped it closed firmly and brushed her mane over it. “If that doesn’t keep it on, nothing will.” “I’d rather not,” she admitted quietly, brushing her front hoof against the ground nervously. “Why? Are you a criminal or something?” Ralph asked, trotting ahead of her. “What? No,” she laughed, and galloped to keep up. She could feel her wings attempting to reappear as she hit speed but slowed down so that wouldn’t happen. They walked in silence, Vanellope marvelling at the feeling of actual dirt beneath her hooves while Ralph enjoyed the sunshine on his back. From time to time, she stole glances at the giant, dark orange pony walking beside and slightly in front of her. His short brown mane looked like it had been freshly washed, and he didn’t smell too bad. Sniffing, she detected the scent of sweat and what smelled undeniably like manticore venom. The winged beings had the ability to come to cloud cities and walk there and had sometimes interrupted races or civilian life. “Why do you smell of manticore venom?” she asked, stepping away from him after noticing that she’d been close to pressing her nose right against his coat. “To attract mares,” Ralph replied sarcastically. “No, I had to fight off a few manticores on my way out of the Everfree Forest.” “Yeah right,” Vanellope snorted. “As if someone like you could fight off those monsters.” “It’s true,” Ralph confirmed. “I even fought a few hydras. Don’t know what they were doing so far from the swamp, though.” “I’ll believe that when I see it,” Vanellope laughed, trotting ahead of him. Scowling, Ralph grabbed her by the tail and yanked her back beside him. “Hey!” He laughed and sped up to a quick trot, so Vanellope chased after him and very quickly passed him. They ran into the next town. Vanellope’s mane and tail streamed behind her and the gem in her amulet sparked a few times in warning. But she didn’t notice, having too much fun. Only when her wings flickered into existence did she slow down and look around nervously. But there was nopony around, considering this was a quiet stretch of road. She’d be okay until they arrived near the next town. So she continued galloping ahead of Ralph, attempting to keep her wings out of sight by tucking them closely to her body. It hurt but it was better than being found out. Ralph caught up with her when she slowed down as another town came into sight. “You’re fast,” he commented, panting. “I can outrun a hydra but outrunning you is something else entirely. How’d you get that fast?” “It’s a secret,” she giggled, not wanting to give any hints as to her true identity. Speaking of secrets... she had to hide her wings somehow, and the amulet had broken due to her speed. Tapping it, she felt her fur ripple as it changed colour from mint green to pink for a moment. And then, as she increased the pressure on the gem, her fur returned to mint-green and her wings disappeared. She sighed in relief that her unicorn disguise was back. “So, this town’s called Sunset Valley. Fitting,” Ralph commented as Vanellope walked a few steps ahead of him. The sun was setting and the town was set in a valley, so Vanellope could see just how the name was fitting. She smiled at that. “It looks small,” Vanellope observed as she trotted into the town. She tried not to jolt the amulet’s gem too much just in case her disguise failed again. “Big enough to put us up for the night, though,” Ralph figured, and brushed past her. Vanellope winced- the amulet no longer hid the feeling of her wings, which meant that somepony would probably feel her wings if they brushed up against her. She shivered at that revelation, which gave her an idea. “Hey, Ralph?” she called softly to him, trotting to catch up. “Is there some kind of a clothing boutique here? I’m a little bit cold.” She shivered to emphasise her point, and now it was starting to get a little chillier as Celestia’s sun set and Luna’s night began. “Sure,” Ralph nodded, although his brow furrowed in confusion. What was that shimmering on Vanellope’s sides when she shivered? But he put it down to his eyes playing tricks on him after not having eaten all day. “We’ll get you something warm and then go get something to eat.” “Sounds good,” Vanellope agreed, her stomach growling as if to back her up. She really had been running fast. Ralph led Vanellope to a clothing boutique and as she stepped inside, her amulet sparked and her wings were in clear view for just a moment before a good amount of tapping rendered them invisible once more. “Welcome to the Barnyard Bargains clothing store. How may I help you?” an earth pony clerk asked her. She looked quite country with her straw-yellow mane and pale green hide. “Hi, I’m just looking for a hooded cloak,” Vanellope replied, looking around. “Is there anything like that around here?” “Well, sure there is. I’ll be right back,” the clerk replied, and trotted into the back of the store. As soon as she disappeared, the amulet sparked warningly again and this time sent a few sparks of magic into Vanellope. She gasped as her fur rippled alarmingly between pink and mint-green, causing her body to shake. Her wings were back now and there was no getting rid of them. Taking a deep breath, she stood up straight and prepared to face the questions that the clerk would no doubt have for her. As it turned out, she needn’t have worried because the clerk had the cloak covering her face. Vanellope snickered at the sight but readily accepted the cloak, throwing it over her pathetic-looking wings and leaving the hood down for now. The cloak, she discovered, was the same mint-green colour as her disguise’s fur, and the hood was sewn on with pink string. The same thread held two pockets to her cloak. “Thank you,” she beamed at the clerk, “I love it.” She withdrew a gem from her mane and threw it onto the counter, much to the amazement of the clerk. “Keep the change, you can use it for your shop.” With another warm smile, Vanellope left the clothing boutique and tried not to shudder as her blue magic streaked along her coat from her amulet. She could only guess at what her coat currently looked like. “That was quick,” Ralph commented when Vanellope rejoined him in the town square. “Well, I only wanted a cloak,” Vanellope figured. “Now, where are we headed for food? I’m starving.” “All that running must’ve tired you out,” Ralph chuckled. “We’ll go to the pizzeria. Do you like mushrooms?” “Yes,” Vanellope grinned. “I like any kind of pizza so order whatever you like. And get a smaller one for me.” She couldn’t resist a jab at his size, and neither could he on her size. “Okay, and I’ll get a foal-size one for you,” he decided. “Hey!” she snapped, mirth gleaming in her eyes. It was good to have a friend. That night, they slept under the stars. The town did have an inn but there were no beds left, so Ralph had found a spot somewhere out of town and had curled up near a stump. “How are you not cold?” Vanellope complained as she shivered nearby. Even with her cloak, it was freezing. Then again, she had mainly got the cloak to hide her wings and any strange happenings on her coat. “I’m used to sleeping in the open,” Ralph replied simply. “You’re a unicorn, don’t you have some kind of fire spell?” “No, I was never taught before- never mind,” she mumbled, and tried in vain to warm herself up. “Before what?” Ralph prodded, raising his head a little to look at her curiously. “I said never mind,” Vanellope snapped, shivering miserably. The amulet still sent sparks of magic jumping along her coat, but it hurt her more than it warmed her. At last, she growled and attempted to throw it off. But it had fused to her skin. She bit her lip to hold back tears and her horn glowed a bright blue as she carefully pried the metal from her skin and stowed the amulet in her cloak. It was no use now, but the strange thing was that her coat remained mint-green. Deciding to puzzle it over in the morning, Vanellope rested her head on her forehooves and slept under Luna’s beautiful night. Author's Note Well this fic is going down as well as I thought it would here. But if just one person likes it, then I'll have done my job as a writer. And it gets better from here anyway. Chapter 4Felix trotted into the Everfree Forest, shifting his wings both out of nervousness and to get the overwhelming feeling of ickiness out of his feathers. He hated this forest, though he’d never tell his brother that. After not seeing hide nor hair of the great earth pony for weeks, the pegasus had become worried so had decided to go visit his brother. “Ralph?” he called, finding a space that looks like it had been recently damaged. “Ralph, it’s me, Felix. Sorry I haven’t been around in weeks, I’ve been too busy in town.” He heard a rustling in some bushes and looked around nervously, chewing his bottom lip. The creature that leaped out of the bushes was not a large, dark orange earth pony. Rather, it was a Timberwolf. The pegasus emitted a decidedly girly shriek and jumped backwards, scrambling back towards a tree. The wooden beast was on him in a second, looming over him breathing its reeking breath in his face and growling menacingly. “Hey, bark-breath! Why not chase someone who’ll actually give you a challenge?” a brash female voice taunted, and the Timberwolf instantly lost interest in the trembling pegasus at its feet. It took off after the rainbow blur and Felix panted for several moments before getting back onto his trembling hooves. The Timberwolf’s chilling howl could still be heard somewhere else in the forest, and it still made Felix shiver. How could Ralph live in the forest with these terrifying creatures? “Rainbow! Didn’t Applejack teach you anything about not taunting the Timberwolves?” another mare yelled after the feisty pegasus who’d saved Felix’s hide. A purple unicorn galloped into the clearing and looked around in confusion. She almost missed the timid pegasus hiding in the bushes. “Ugh, that featherbrain,” the mare muttered, and sat down to wait for her friend to return. “E-excuse me?” Felix greeted the unicorn quietly. She looked around for the source of the voice but, when she found him, smiled and approached him. “Well, hello there. My name is Twilight Sparkle. Who are you?” she greeted him, stopping in front of him after he’d stepped out of the bushes he’d been hiding in. “My name’s Felix, ma’am,” he introduced himself, fighting to keep the tremble out of his voice. “I’m from Pleasantville, I’ve been looking for my brother Ralph. I don’t suppose you’ve seen him? He’s a dark orange earth pony with a brown mane and blue eyes and he’s really big.” He gestured at about Ralph’s height but the unicorn shook her head. “Sorry, I haven’t seen him,” she replied apologetically. “Would you like me to help you look for