Finders Keepers

Knick Knack soars through the sky uncontrollably as he flares his legs frantically. Fearing the inevitable, he covers his eyes with his hooves. “How do I make it stop?!” He screams. Taking a peek as he lowers one of his hooves, his eyes widen as he can see somepony in his flight path unaware of his presence. Rainbow Dash is flying with her attention towards the ground as she appears to be looking intently for something. “Hey! Look out!” Rainbow Dash looks up and spots him, and nearly collides with him as her body spins around wildly from his intense speed. Dizzily, she slows herself down as she tries to reorient herself. She watches Knick Knack fly straight towards Ponyville, and she curiously changes her course to following his flight path.

Begging it all to stop, Knick Knack smashes into a tree with a loud thud as he causes many leaves to fall to the ground far below. The rocket thrusters retract back into the backpack, and Knick Knack takes one look down as he is instantly overwhelmed with vertigo. He gasps as he clutches onto the tree trunk as tightly as possible while trembling from fear. “Oh, my! Are you alright up there?” Knick Knack glances down, and sees a mare looking up at him.

“Uh . . . n-no!”

“Here, I’ll help you down.” Knick Knack’s body is enveloped in an aura of blue magic, and is carefully carried down to safety.

“Phew, thanks for the lift, Miss.”

“Oh, it’s no trouble darling; but how in the world did you get up there in the first place?”

“I . . . I climbed.”

“Ah . . . why?”

“Oh, you know. Don’t you get that sense of adventure every once in a while?”

“I suppose. Anyway, I’ve never seen you around town before, are you visiting?”

“Yes, I’m here to visit. . .” Knick Knack thinks hard as he tries to come up with a bogus name, and all he can think of is that mare he passed by before crashing into the tree. “Uh . . . Rainbow . . . something.”

“Rainbow Dash?”

“Ah, yes! That’s the one! Totally what I meant.”

“Really? Are you a friend of hers?”

“Oh, yeah. Rainbow and I go way back. That crazy pegasus, it’s been so long since I’ve seen her that I don’t even think she’d recognize me if she saw me.”

“Well, she is most definitely a forgetful one, but I’m sure she’d never forget a dear friend.”

“Yeah . . . you’re probably right. Friends definitely shouldn’t forget each other.”

“Dear me, you look tired. You must’ve been travelling an awful long time.”

“Yeah. I’ve been wandering for days.”

“Then please, come inside! I can prepare you a cup of only the finest tea in Ponyville.”

“That . . . that would be great,” Knick Knack stammers from her generous offer.

“Oh, but where are my manners? My name is Rarity, and it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance Mister. . ?”

“Uh, Knick Knack’s the name.”

“Well, Knick Knack, please follow me.” Rarity guides Knick Knack back to her home which isn’t too far from the tree he had crashed into. He walks up to Rarity’s Carousel Boutique, and is intrigued by its exquisite design. “Please, come in.” Rarity opens the door, and Knick Knack anxiously steps inside. She sits him down at a dining table, and prepares the tea as he restlessly glances at all the fancy decor. “If it’s Rainbow Dash you’re looking for, she’s more than likely sleazing on a cloud somewhere.” Rarity sets a steaming, porcelain tea set down onto the table. “I can help you look for her if you’d like.”

“Yeah, that’d be great.”

“Oh, dear me. I’ve forgotten the sugar. Just a moment.”

“Nah, I’ve got this.” Knick Knack reaches into his backpack and pulls out a little bowl full of cubes of sugar. “Ah, there we go.”

“Oh . . . you just happen to have a bowl of sugar in your backpack?”

“Uh . . . yup.”

“Well, you can never be too prepared I suppose.”

“Right? That’s exactly what I told Applejack.” Instantly, Knick Knack covers his mouth with his hooves realizing what he had just said.

“Ah, so you’ve already met Applejack?”

“Eh . . . more or less.”

“So, if you already spoke to Applejack, then why didn’t you ask her to help you find Rainbow Dash? Instead, you . . . climbed up one of my trees.”