him, though? I’m always willing to help and I know that Rainbow Dash will probably be all too eager to help out a fellow pegasus.” “Sure,” Felix nodded. “He’s probably in the forest somewhere and normally I’d look for him myself but...” “The Everfree Forest is no place for a pony to be by himself, especially one who looks as civilised as you,” Twilight giggled. “I’m fine here on my own, but that’s only because my friend Zecora told me everything I should know about what to avoid here.” “Ralph talks about Zecora sometimes,” Felix noted. “He said that she’s a very nice zebra.” “Oh, she is,” Twilight agreed, nodding eagerly. Before she could speak further, a rainbow blur flew back into the clearing and almost crashed into Felix. “Rainbow,” the unicorn chastised, and the pegasus grinned sheepishly. “Heh heh, oops,” she apologised, hovering beside Felix. “You always seem to be in the way, dontcha?” “No, I’m just really out of my element here,” Felix responded, looking at the ground as he dug up some dirt with his hoof. “My brother lives here but I don’t visit him very often because I don’t like it here.” “Your brother lives here?” Rainbow snorted. “What pony in their right mind would live here?” “He isn’t living here by choice,” Felix admitted. “He was banished years ago. But I won’t talk about it, he probably doesn’t want everypony knowing about his banishment.” “I understand,” Twilight assured him gently. “Now, Rainbow, I’ve offered to help Felix look for his brother. Do you want to help?” “I’m always up for helping a fellow pegasus,” Rainbow grinned, and rubbed Felix’s head with her hoof. “How come you aren’t flying, anyway? You’re not a scaredy-pony, are ya?” “Of course not, I just don’t trust myself to be able to fly in such close quarters,” Felix replied, spreading his wings to prove that he did fly often. “If you say so,” the pegasus snorted. “Now, where would your brother be?” “Well, he was good friends with Zecora so if anyone would know where he is, it’d be her,” Felix figured. “Trouble is, I don’t know where she lives.” “Then it’s a good thing you’ve got me,” Twilight grinned. “Come with me, Felix, I’ll take you to her.” She trotted off and Felix followed her while Rainbow Dash flew for a few minutes before landing behind Felix. “Who has a hammer for a cutie mark?” she asked loudly, causing Felix to blush to the tips of his ears. “Were you looking at my flank?” he demanded, flustered. “No, I was looking at your cutie mark,” the mare grinned. “So what’s your special talent?” “Fixing things,” he replied. “I found an ancient artefact in the Everfree Forest. When I touched it, it turned my hooves this weird golden colour and since then, I’ve been able to fix everything I touch- see, like this.” He stepped on a broken twig and it immediately reformed. “Wow,” Rainbow gasped, and stepped on the stick to break it again. Felix fixed it again. This went on for some minutes before Twilight stomped over to them impatiently. “What are you two doing?” she groaned, but her interest was piqued when she noticed the golden colour of Felix’s hooves. “Twilight, watch this,” Rainbow Dash grinned. She broke a twig and Felix fixed it. “That’s impressive,” Twilight admitted. “How can you do that, though? You’re not a unicorn unless you’re an alicorn hiding your true form with some kind of enchantment. Even then, you’d need an amulet for that...” “Twilight,” Rainbow Dash deadpanned. The mare caught herself rambling and blushed. “Sorry, Felix. Explain,” she prompted, clearly restraining herself from examining Felix’s hoof. Felix related his story to her, much to her interest. “An artefact, you say? Interesting,” she hummed thoughtfully. “I’d love to find out more about it, maybe after we find your brother?” “Sure,” Felix nodded. “I’d be glad to help you find out more about my golden hooves. Some ponies call me Goldenhoof.” “I can see why,” Twilight giggled. Smiling, she turned and continued leading them towards Zecora’s hut. The zebra was outside tending to some of her strange plants when the trio arrived. “Good morning, Twilight and friend. I would love to chat but I have a garden to tend,” the zebra greeted them, gesturing to her array of exotic plants. Felix had never seen half of these plants before. “Hey, Zecora. Felix here is looking for his brother,” Rainbow Dash informed the zebra, flicking her tail towards him. “Ah, the brother of the big pony. Why is it that you have come to me?” Zecora asked, peering down at Felix. “Well, y’see, I came here looking for him. Do you know where he might be?” he asked, nervously scratching at his mane. “But of course, I gave the advice myself, that Ralph must seek help for his emotional health. He has gone on a quest to put his worthiness to the test. He is unliked by the ponies of Pleasantville, but if he brings good news, perhaps like him they will.” “So you’re saying that he went on a quest to prove his worthiness to the ponies who banished him?” Twilight summed up. Zecora nodded in confirmation. “Oh, he didn’t have to do that,” Felix worried. “Do you know where he might be?” Zecora shook her head, too busy watering some strange-looking blue flowers. “Hey, don’t worry. We’ll help you look for him,” Twilight promised, putting a hoof over Felix’s back and hugging him. “Isn’t that right, Rainbow Dash?” “Yep,” Rainbow nodded. “I’ll help you, Felix. Don’t worry, I’m not the element of loyalty for nothing.” “Thank you, both of you,” Felix smiled, his cheeks warming in a blush. To have the elements of loyalty and magic helping him was something that he’d never dreamed of. Author's Note And the dislikes keep piling up. Friendship is magic indeed, you bunch of jerks. I'm just gonna keep posting, though, in the hopes that some actual nice people will appear and help me out. Maybe it'll get some more likes now that it has 2 of the mane 6 in it. Chapter 5Blue sparks had been dancing along Vanellope’s body all night, giving her a very restless sleep. But Ralph had insisted on rising with the sun so that they could move on through another few towns. Trotting along behind him, she yawned loudly and readjusted her wings beneath her cloak. “Are we there yet?” she whined. “My hooves are getting tired.” “No we’re not there yet,” Ralph replied, looking back at her. “Why are you so tired, anyway? Did my snoring keep you awake?” “No, it was my amulet,” Vanellope admitted, her tiredness causing her to almost let her secret slip. “It broke yesterday and now it keeps sending sparks along my body. It’s really annoying and it kinda hurts.” And yet she’d put it back on, if only to keep up appearances. “So why don’t you take it off?” Ralph asked. “Surely somepony like you wouldn’t be stupid enough to keep something on if it was hurting you.” “It hides my true identity,” she admitted, mentally kicking herself for letting her secret be known. “If I took it off, I’d probably lose it.” “But don’t you have pockets?” Ralph prompted. Vanellope facehoofed. She’d completely forgotten about that! And she’d used them last night too. “Thanks for reminding me. My sleepiness must’ve fried my brain,” she smiled, and placed the malfunctioning amulet in the pocket of her cloak. Instantly, the sparking sensation stopped although the coat-changing sparks didn’t. Her wings were gone, though, which was a good thing. “You’re from a cloud city, aren’t you?” Ralph figured, noting that Vanellope was walking gingerly. “Yeah, my parents were both pegasi and there’s a unicorn somewhere in my family tree,” she lied. “I got the powers of a unicorn and the cloud-walking ability of my parents.” Ralph nodded, clearly happy with this explanation, and Vanellope breathed an internal sigh of relief. “Well, there’s quite a long walk until the next town so do you want me to carry you?” Ralph offered. “It’s no trouble and that way, you won’t be slowing me down.” “Okay,” Vanellope smiled, and levitated herself into the air and onto the large pony’s back. Now she could feel his muscles moving beneath and, she had to admit, the power contained there made her giddy with excitement. With Vanellope draped over Ralph’s back like a pony-shaped set of saddlebags, the duo continued on and through a further few towns before they came across some commotion. At the sound of a squawk, Vanellope pricked her ears up and looked up at the sky- right at the flaming phoenix diving for her! Squealing, she flailed her hooves and landed on her back on the ground next to Ralph. She was now faced with a dilemma- how to roll over onto her hooves without Ralph seeing her wings which had reappeared on impact. But luckily, he was too busy facing off against the flaming bird. By the time Vanellope finally managed to scramble to her hooves, Ralph had chased off the large phoenix and was watching it fly away. But at seeing the glinting piece of jewellery in its beak, Vanellope dug around in her pockets and realised with a sinking sensation what the jewellery was. “Come back here with my amulet, bird-brain!” she called after the bird, running after it into the forest beside the road. At least the spell was changing her appearance randomly, but she still had hopes of getting her amulet fixed. “Why do you need it anyway? Isn’t it broken?” Ralph huffed as he easily caught up with her. “I wanna get it fixed,” Vanellope replied. This running was really waking her up and... oh no. Her wings flickered onto her sides and began to flutter as she picked up speed. It didn’t help that she had the urge to jump into the air and follow the phoenix to its nest. “Oh, so I guess we’d better get it then,” Ralph figured, and galloped ahead to catch up to the bird or at least follow it to its hideout. Vanellope ran until she hit a branch and went tumbling over it, landing hard with her cloak flying over her head. She sniffled at the scrapes on her legs and laid her head on the ground, feeling like every part of her was broken now. “I got it!” Ralph called, breaking her out of her misery as he crashed through the forest towards her. Vanellope made sure to cover her wings with her cloak and beamed as Ralph came towards her with the amulet clasped in his mouth. “Thank you,” Vanellope beamed at him, taking the amulet in her magic and shoving it back into her pocket. “You’re my hero.” She noticed that Ralph looked surprised at that admission, although she had said it to many a pony who helped her back at home. “Really?” he asked, blinking in shock. “Does the amulet really mean that much to you?” “Yeah,” she nodded. “I’d probably be dead or imprisoned by now if I didn’t have it.” “But why?” Ralph prompted. “I’ll tell you when we’re further away from my home,” Vanellope promised him. “Or when we’ve gotten to know each other a little better.” “Okay,” Ralph shrugged, and trotted out of the forest with her. Vanellope followed him with a new admiration for the strong buck- anypony else probably would have let the phoenix get away with it. But this buck had a good heart, probably one that was made of gold. She smiled at him, trying not to get too caught up in her thoughts, and followed him into the town where there was quite a good deal of crashing going on. “Monster!” a mare called upon seeing the large buck. Ralph sighed, folding his ears back as he looked at the ground in shame. But Vanellope wasn’t afraid of him- rather, she decided to stand up to him. “He is not a monster!” she yelled at the mare, stomping her front hooves onto the ground with a surprising amount of ferocity. “He’s the monster who destroyed Pleasantville, isn’t he?” the mare asked, looking to Ralph for confirmation. “He what?” Vanellope wondered, blinking in confusion. She looked to Ralph, who looked like he’d been kicked. “This monsterpony you’re travelling with destroyed the town of Pleasantville a few years ago,” the mare explained. “He was banished to the Everfree Forest and who knows how much that place has corrupted him?” “Ralph is not a monster,” the smaller pony said firmly. “Would a monster chase off a phoenix and then hunt it down to get back something precious to a mare he just met a few days ago?” Ralph looked at the two mares in front of him, especially the one defending his honour. As she described every good deed he’d done for her, from fighting the phoenix to carrying her on his back when her hooves got sore, he felt hope for the first time that maybe somepony other than his brother saw him as a kindhearted stallion rather than a rampaging monster. “Well, I suppose you’re not all bad then,” the mare grudgingly admitted to Ralph. “However, as mayor of this town, I can’t let you come through here. The townsponies all fear him and his presence will cause riots.” “Is that what all that commotion’s about?” Ralph wondered. The mare nodded solemnly. “Before we go, do you know of anypony who could fix a broken appearance-changing amulet?” Vanellope wondered. “Well, Twilight Sparkle could do it but she lives all the way over in Ponyville and she’s probably out adventuring with her friends,” the mare replied. “You might bump into her but I don’t think Celestia would approve of a monsterpony going into her faithful student’s home, even if he is as good as you say he is.” “Sorry I’m preventing you from getting your amulet fixed,” Ralph apologised to Vanellope as they walked away from the town and into the forest. If they couldn’t go through the town, they’d have to go around it. “No, it’s okay,” Vanellope assured him. “I don’t want a judgemental pony fixing my amulet anyway. I can wait for it to be fixed but I don’t want you to feel like a burden.” “I already feel like a silly pony for even thinking that anypony will ever see me as a good guy,” Ralph admitted, looking at the ground as he walked along sadly. “I see you as a good guy,” Vanellope assured him with a bright smile. Ralph only glanced at her before returning his solemn gaze to the ground. “Hey now, don’t go all sad on me,” Vanellope frowned, zipping around to stand in front of him. “You are a good guy, Ralph. You’re helping me when nopony else would. Would anypony else stop for a small pony who could barely even walk on solid ground? And everything I said to that mare is true- you’re a good guy, at least to me.” She’d been poking his chest with a hoof every few seconds to punctuate her points, and now she wrapped her forelegs around him in a hug. This was the most pony contact Ralph had had with a pony other than his brother in years. So it took him some time to remember how to hug back. Vanellope froze at feeling Ralph’s hooves settle around her back over her wings. She did not want him to ask questions if he could feel them, and surely he did. With the hug out of the way, the two ponies continued on through the forest feeling lighthearted, confused, and slightly conflicted. Ralph was glad that a pony who’d once been a stranger to him was showing such kindness towards him. At the same time, he was confused- why did Vanellope have wings and why was she hiding them? Should he ask her? Should she tell him? The confusion led to silence which seemed to stretch on forever, or until hunger made itself known. Vanellope giggled at the sound of her grumbling stomach, and then they both began laughing and fell into more of a companionable silence as they made their way towards the next town. Author's Note Ugh, this chapter's a mess. I kind of fixed it though. I have got to stop going weeks between writing chapters, like I did with this fic when I was first writing it. Chapter 6Felix trudged along under Twilight Sparkle’s shield spell as the rain pattered down around them. Even Rainbow Dash chose to walk rather than get her wings all soggy from flying in the rain. Every so often, she complained about the slow pace that Twilight was walking at. “Can you walk any slower?” she groaned, walking right at the front edge of the rain-free bubble. “Not while I have the spell going, Rainbow, I’ve told you this so many times before,” Twilight responded, still looking straight ahead at the muddy road. “Fine,” Rainbow sighed, and dropped back to walk beside Felix. The pegasus stallion marvelled at the sparkling purple bubble surrounding them and reached out a hoof to touch it, ending up with a rain-drenched hoof and a pleasant tingling feeling for his troubles. “Soo, you like magic, huh?” the rainbow-maned pegasus observed, causing Felix to stammer and look away from the unicorn leading them along as his muzzle warmed with a blush. “Yes,” he replied quietly, hoping that Twilight wouldn’t hear their conversation. It was simply improper for a stallion to lust after somepony he’d just met, especially if she was Princess Celestia’s favourite student! Rainbow snickered at his obvious embarrassment and discomfort. “Ah, it’s okay, Felix, plenty of pegasi admire unicorn magic. Can’t say that many have the reaction you do but I probably just haven’t met ‘em yet,” she assured him, poking at his extended wings. Flushing darkly, he managed to fold them to his sides once more and trotted a little faster to catch up to Twilight so that he wasn’t staring at her flank. “Hello, Felix,” Twilight greeted him with a smile. “Come up for a chat?” “Well, I was going to ask how long until the next town but we can have a chat,” he replied, grinning back at her. “The next town shouldn’t be too much further away, though we could’ve gone faster if we’d caught the train,” Twilight informed him. “Sorry,” Felix apologised, knowing that it was his fault that they’d avoided the train. “It’s okay, it’ll probably be easier to find your brother if we go on hoof, like you said,” she assured him, and stopped to reach out a hoof to ruffle his mane gently. He was left stammering and blushing at her touch. He hadn’t known before that unicorns had that same pleasant tingly feeling all through them. Before too long, the travelling trio stepped into the outskirts of the next small village. Felix noted that hardly anypony was outside today, probably due to the wet weather, yet the many small shops and cafes were still open. “Finally! If it was up to me, we’d have been here hours ago! I’m starved!” Rainbow cried as she zoomed out of Twilight’s rain-shield spell and into the nearest cafe. Twilight rolled her eyes at her excitable friend and trotted into the cafe with Felix at her side. Inside, Rainbow was already seated at a table and waved them over. “Good day, ladies and gentleman,” a waiter greeted them after trotting over to their table. “Are you ready to order yet?” “Yes, I’ll have a daisy sandwich,” Twilight replied while Felix scanned the menu for any pies. To his delight, apple pie was on the menu, so he ordered it. Rainbow, meanwhile, chose a basket of hay fries, two daisy sandwiches, and a cherry pie along with apple cider. “You weren’t kidding when you said you were starved,” Felix commented with a chuckle once the waiter had departed. “Eh, what can I say? I’ve got a high metabolism so have to keep eating,” she shrugged. “She eats much more when she’s been flying,” Twilight confided in him. “After her Iron Pony contest with Applejack, she almost ate the town cafe out of business.” Felix laughed at this, remembering that Ralph had once done that in their own town. He wondered where his brother was now, and if he was somewhere out of the rain. He hoped that he was. After eating, the trio headed into the town proper in search of accommodation for the night. While there, Felix heard one mare mention something about a monster pony near their town. It wasn’t in his nature to but in, but he could still eavesdrop and kick himself for it later. Besides, he reasoned, he had to find out about Ralph. “You were very brave to turn him away, Lilac,” a mare was saying to her lavender-coated friend. “Well, I knew that the town wouldn’t stand up to a monsterpony like him,” Lilac replied, blushing modestly. “I told him to keep away from town and that we didn’t want a monsterpony like him coming near our town ever again.” Felix turned away at that, feeling hurt on Ralph’s behalf. How anypony could call his brother a monsterpony was beyond him. Sure, he was big, but the princess was big and she wasn’t considered bad. The next thing Lilac said, however, made him almost forget his promise not to butt in. “Funny thing is, though, he had this little mare with him. She stood up for him, said he wasn’t such a bad pony. I almost felt sorry for the poor guy. But even if I’d let him in, it would’ve resulted in chaos. Can’t have a monsterpony in our town, no matter how supposedly good he is.” Felix grit his teeth together in anger and, before he could stop himself, he’d stepped forward almost right up in Lilac’s face. “Now, you just listen here, sorry for the intrusion!” he snapped at her. “My brother may be huge and he may have destroyed my village once and he might fight monsters on a daily basis but he is not a monsterpony. I happen to know that he’s very kind and gentle, and he wouldn’t have been any trouble in your town. He’s used to sleeping outside so if there was no room in your inn, he would’ve suggested sleeping outside. You shouldn’t judge ponies before you get to know them!” Around this time, he realised that he’d been almost nose-to-nose with the earth pony and hovering in front of her in his anger. As the realisation hit, he stepped back and chuckled nervously while folding his wings beside him. “We don’t serve monsterponies here,” Lilac told him coldly as she pushed him out into the rain. Felix sat glumly in the mud, but he brightened when he heard the two mares inside speaking to the lavender inn-owner. “Hey, you didn’t have to push him outside!” he