“Remember what I said about being adventurous?”

“Yes, that wasn’t too long ago, darling.”

“In all honesty, I was just enthralled by your tree.”

“. . . Is that so?”

“Yes! It’s just so . . . tall and majestic. I just simply had to stop and admire it. So, in order to truly appreciate its beauty, I had to view the world how it sees it; and that’s at the tip top.”

“Huh . . . interesting. So, you’re a nature lover?”

“Um . . . more or less.”

“Then I simply ‘must’ introduce you to my friend Fluttershy! She shares the same love for nature as you do.”

“Well, that sounds like a plan. I’d be delighted to meet her.”

“Perfect! Then if we’re going to be headed back outside, I’m going to need to re-curl my mane. I fear the breeze might have disrupted my shape.”

“Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered.” Knick Knack reaches into his backpack and pulls out a curler.

“You . . . not only have sugar, but you also have a curler in your backpack?”

“. . . I’m going through a phase.”

“I see.” Rarity turns her head at the sound of a knock at the door. “Huh, I wonder who that could be. I’ll be just a moment.”

“No, no, take your time.” Rarity gets up from her seat to answer the door as Knick Knack takes sip of his tea.

“Knick Knack! You won’t believe who stopped by!” Rarity reenters the dining room as Knick Knack spits out his sip of tea at the sight of the mare she brought in. “What a coincidence. Knick Knack here says he’s been looking for you.”

“Really?” Rainbow Dash asks. “Because I don’t—”

“Rainbow Dash!” Knick Knack shouts with delight as he leaps out from his seat to embrace Rainbow Dash. “I’ve longed for the day we would meet again!”

“Uh, what’re you talking about?” Rainbow Dash squirms uncomfortably. “I’ve never—”

“Shh,” Knick Knack covers her mouth with his hoof. “I know. You never would’ve expected me to come back, but I’m here now.”

“Aw, how precious!” Rarity melts. “You two must’ve been close friends indeed.”

“What? No!” says Rainbow Dash flabbergasted.

“Come on, Rainbow, don’t do this,” Knick Knack begs. “I made a mistake by leaving without so much as a goodbye, but it’s only because I was afraid of what you’d say.”

“Huh?!”

“Oh, this is getting serious,” says Rarity excitedly. “This feels like one of those late-night drama plays I used to watch in the theatre. I can just feel the emotion.”

“Rarity, you don’t understand,” says Rainbow Dash.

“Oh, no darling, I completely understand.” Rarity takes a seat at the table. “Please, continue.”

“Rainbow Dash?” Knick Knack stares into Rainbow Dash’s disgusted face.

“W-What?” Rainbow Dash asks fearfully.

“I’m sorry for what I’ve done. You have no idea how much I’ve been hurting since that day.”

“No . . . I really don’t.”

“Words can’t even begin to describe my regret. Which is why I’ve come back . . . to finally tell you the truth.”

“This is getting a little weird!”

“I know, it’s weird for me too. It’s weird for me to believe that for a second that a colt like me would ever have a chance in the world with a mare like you. That’s why I left. I just couldn’t continue being just friends with this fire building up inside me, suffocating me. I feared that. . .” Knick Knack dramatically turns his head away. “If I told you, you’d want absolutely nothing to do with me ever again. I felt the only way to rid myself of this pain was to just run away, and pretend like you never existed; but I was wrong.”

“You really should stop. . .”

“No!” Rarity interjects with teary eyes. “Please, keep going.” Rainbow Dash groans as Knick Knack turns back with a smirk.

“I could never convince myself I made the right choice. After so many cold and rainy nights, the sun finally tore through gray clouds, and what did I see? I saw a rainbow light up the sky, and I instantly thought of you. You, Rainbow Dash, are the light that pierces through that dreadful storm in my life. I can’t run away from my feelings any longer, so I’m just finally going to say it.”

“Please, don’t,” she mutters.

“I’m in love with you, Rainbow; and I can only hope you’ll forgive me for the mistake I’ve made.”