heard Rainbow yell, and smiled gently at that. Minutes later, the three ponies were trotting out of town as the sun began to set. The rain, at least, had stopped, but trotting through mud was uncomfortable to say the least. “Sorry I made us get kicked out of town,” he apologised to the two mares. “We didn’t wanna stay with such judgemental ponies anyway,” Rainbow smiled at him. “Besides, you were being loyal to your brother.” “Well, at least now we know that we’re on the right track,” Twilight commented brightly. “He came here but got turned away, which means that he was either on this side of the town or the other one. And if he was on the other side of town and got turned away, we would’ve bumped into him.” “And we know that he’s travelling with a mare,” Felix added. “She could be his marefriend for all I know, considering I don’t pay as much attention to him as I rightly should, but I think that he’d tell me about something like that.” “Too bad we didn’t get a description of her,” Twilight mused. “Then we’d know who to ask around for.” “Or we could ask if a mare and giant pony came through,” Felix added. Twilight smiled at that while Rainbow took to the sky. “At least now that the rain’s stopped, we can fly,” Rainbow added. “I can see more from above. You coming, Felix?” After receiving an encouraging nod from Twilight, Felix stretched his wings out and then took to the sky with Rainbow Dash. “I can’t fly for very long,” he admitted once they were both airborne. “Well, it’s not like we’ll be able to fly very fast, what with no-wings down there,” Rainbow figured, nodding down at Twilight. “If you want, though, I can fly ahead and look to see if I can find your brother and his companion.” “That would be so nice of you,” Felix agreed, nodding eagerly. “Hey Twilight, I’m going to fly ahead and see if I can find Felix’s brother. I won’t be long!” Rainbow called down to her friend, and then with a rainbow-coloured flash she was gone. Felix was amazed at how fast this pegasus could fly! Sure, he’d heard stories about the fastest flyer in Equestria, but seeing her in action was something else entirely. Seeing her, he could easily see how such a fast flyer could pull off the fabled Sonic Rainboom. In no time at all, Rainbow Dash was back. “Hey guys, I found ‘em,” she reported. “They’re in the forest not far ahead. Well, not far for me, but probably about a day’s travel for you two slow ponies. Or longer since it’s pretty dense forest. The point is, I saw them.” “Thank you, Rainbow Dash,” Felix thanked her gratefully. “At least now we know where they are. And you could give us directions.” “Yep,” Rainbow grinned proudly. “I’m the greatest.” Felix chuckled. He wasn’t sure about being the greatest, but in this situation, Rainbow Dash surely was great. Author's Note Don't worry, Felix's thing for Twilight is more of a 'hot girl' reaction. If anyone's even reading.
PrologueIt was a pleasant day, the kind of day when anypony who could spare the time would like nothing more than to recline in the shade of a tree and enjoy the warmth of the day and the warm breeze. One certain earth pony was doing just this when the king of chaos decided to have a little fun. A slight breeze ruffled his light brown mane as he stretched his neck out to feel the sunshine on his face. It felt so very pleasant, so peaceful... and then a shadow fell over him. “Such a kind, gentle giant. Wouldn’t it be fun if you weren’t so gentle?” a claw poked the dark orange earth pony’s head and suddenly his eyes spun, turning different colours as his coat faded. And then the greatest rage he’d ever felt overcame him and he ran into the nearby town of Pleasantville, destroying buildings and terrorising the residents. Ralph couldn’t remember what had happened. One moment he’d been relaxing and enjoying the sunny day, and the next he was waking up amidst the rubble of a destroyed building. He sat up, rubbing his forehead with a hoof and dislodging some dirt and dust. He coughed. Who had done this? “Ralph, what have you done?” That was his little brother, Felix. The small pegasus was picking his way over the rubble, wincing as he dislodged a small pile of crumbled cement. “I did this?” the earth pony replied, looking around in confusion. Sure enough, ponies around them were looking at him with disdain and some mares were comforting their foals while looking at him with terror clear to see in their wide eyes. “Yes,” the mayor confirmed. Ralph looked towards the buck who was standing on the other side of the rubble, decidedly not getting his hooves dirty in the literal sense. “I didn’t mean to,” Ralph protested. “I swear I don’t even remember what happened! I was just sleeping under a tree and then...” But even Felix was shaking his head sadly. “I’m sorry brother, but you wrecked the whole town. There’s no other huge earth ponies around,” he confirmed, reaching a comforting hoof up to rest on Ralph’s shoulder. “But how?” Ralph wondered, confusion all that he could feel. “Beats me,” Felix shrugged apologetically. “But you know the penalty for destroying public property.” “Banishment?” Ralph guessed, his spirits lower than they’d ever been. And he’d been so happy... As he was led away to the Everfree forest, Ralph had never felt quite so unhappy. Author's Note It gets better, I promise.
Chapter 2The early morning sunshine managed to infiltrate the dense foliage of the Everfree Forest, slowly waking the giant pony who rested near the swamp. Groaning, he covered his face with his hooves and managed to fall off his stump and into the mud. He muttered angrily as he pulled himself out of the mud and shook as much of the offending substance as possible off his coat. Great, now he had to go back to Pleasantville to get more shampoo. It wasn’t like he made a habit of keeping perfectly clean, but mud was not at all pleasant once it had dried. And so he began his trek through the forest and into the nearby village of Pleasantville. With any luck, his brother would be the first pony he bumped into. Along the way, he nodded to a friendly zebra out picking some plants and picked up the pace a little to hurry past a sleeping Timberwolf. At least most of the residents of the Everfree slept during the day. The light began to get brighter as the edge of the forest got closer, and before too long Ralph was trotting into Pleasantville. He hung his head out of habit as he passed some residents, trying to ignore their whispers and the way they all seemed to hurry back into their homes. He was used to it by now, of course- three years of being banished would do that to a pony. And now he looked like the monster that the mayor had made him out to be- shaggy mane, unshorn fetlocks, and large muscles working under his unkempt coat. “Why hello there, brother,” his brother greeted him cheerfully, flying in beside him and joining him in walking through the town. “You look well.” “Hey, Felix,” Ralph greeted him in return, his spirits brightening just slightly at the one friendly face in town. Felix still occasionally visited him, but ever since he’d got his golden hammer cutie mark, he’d been in high demand. “How have you been? It’s been a while.” “I’ve been quite well, thank you,” Felix replied, chipper as ever. “You look like you’ve grown a little since I last saw you.” “Well, I did battle a Hydra a few weeks back,” Ralph recalled. “I barely managed to defeat it so after that, I decided to start practicing on trees.” That was how he’d gotten his stump, by bucking down a particularly large tree. “Congratulations,” Felix beamed. “That’s quite a feat, Hydras are quite strong.” “It would’ve been nice to have not had to battle it at all,” Ralph muttered sourly. “I wish you’d find a way to get me out of banishment.” “Now, you know that I would if I could,” Felix assured him, but he’d heard it a thousand times before. No matter how much the pegasus begged, the mayor would not allow his brother back into the village. “I appreciate the concern,” Ralph sighed. “The mayor just hates me, that’s all there is to it.” “Well, there’s nothing saying that you can’t find a new town to live in,” Felix suggested. “I know that you’d rather live with your brother but that’s just not gonna happen.” Ralph only nodded sadly and grimaced at the feeling of drying mud on his hide. It was beginning to itch. When he reached the spa, however, Ralph soon came upon another problem- he wouldn’t fit in the front door of the shop. He could’ve cried and stamped his hooves on the ground in frustration. But instead, he huffed and sat on his rump as Felix trotted into the spa and purchased some shampoo for his brother. He returned to his brother a few minutes later with a bottle clutched in his mouth. “Thanks,” Ralph said softly with a smile. Felix smiled back after setting down the bottle. “Hey, it’s the least I could do,” he nodded. “I wish you could stay a little longer. I’d come back to the forest with you but...” “It’s okay, I need to wash this mud off me anyway,” Ralph assured him, though it stung a little that his brother wouldn’t come to visit him. “I’ll see you around, Felix.” “Goodbye,” Felix smiled cheerily, and waved as Ralph trotted off with the shampoo bottle in his mouth. It was such a pity that the drying mud prevented him from fully enjoying the sunshine. Back in the Everfree Forest, Ralph found one of the rare bubbling hot springs and had to resist the urge to divebomb into it (he still wanted some water in there, after all). So, instead, he climbed in and sighed blissfully as the bubbling water enveloped him. This was truly one of the best parts of living in the Everfree Forest- it was full of surprises. Relaxing in the bubbling hot spring, Ralph had time to think. If he could only prove to the residents of Pleasantville that he wasn’t a monster, he might be accepted once again. But how would he do that? He closed his eyes, which was always risky in the dangerous Everfree, and waited for an idea to come to him. He was strong, capable of fighting off monsters. Maybe he could chase a monster into the village and then fight it off? No, that would probably go horribly wrong. Or he could try making a speech? He laughed aloud at the idea. The mayor would never let him go near town hall, let alone make a speech to the residents of Pleasantville. It wasn’t like he had a special talent for speech-making anyway- his bucking cutie mark affirmed that he was only good at bucking things. And he did have very strong hindquarters for bucking. “What am I going to do?” he sighed as he finally heaved himself out of the bubbling water. He had no way of drying himself, short of shaking most of the water off himself, and he didn’t want to still be damp by the time night fell. “Forgive me for my intrusion, but I feel that I know of a way to give you a conclusion,” the familiar rhyming zebra offered, stepping out of the foliage. “Hey, Zecora,” Ralph greeted her cheerily. She was such a pleasant zebra, the closest thing he had to a friend. “Would you like my advice? I would be glad to help a pony so nice,” she continued after smiling in greeting at him. “Sure, you might be able to help me,” Ralph nodded eagerly, trotting closer to her so he could get out of the damp patch that his dripping form had caused. Zecora nodded and then suggested, “To get back on their turf, you must prove your worth. Bring news of a good deed to Pleasantville, and love you they will.” “So you’re saying that I should travel the forest and maybe all of Equestria to find something good to do,” Ralph summed up. Zecora nodded. “That doesn’t sound too hard.” “I wish you good luck, for you are such a good buck,” Zecora commented, and with that she smiled again and disappeared back into the dense foliage. His spirits considerably lighter, Ralph departed the hot spring and headed deeper into the forest. He wanted to head out now before it got too dark, and while the idea was fresh in his mind. Maybe there was a nearby village or even a city that needed saving from a monster. The possibilities were endless, really. Author's Note Blame Fallout: Equestria (or Project Horizons, can't remember where I first saw that) for the use of 'buck' for 'stallion'.
Chapter 3In the skies above the Everfree Forest, a mint-green unicorn trotted over the clouds and peered at the ground before quickly stepping backwards, her heart pounding. She looked down instead at the fluffy white cloud beneath her, willing it to calm her down. It worked and she got to her hooves for another try. She just had to remove the special amulet, fly down to earth, and not look back. Simple, really. But the ground was so far down and she didn’t trust her wings for a minute. They might have healed, considering it had been years since the incident, but then again they might not have. “Hey, what’s a unicorn doing walking on clouds?” another unicorn asked her, this one pink with a blonde mane. “I could ask you the same question,” the first unicorn replied, smirking. The pink one growled and lunged at her, causing the black-maned pony to step off the cloud as she back-pedalled. She screamed and hung onto the cloud by her front hooves, remembering the charm that kept her safe only when it was too late. Her amulet flew off her neck and landed on the cloud at the surprised unicorn’s hooves, turning the first one back into her pink-coated self. “A changeling,” the unicorn gasped, seeing the wings adorning the alicorn’s back. “How dare you impersonate a dead princess?” “I am the princess,” Vanellope snapped at her, but Taffyta obviously didn’t believe her. “I’ll just take this back to the king. Wait here and I’ll bring back the guards,” Taffyta ordered her, and trotted off with the amulet in her mouth. “I never took orders from citizens before and I’m not starting now,” Vanellope declared in a mutter. And she vaulted over the side of the cloud, landed on the unicorn, and grabbed the amulet before leaping back off the cloud in a matter of seconds. Her wings snapped open as much as they would but didn’t help much considering they were little more than a mess of bones with feathers and skin covering them. With that plan becoming an utter failure, Vanellope stopped flailing for long enough to slip the amulet back around her neck. She was probably going to die but if she didn’t, she didn’t want one of the guards or Candy Cloud residents finding her and taking her back to that imposter king. Squinting her eyes closed, she hoped that this wouldn’t hurt too much. Ralph hadn’t had too much luck in the first few hours of his quest for something great to bring back to Pleasantville. There had been countless manticores and the odd hydra, but they were to be expected in the Everfree Forest. Once he’d stepped out of the confines of the forest, he’d felt free but also miserable. How was he going to find something dangerous outside of the most dangerous part of Equestria? “Look out!” He looked up too late to dodge the mint-green blur flying towards him and ended up being knocked onto his back with the unicorn on top of him. “Sorry about that,” the unicorn muttered, getting off him and shaking herself off. He stared at her, wondering how a unicorn could suddenly change colours. “What?” she asked, and then her hoof felt around her neck. “Oh no, my amulet! Where is it?” She searched frantically in the surrounding bushes until Ralph held up the golden amulet with the star amethyst in the middle. “Looking for this?” he asked, standing and offering it to her on his outstretched hoof. “Yeah, I was, actually,” she admitted with a sheepish grin as she clipped it back around her neck. “Thanks.” “What was a unicorn doing so high up?” Ralph wondered, looking up towards the clouds. “Cloud-walking,” Vanellope responded automatically. “Really? Because my brother’s a pegasus and he says that usually unicorns know better than to go near the edge of a cloud when the spell’s in effect,” Ralph replied with a smirk. “Oh yeah? Well what’s a monster doing out of the Everfree Forest?” Vanellope shot back. “I’m not a monster,” Ralph defended himself. “I fight monsters but I’m not one.” “So why are you so huge, then?” Vanellope replied, gesturing to his size. “Why are you so annoying?” Ralph all but growled. And he set off, muttering under his breath about annoying little unicorn brats. Vanellope watched him go, still slightly frightened from her fall and from almost revealing her true identity to this monster of a stranger. He could be working for the king for all she knew! Now she just had to think of somewhere to go now that she was effectively grounded. She looked at the retreating figure of the stallion that she’d fallen on and wondered where he was going. Now, there was an idea that she could use! “Hey! Hey, big guy!” she called to him, running after him. Running on the ground was a lot different to running on clouds, and she almost tripped several times. “What?” he sighed, stopping abruptly so she ran into him. Scowling, she replaced her amulet for what felt like the hundredth time and stepped around to stand in front of him. “Where are you going?” she asked, grinning at him. “I don’t know. Anywhere,” he admitted, looking away from her bi-coloured eyes. He felt like he’d fall into them if he looked for too long. “Well then, I’ll go with you,” she declared. “I don’t really know where to go either. Heck, I haven’t ever set hoof around these parts before.” “Neither have I,” Ralph agreed. “I’ll take you along with me. It can’t hurt to have a travelling companion, right?” “That’s right,” Vanellope grinned. “What’s your name, anyway? If I’m gonna be travelling with you, I should know your name.” “Ralph,” he replied, watching for a spark of recognition. But there was none. “Well, it’s nice to meet ya, Ralph. I’m Vanellope,” she supplied, and waited for him to recognise her. But he didn’t, he just smiled. “I’m surprised you haven’t heard of me,” Ralph admitted as they continued down the road, trotting side-by-side. “Me too,” Vanellope agreed. “I mean, I’m surprised you haven’t heard of me. Have you heard of Candy Cloud? Sugarcube Races?” He looked confused at both names. “They’re in the sky,” she clarified, pointing upwards. “Oh, well that’s why I’ve never heard of them, then. I’m an earth pony, if that isn’t already obvious,” Ralph pointed out. Vanellope giggled. “So where are ya from?” she asked, settling into a comfortable gait where she wasn’t lifting her hooves too much. She attempted to copy his stride. “I’ll tell you if you tell me where you’re from,” he responded, causing her to stumble and fall. This time, when she got up, Ralph repositioned her amulet around her neck and this time clipped it closed firmly and brushed her mane over it. “If that doesn’t keep it on, nothing will.” “I’d rather not,” she admitted quietly, brushing her front hoof against the ground nervously. “Why? Are you a criminal or something?” Ralph asked, trotting ahead of her. “What? No,” she laughed, and galloped to keep up. She could feel her wings attempting to reappear as she hit speed but slowed down so that wouldn’t happen. They walked in silence, Vanellope marvelling at the feeling of actual dirt beneath her hooves while Ralph enjoyed the sunshine on his back. From time to time, she stole glances at the giant, dark orange pony walking beside and slightly in front of her. His short brown mane looked like it had been freshly washed, and he didn’t smell too bad. Sniffing, she detected the scent of sweat and what smelled undeniably like manticore venom. The winged beings had the ability to come to cloud cities and walk there and had sometimes interrupted races or civilian life. “Why do you smell of manticore venom?” she asked, stepping away from him after noticing that she’d been close to pressing her nose right against his coat. “To attract mares,” Ralph replied sarcastically. “No, I had to fight off a few manticores on my way out of the Everfree Forest.” “Yeah right,” Vanellope snorted. “As if someone like you could fight off those monsters.” “It’s true,” Ralph confirmed. “I even fought a few hydras. Don’t know what they were doing so far from the swamp, though.” “I’ll believe that when I see it,” Vanellope laughed, trotting ahead of him. Scowling, Ralph grabbed her by the tail and yanked her back beside him. “Hey!” He laughed and sped up to a quick trot, so Vanellope chased after him and very quickly passed him. They ran into the next town. Vanellope’s mane and tail streamed behind her and the gem in her amulet sparked a few times in warning. But she didn’t notice, having too much fun. Only when her wings flickered into existence did she slow down and look around nervously. But there was nopony around, considering this was a quiet stretch of road. She’d be okay until they arrived near the next town. So she continued galloping ahead of Ralph, attempting to keep her wings out of sight by tucking them closely to her body. It hurt but it was better than being found out. Ralph caught up with her when she slowed down as another town came into sight. “You’re fast,” he commented, panting. “I can outrun a hydra but outrunning you is something else entirely. How’d you get that fast?” “It’s a secret,” she giggled, not wanting to give any hints as to her true identity. Speaking of secrets... she had to hide her wings somehow, and the amulet had broken due to her speed. Tapping it, she felt her fur ripple as it changed colour from mint green to pink for a moment. And then, as she increased the pressure on the gem, her fur returned to mint-green and her wings disappeared. She