“Forgive him, darling!” Rarity breaks down in tears as she tries to wipe them away with a handkerchief. “Tell him how you feel!”

“With pleasure!” Rainbow Dash breaks free from Knick Knack’s grasp, shoving him to the floor. “Firstly, gross. Secondly, I’m only here to ask you about that backpack you’ve got.”

“What, this old thing?” Knick Knack nervously asks.

“Yeah. That crazy rocket-backpack.”

“Oh, you know. . . Got it on sale.”

“Really? Because a friend of mine says that she had a backpack just like that one.”

“Well, let’s be honest here, there were plenty of green ones during the sale.”

“Some kinda magic backpack that somepony stole from her!”

“Now you’re calling me a thief? I pour my heart out to you, and you’re only interested in my backpack? You’re tearing me apart, Rainbow!”

“Why don’t you just give up that backpack before I really do tear you apart?” She scowls.

“Is this because I didn’t bring any flowers?”

“That’s it!” Rainbow Dash angrily lunges toward him, but a propeller on a long, metal rod shoots out from his backpack. It spins rapidly, causing him to lift up off the floor and Rainbow Dash to fumble.

“Sorry, I hope I’m not moving too fast.”

“You think ‘you’re’ fast? I’ll show you fast!”

“Oh, boy.” Rainbow Dash flies up and chases Knick Knack around the room as Rarity watches from below. Despite Knick Knack doing a fair job at dodging her, she manages to grab hold of the backpack. “Hey! Let go!”

“No way!” Rainbow Dash starts to whirl him around. “You’re going to give me that backpack, or else!” Knick Knack can feel himself growing sick as she continues to spin him around faster.

“Or else what?!” She releases him, and he flies and smacks directly against a wall. His body peels off the wall, revealing a large dent and several cracks, as he falls straight to the floor.

“Or else I’m gonna have to take it from you!”

“I . . . I get it.” Knick Knack struggles to his hooves. “I’m sorry about forgetting the flowers, but I didn’t forget the chocolate!”

“Huh?” From the backpack, a pair of water-gun-like cannons extend and fold out. Through the clear plastic chambers, huge doses of chocolate can be seen. “What the—?” Before she can finish processing what she’s seeing, two powerful streams of chocolate fire from the guns straight toward Rainbow Dash. Frantically, she darts and dodges as the streams of chocolate follow her all around the room. Rarity uses her magic to grab and open an umbrella as chocolate spews and coats her room. Rainbow Dash can feel herself tiring, and unable to keep up with the unpredictability of the streams of chocolate. Knick Knack focuses, and manages to land a hit on her. Her chocolate coated wings cause her to fall to the floor, and Knick Knack continues to spray her down with chocolate. Completely captured in a glob of chocolate, Knick Knack ceases fire as the guns retract back inside the backpack. Rainbow Dash pokes her head out from the glob, and glares straight at Knick Knack.

“You think some chocolate is enough to stop me? Just wait ‘til I get outta this!” She desperately tries to break free, and finds that the chocolate is rapidly hardening, trapping her in a solid shell of chocolatey goodness. “What—? How—?”

“Honestly, I didn’t think it would do that,” says Knick Knack. “But hey! Now you’re sweeter than ever!”

“You’re not gonna get away with this!”

“Yeah. . . Except I totally am. Sorry, my love, but we’ll have to talk another time. Farewell!” Knick Knack whistles as he happily trots out of the boutique, leaving Rainbow Dash to angrily continue struggling.

“Rarity! Will you get me out of this?!”

“I would darling, but all this chocolate would be catastrophic for my figure.”

“You don’t have to eat it! Just break me out!”

“Now, now, let’s not be too brash. I’ll go get my hair-dryer and we’ll thaw you out.”

“Ugh, fine.”

“You know, you only made this more difficult for yourself.”

“How is this my fault?!”

“The first decent stallion that professes his love for you, and you shut him down. I know he’s not a Wonderbolt, but come now, you can’t keep your head in the clouds forever. . . No pun intended.”

“Just get the hair-dryer!”