sighed in relief that her unicorn disguise was back. “So, this town’s called Sunset Valley. Fitting,” Ralph commented as Vanellope walked a few steps ahead of him. The sun was setting and the town was set in a valley, so Vanellope could see just how the name was fitting. She smiled at that. “It looks small,” Vanellope observed as she trotted into the town. She tried not to jolt the amulet’s gem too much just in case her disguise failed again. “Big enough to put us up for the night, though,” Ralph figured, and brushed past her. Vanellope winced- the amulet no longer hid the feeling of her wings, which meant that somepony would probably feel her wings if they brushed up against her. She shivered at that revelation, which gave her an idea. “Hey, Ralph?” she called softly to him, trotting to catch up. “Is there some kind of a clothing boutique here? I’m a little bit cold.” She shivered to emphasise her point, and now it was starting to get a little chillier as Celestia’s sun set and Luna’s night began. “Sure,” Ralph nodded, although his brow furrowed in confusion. What was that shimmering on Vanellope’s sides when she shivered? But he put it down to his eyes playing tricks on him after not having eaten all day. “We’ll get you something warm and then go get something to eat.” “Sounds good,” Vanellope agreed, her stomach growling as if to back her up. She really had been running fast. Ralph led Vanellope to a clothing boutique and as she stepped inside, her amulet sparked and her wings were in clear view for just a moment before a good amount of tapping rendered them invisible once more. “Welcome to the Barnyard Bargains clothing store. How may I help you?” an earth pony clerk asked her. She looked quite country with her straw-yellow mane and pale green hide. “Hi, I’m just looking for a hooded cloak,” Vanellope replied, looking around. “Is there anything like that around here?” “Well, sure there is. I’ll be right back,” the clerk replied, and trotted into the back of the store. As soon as she disappeared, the amulet sparked warningly again and this time sent a few sparks of magic into Vanellope. She gasped as her fur rippled alarmingly between pink and mint-green, causing her body to shake. Her wings were back now and there was no getting rid of them. Taking a deep breath, she stood up straight and prepared to face the questions that the clerk would no doubt have for her. As it turned out, she needn’t have worried because the clerk had the cloak covering her face. Vanellope snickered at the sight but readily accepted the cloak, throwing it over her pathetic-looking wings and leaving the hood down for now. The cloak, she discovered, was the same mint-green colour as her disguise’s fur, and the hood was sewn on with pink string. The same thread held two pockets to her cloak. “Thank you,” she beamed at the clerk, “I love it.” She withdrew a gem from her mane and threw it onto the counter, much to the amazement of the clerk. “Keep the change, you can use it for your shop.” With another warm smile, Vanellope left the clothing boutique and tried not to shudder as her blue magic streaked along her coat from her amulet. She could only guess at what her coat currently looked like. “That was quick,” Ralph commented when Vanellope rejoined him in the town square. “Well, I only wanted a cloak,” Vanellope figured. “Now, where are we headed for food? I’m starving.” “All that running must’ve tired you out,” Ralph chuckled. “We’ll go to the pizzeria. Do you like mushrooms?” “Yes,” Vanellope grinned. “I like any kind of pizza so order whatever you like. And get a smaller one for me.” She couldn’t resist a jab at his size, and neither could he on her size. “Okay, and I’ll get a foal-size one for you,” he decided. “Hey!” she snapped, mirth gleaming in her eyes. It was good to have a friend. That night, they slept under the stars. The town did have an inn but there were no beds left, so Ralph had found a spot somewhere out of town and had curled up near a stump. “How are you not cold?” Vanellope complained as she shivered nearby. Even with her cloak, it was freezing. Then again, she had mainly got the cloak to hide her wings and any strange happenings on her coat. “I’m used to sleeping in the open,” Ralph replied simply. “You’re a unicorn, don’t you have some kind of fire spell?” “No, I was never taught before- never mind,” she mumbled, and tried in vain to warm herself up. “Before what?” Ralph prodded, raising his head a little to look at her curiously. “I said never mind,” Vanellope snapped, shivering miserably. The amulet still sent sparks of magic jumping along her coat, but it hurt her more than it warmed her. At last, she growled and attempted to throw it off. But it had fused to her skin. She bit her lip to hold back tears and her horn glowed a bright blue as she carefully pried the metal from her skin and stowed the amulet in her cloak. It was no use now, but the strange thing was that her coat remained mint-green. Deciding to puzzle it over in the morning, Vanellope rested her head on her forehooves and slept under Luna’s beautiful night. Author's Note Well this fic is going down as well as I thought it would here. But if just one person likes it, then I'll have done my job as a writer. And it gets better from here anyway.
Chapter 4Felix trotted into the Everfree Forest, shifting his wings both out of nervousness and to get the overwhelming feeling of ickiness out of his feathers. He hated this forest, though he’d never tell his brother that. After not seeing hide nor hair of the great earth pony for weeks, the pegasus had become worried so had decided to go visit his brother. “Ralph?” he called, finding a space that looks like it had been recently damaged. “Ralph, it’s me, Felix. Sorry I haven’t been around in weeks, I’ve been too busy in town.” He heard a rustling in some bushes and looked around nervously, chewing his bottom lip. The creature that leaped out of the bushes was not a large, dark orange earth pony. Rather, it was a Timberwolf. The pegasus emitted a decidedly girly shriek and jumped backwards, scrambling back towards a tree. The wooden beast was on him in a second, looming over him breathing its reeking breath in his face and growling menacingly. “Hey, bark-breath! Why not chase someone who’ll actually give you a challenge?” a brash female voice taunted, and the Timberwolf instantly lost interest in the trembling pegasus at its feet. It took off after the rainbow blur and Felix panted for several moments before getting back onto his trembling hooves. The Timberwolf’s chilling howl could still be heard somewhere else in the forest, and it still made Felix shiver. How could Ralph live in the forest with these terrifying creatures? “Rainbow! Didn’t Applejack teach you anything about not taunting the Timberwolves?” another mare yelled after the feisty pegasus who’d saved Felix’s hide. A purple unicorn galloped into the clearing and looked around in confusion. She almost missed the timid pegasus hiding in the bushes. “Ugh, that featherbrain,” the mare muttered, and sat down to wait for her friend to return. “E-excuse me?” Felix greeted the unicorn quietly. She looked around for the source of the voice but, when she found him, smiled and approached him. “Well, hello there. My name is Twilight Sparkle. Who are you?” she greeted him, stopping in front of him after he’d stepped out of the bushes he’d been hiding in. “My name’s Felix, ma’am,” he introduced himself, fighting to keep the tremble out of his voice. “I’m from Pleasantville, I’ve been looking for my brother Ralph. I don’t suppose you’ve seen him? He’s a dark orange earth pony with a brown mane and blue eyes and he’s really big.” He gestured at about Ralph’s height but the unicorn shook her head. “Sorry, I haven’t seen him,” she replied apologetically. “Would you like me to help you look for him, though? I’m always willing to help and I know that Rainbow Dash will probably be all too eager to help out a fellow pegasus.” “Sure,” Felix nodded. “He’s probably in the forest somewhere and normally I’d look for him myself but...” “The Everfree Forest is no place for a pony to be by himself, especially one who looks as civilised as you,” Twilight giggled. “I’m fine here on my own, but that’s only because my friend Zecora told me everything I should know about what to avoid here.” “Ralph talks about Zecora sometimes,” Felix noted. “He said that she’s a very nice zebra.” “Oh, she is,” Twilight agreed, nodding eagerly. Before she could speak further, a rainbow blur flew back into the clearing and almost crashed into Felix. “Rainbow,” the unicorn chastised, and the pegasus grinned sheepishly. “Heh heh, oops,” she apologised, hovering beside Felix. “You always seem to be in the way, dontcha?” “No, I’m just really out of my element here,” Felix responded, looking at the ground as he dug up some dirt with his hoof. “My brother lives here but I don’t visit him very often because I don’t like it here.” “Your brother lives here?” Rainbow snorted. “What pony in their right mind would live here?” “He isn’t living here by choice,” Felix admitted. “He was banished years ago. But I won’t talk about it, he probably doesn’t want everypony knowing about his banishment.” “I understand,” Twilight assured him gently. “Now, Rainbow, I’ve offered to help Felix look for his brother. Do you want to help?” “I’m always up for helping a fellow pegasus,” Rainbow grinned, and rubbed Felix’s head with her hoof. “How come you aren’t flying, anyway? You’re not a scaredy-pony, are ya?” “Of course not, I just don’t trust myself to be able to fly in such close quarters,” Felix replied, spreading his wings to prove that he did fly often. “If you say so,” the pegasus snorted. “Now, where would your brother be?” “Well, he was good friends with Zecora so if anyone would know where he is, it’d be her,” Felix figured. “Trouble is, I don’t know where she lives.” “Then it’s a good thing you’ve got me,” Twilight grinned. “Come with me, Felix, I’ll take you to her.” She trotted off and Felix followed her while Rainbow Dash flew for a few minutes before landing behind Felix. “Who has a hammer for a cutie mark?” she asked loudly, causing Felix to blush to the tips of his ears. “Were you looking at my flank?” he demanded, flustered. “No, I was looking at your cutie mark,” the mare grinned. “So what’s your special talent?” “Fixing things,” he replied. “I found an ancient artefact in the Everfree Forest. When I touched it, it turned my hooves this weird golden colour and since then, I’ve been able to fix everything I touch- see, like this.” He stepped on a broken twig and it immediately reformed. “Wow,” Rainbow gasped, and stepped on the stick to break it again. Felix fixed it again. This went on for some minutes before Twilight stomped over to them impatiently. “What are you two doing?” she groaned, but her interest was piqued when she noticed the golden colour of Felix’s hooves. “Twilight, watch this,” Rainbow Dash grinned. She broke a twig and Felix fixed it. “That’s impressive,” Twilight admitted. “How can you do that, though? You’re not a unicorn unless you’re an alicorn hiding your true form with some kind of enchantment. Even then, you’d need an amulet for that...” “Twilight,” Rainbow Dash deadpanned. The mare caught herself rambling and blushed. “Sorry, Felix. Explain,” she prompted, clearly restraining herself from examining Felix’s hoof. Felix related his story to her, much to her interest. “An artefact, you say? Interesting,” she hummed thoughtfully. “I’d love to find out more about it, maybe after we find your brother?” “Sure,” Felix nodded. “I’d be glad to help you find out more about my golden hooves. Some ponies call me Goldenhoof.” “I can see why,” Twilight giggled. Smiling, she turned and continued leading them towards Zecora’s hut. The zebra was outside tending to some of her strange plants when the trio arrived. “Good morning, Twilight and friend. I would love to chat but I have a garden to tend,” the zebra greeted them, gesturing to her array of exotic plants. Felix had never seen half of these plants before. “Hey, Zecora. Felix here is looking for his brother,” Rainbow Dash informed the zebra, flicking her tail towards him. “Ah, the brother of the big pony. Why is it that you have come to me?” Zecora asked, peering down at Felix. “Well, y’see, I came here looking for him. Do you know where he might be?” he asked, nervously scratching at his mane. “But of course, I gave the advice myself, that Ralph must seek help for his emotional health. He has gone on a quest to put his worthiness to the test. He is unliked by the ponies of Pleasantville, but if he brings good news, perhaps like him they will.” “So you’re saying that he went on a quest to prove his worthiness to the ponies who banished him?” Twilight summed up. Zecora nodded in confirmation. “Oh, he didn’t have to do that,” Felix worried. “Do you know where he might be?” Zecora shook her head, too busy watering some strange-looking blue flowers. “Hey, don’t worry. We’ll help you look for him,” Twilight promised, putting a hoof over Felix’s back and hugging him. “Isn’t that right, Rainbow Dash?” “Yep,” Rainbow nodded. “I’ll help you, Felix. Don’t worry, I’m not the element of loyalty for nothing.” “Thank you, both of you,” Felix smiled, his cheeks warming in a blush. To have the elements of loyalty and magic helping him was something that he’d never dreamed of. Author's Note And the dislikes keep piling up. Friendship is magic indeed, you bunch of jerks. I'm just gonna keep posting, though, in the hopes that some actual nice people will appear and help me out. Maybe it'll get some more likes now that it has 2 of the mane 6 in it.
Chapter 5Blue sparks had been dancing along Vanellope’s body all night, giving her a very restless sleep. But Ralph had insisted on rising with the sun so that they could move on through another few towns. Trotting along behind him, she yawned loudly and readjusted her wings beneath her cloak. “Are we there yet?” she whined. “My hooves are getting tired.” “No we’re not there yet,” Ralph replied, looking back at her. “Why are you so tired, anyway? Did my snoring keep you awake?” “No, it was my amulet,” Vanellope admitted, her tiredness causing her to almost let her secret slip. “It broke yesterday and now it keeps sending sparks along my body. It’s really annoying and it kinda hurts.” And yet she’d put it back on, if only to keep up appearances. “So why don’t you take it off?” Ralph asked. “Surely somepony like you wouldn’t be stupid enough to keep something on if it was hurting you.” “It hides my true identity,” she admitted, mentally kicking herself for letting her secret be known. “If I took it off, I’d probably lose it.” “But don’t you have pockets?” Ralph prompted. Vanellope facehoofed. She’d completely forgotten about that! And she’d used them last night too. “Thanks for reminding me. My sleepiness must’ve fried my brain,” she smiled, and placed the malfunctioning amulet in the pocket of her cloak. Instantly, the sparking sensation stopped although the coat-changing sparks didn’t. Her wings were gone, though, which was a good thing. “You’re from a cloud city, aren’t you?” Ralph figured, noting that Vanellope was walking gingerly. “Yeah, my parents were both pegasi and there’s a unicorn somewhere in my family tree,” she lied. “I got the powers of a unicorn and the cloud-walking ability of my parents.” Ralph nodded, clearly happy with this explanation, and Vanellope breathed an internal sigh of relief. “Well, there’s quite a long walk until the next town so do you want me to carry you?” Ralph offered. “It’s no trouble and that way, you won’t be slowing me down.” “Okay,” Vanellope smiled, and levitated herself into the air and onto the large pony’s back. Now she could feel his muscles moving beneath and, she had to admit, the power contained there made her giddy with excitement. With Vanellope draped over Ralph’s back like a pony-shaped set of saddlebags, the duo continued on and through a further few towns before they came across some commotion. At the sound of a squawk, Vanellope pricked her ears up and looked up at the sky- right at the flaming phoenix diving for her! Squealing, she flailed her hooves and landed on her back on the ground next to Ralph. She was now faced with a dilemma- how to roll over onto her hooves without Ralph seeing her wings which had reappeared on impact. But luckily, he was too busy facing off against the flaming bird. By the time Vanellope finally managed to scramble to her hooves, Ralph had chased off the large phoenix and was watching it fly away. But at seeing the glinting piece of jewellery in its beak, Vanellope dug around in her pockets and realised with a sinking sensation what the jewellery was. “Come back here with my amulet, bird-brain!” she called after the bird, running after it into the forest beside the road. At least the spell was changing her appearance randomly, but she still had hopes of getting her amulet fixed. “Why do you need it anyway? Isn’t it broken?” Ralph huffed as he easily caught up with her. “I wanna get it fixed,” Vanellope replied. This running was really waking her up and... oh no. Her wings flickered onto her sides and began to flutter as she picked up speed. It didn’t help that she had the urge to jump into the air and follow the phoenix to its nest. “Oh, so I guess we’d better get it then,” Ralph figured, and galloped ahead to catch up to the bird or at least follow it to its hideout. Vanellope ran until she hit a branch and went tumbling over it, landing hard with her cloak flying over her head. She sniffled at the scrapes on her legs and laid her head on the ground, feeling like every part of her was broken now. “I got it!” Ralph called, breaking her out of her misery as he crashed through the forest towards her. Vanellope made sure to cover her wings with her cloak and beamed as Ralph came towards her with the amulet clasped in his mouth. “Thank you,” Vanellope beamed at him, taking the amulet in her magic and shoving it back into her pocket. “You’re my hero.” She noticed that Ralph looked surprised at that admission, although she had said it to many a pony who helped her back at home. “Really?” he asked, blinking in shock. “Does the amulet really mean that much to you?” “Yeah,” she nodded. “I’d probably be dead or imprisoned by now if I didn’t have it.” “But why?” Ralph prompted. “I’ll tell you when we’re further away from my home,” Vanellope promised him. “Or when we’ve gotten to know each other a little better.” “Okay,” Ralph shrugged, and trotted out of the forest with her. Vanellope followed him with a new admiration for the strong buck- anypony else probably would have let the phoenix get away with it. But this buck had a good heart, probably one that was made of gold. She smiled at him, trying not to get too caught up in her thoughts, and followed him into the town where there was quite a good deal of crashing going on. “Monster!” a mare called upon seeing the large buck. Ralph sighed, folding his ears back as he looked at the ground in shame. But Vanellope wasn’t afraid of him- rather, she decided to stand up to him. “He is not a monster!” she yelled at the mare, stomping her front hooves onto the ground with a surprising amount of ferocity. “He’s the monster who destroyed Pleasantville, isn’t he?” the mare asked, looking to Ralph for confirmation. “He what?” Vanellope wondered, blinking in confusion. She looked to Ralph, who looked like he’d been kicked. “This monsterpony you’re travelling with destroyed the town of Pleasantville a few years ago,” the mare explained. “He was banished to the Everfree Forest and who knows how much that place has corrupted him?” “Ralph is not a monster,” the smaller pony said firmly. “Would a monster chase off a phoenix and then hunt it down to get back something precious to a mare he just met a few days ago?” Ralph looked at the two mares in front of him, especially the one defending his honour. As she described every good deed he’d done for her, from fighting the phoenix to carrying her on his back when her hooves got sore, he felt hope for the first time that maybe somepony other than his brother saw him as a kindhearted stallion rather than a rampaging monster. “Well, I suppose you’re not all bad then,” the mare grudgingly admitted to Ralph. “However, as mayor of this town, I can’t let you come through here. The townsponies all fear him and his presence will cause riots.” “Is that what all that commotion’s about?” Ralph wondered. The mare nodded solemnly. “Before we go, do you know of anypony who could fix a broken appearance-changing amulet?” Vanellope wondered. “Well, Twilight Sparkle could do it but she lives all the way over in Ponyville and she’s probably out adventuring with her friends,” the mare replied. “You might bump into her but I don’t think Celestia would approve of a monsterpony going into her faithful student’s home, even if he is as good as you say he is.” “Sorry I’m preventing you from getting your amulet fixed,” Ralph apologised to Vanellope as they walked away from the town and into the forest. If they couldn’t go through the town, they’d have to go around it. “No, it’s okay,” Vanellope assured him. “I don’t want a judgemental pony fixing my amulet anyway. I can wait for it to be fixed but I don’t want you to feel like a burden.” “I already feel like a silly pony for even thinking that anypony will ever see me as a good guy,” Ralph admitted, looking at the ground as he walked along sadly. “I see you as a good guy,” Vanellope assured him with a bright smile. Ralph only glanced at her before returning his solemn gaze to the ground. “Hey now, don’t go all sad on me,” Vanellope frowned, zipping around to stand in front of him. “You are a good guy, Ralph. You’re helping me when nopony else would. Would anypony else stop for a small pony who could barely even walk on solid ground? And everything I said to that mare is true- you’re a good guy, at least to me.” She’d been poking his chest with a hoof every few seconds to punctuate her points, and now she wrapped her forelegs around him in a hug. This was the most pony contact Ralph had had with a pony other than his brother in years. So it took him some time to remember how to hug back. Vanellope froze at feeling Ralph’s hooves settle around her back over her wings. She did not want him to ask questions if he could feel them, and surely he did. With the hug out of the way, the two ponies continued on through the forest feeling lighthearted, confused, and slightly conflicted. Ralph was glad that a pony who’d once been a stranger to him was showing such kindness towards him. At the same time, he was confused- why did Vanellope have wings and why was she hiding them? Should he ask her? Should she tell him? The confusion led to silence which seemed to stretch on forever, or until hunger made itself known. Vanellope giggled at the sound of her grumbling stomach, and then they both began laughing and fell into more of a companionable silence as they made their way towards the next town. Author's Note Ugh, this chapter's a mess. I kind of fixed it though. I have got to stop going weeks between writing chapters, like I did with this fic when I was first writing it.
Chapter 6Felix trudged along under Twilight Sparkle’s shield spell as the rain pattered down around them. Even Rainbow Dash chose to walk rather than get her wings all soggy from flying in the rain. Every so often, she complained about the slow pace that Twilight was walking at. “Can you walk any slower?” she groaned, walking right at the front edge of the rain-free bubble. “Not while I have the spell going, Rainbow, I’ve told you this so many times before,” Twilight responded, still looking straight ahead at the muddy road. “Fine,” Rainbow sighed, and dropped back to walk beside Felix. The pegasus stallion marvelled at the sparkling purple bubble surrounding them and reached out a hoof to touch it, ending up with a rain-drenched hoof and a pleasant tingling feeling for his troubles. “Soo, you like magic, huh?” the rainbow-maned pegasus observed, causing Felix to stammer and look away from the unicorn leading them along as his muzzle warmed with a blush. “Yes,” he replied quietly, hoping that Twilight wouldn’t hear their conversation. It was simply improper for a stallion to lust after somepony he’d just met, especially if she was Princess Celestia’s favourite student! Rainbow snickered at his obvious embarrassment and discomfort. “Ah, it’s okay, Felix, plenty of pegasi admire unicorn magic. Can’t say that many have the reaction you do but I probably just haven’t met ‘em yet,” she assured him, poking at his extended wings. Flushing darkly, he managed to fold them to his sides once more and trotted a little faster to catch up to Twilight so that he wasn’t staring at her flank. “Hello, Felix,” Twilight greeted him with a smile. “Come up for a chat?” “Well, I was going to ask how long until the next town but we can have a chat,” he replied, grinning back at her. “The next town shouldn’t be too much further away, though we could’ve gone faster if we’d caught the train,” Twilight informed him. “Sorry,” Felix apologised, knowing that it was his fault that they’d avoided the train. “It’s okay, it’ll probably be easier to find your brother if we go on hoof, like you said,” she assured him, and stopped to reach out a hoof to ruffle his mane gently. He was left stammering and blushing at her touch. He hadn’t known before that unicorns had that same pleasant tingly feeling all through them. Before too long, the travelling trio stepped into the outskirts of the next small village. Felix noted that hardly anypony was outside today, probably due to the wet weather, yet the many small shops and cafes were still open. “Finally! If it was up to me, we’d have been here hours ago! I’m starved!” Rainbow cried as she zoomed out of Twilight’s rain-shield spell and into the nearest cafe. Twilight rolled her eyes at her excitable friend and trotted into the cafe with Felix at her side. Inside, Rainbow was already seated at a table and waved them over. “Good day, ladies and gentleman,” a waiter greeted them after trotting over to their table. “Are you ready to order yet?” “Yes, I’ll have a daisy sandwich,” Twilight replied while Felix scanned the menu for any pies. To his delight, apple pie was on the menu, so he ordered it. Rainbow, meanwhile, chose a basket of hay fries, two daisy sandwiches, and a cherry pie along with apple cider. “You weren’t kidding when you said you were starved,” Felix commented with a chuckle once the waiter had departed. “Eh, what can I say? I’ve got a high metabolism so have to keep eating,” she shrugged. “She eats much more when she’s been flying,” Twilight confided in him. “After her Iron Pony contest with Applejack, she almost ate the town cafe out of business.” Felix laughed at this, remembering that Ralph had once done that in their own town. He wondered where his brother was now, and if he was somewhere out of the rain. He hoped that he was. After eating, the trio headed into the town proper in search of accommodation for the night. While there, Felix heard one mare mention something about a monster pony near their town. It wasn’t in his nature to but in, but he could still eavesdrop and kick himself for it later. Besides, he reasoned, he had to find out about Ralph. “You were very brave to turn him away, Lilac,” a mare was saying to her lavender-coated friend. “Well, I knew that the town wouldn’t stand up to a monsterpony like him,” Lilac replied, blushing modestly. “I told him to keep away from town and that we didn’t want a monsterpony like him coming near our town ever again.” Felix turned away at that, feeling hurt on Ralph’s behalf. How anypony could call his brother a monsterpony was beyond him. Sure, he was big, but the princess was big and she wasn’t considered bad. The next thing Lilac said, however, made him almost forget his promise not to butt in. “Funny thing is, though, he had this little mare with him. She stood up for him, said he wasn’t such a bad pony. I almost felt sorry for the poor guy. But even if I’d let him in, it would’ve resulted in chaos. Can’t have a monsterpony in our town, no matter how supposedly good he is.” Felix grit his teeth together in anger and, before he could stop himself, he’d stepped forward almost right up in Lilac’s face. “Now, you just listen here, sorry for the intrusion!” he snapped at her. “My brother may be huge and he may have destroyed my village once and he might fight monsters on a daily basis but he is not a monsterpony. I happen to know that he’s very kind and gentle, and he wouldn’t have been any trouble in your town. He’s used to sleeping outside so if there was no room in your inn, he would’ve suggested sleeping outside. You shouldn’t judge ponies before you get to know them!” Around this time, he realised that he’d been almost nose-to-nose with the earth pony and hovering in front of her in his anger. As the realisation hit, he stepped back and chuckled nervously while folding his wings beside him. “We don’t serve monsterponies here,” Lilac told him coldly as she pushed him out into the rain. Felix sat glumly in the mud, but he brightened when he heard the two mares inside speaking to the lavender inn-owner. “Hey, you didn’t have to push him outside!” he heard Rainbow yell, and smiled gently at that. Minutes later, the three ponies were trotting out of town as the sun began to set. The rain, at least, had stopped, but trotting through mud was uncomfortable to say the least. “Sorry I made us get kicked out of town,” he apologised to the two mares. “We didn’t wanna stay with such judgemental ponies anyway,” Rainbow smiled at him. “Besides, you were being loyal to your brother.” “Well, at least now we know that we’re on the right track,” Twilight commented brightly. “He came here but got turned away, which means that he was either on this side of the town or the other one. And if he was on the other side of town and got turned away, we would’ve bumped into him.” “And we know that he’s travelling with a mare,” Felix added. “She could be his marefriend for all I know, considering I don’t pay as much attention to him as I rightly should, but I think that he’d tell me about something like that.” “Too bad we didn’t get a description of her,” Twilight mused. “Then we’d know who to ask around for.” “Or we could ask if a mare and giant pony came through,” Felix added. Twilight smiled at that while Rainbow took to the sky. “At least now that the rain’s stopped, we can fly,” Rainbow added. “I can see more from above. You coming, Felix?” After receiving an encouraging nod from Twilight, Felix stretched his wings out and then took to the sky with Rainbow Dash. “I can’t fly for very long,” he admitted once they were both airborne. “Well, it’s not like we’ll be able to fly very fast, what with no-wings down there,” Rainbow figured, nodding down at Twilight. “If you want, though, I can fly ahead and look to see if I can find your brother and his companion.” “That would be so nice of you,” Felix agreed, nodding eagerly. “Hey Twilight, I’m going to fly ahead and see if I can find Felix’s brother. I won’t be long!” Rainbow called down to her friend, and then with a rainbow-coloured flash she was gone. Felix was amazed at how fast this pegasus could fly! Sure, he’d heard stories about the fastest flyer in Equestria, but seeing her in action was something else entirely. Seeing her, he could easily see how such a fast flyer could pull off the fabled Sonic Rainboom. In no time at all, Rainbow Dash was back. “Hey guys, I found ‘em,” she reported. “They’re in the forest not far ahead. Well, not far for me, but probably about a day’s travel for you two slow ponies. Or longer since it’s pretty dense forest. The point is, I saw them.” “Thank you, Rainbow Dash,” Felix thanked her gratefully. “At least now we know where they are. And you could give us directions.” “Yep,” Rainbow grinned proudly. “I’m the greatest.” Felix chuckled. He wasn’t sure about being the greatest, but in this situation, Rainbow Dash surely was great. Author's Note Don't worry, Felix's thing for Twilight is more of a 'hot girl' reaction. If anyone's even reading.
