Finders Keepers

Back in the outskirts of town, Twilight is vigorously shaking Spike for answers with a crazed look in her eyes. “What do you mean it just vanished?!” She screams.

“W-What else could I possibly mean?!” Spike retorts dizzily.

“Spike, rucksacks don’t just get up and walk away!”

“Well, this one’s magical, so maybe it’s possible!”

“Ugh!” Twilight drops Spike to the ground and pouts with her hooves over her eyes.

“Look, there’s nothing to worry about. You’ve already got Rainbow Dash on the case. With an eye in the sky like her she’s sure to find it in no time.”

“And what if she doesn’t?!”

“If she doesn’t, then somepony’s sure to report a pony with a green, magical backpack.”

“What if it’s already far from Ponyville?! It could take days, weeks or months before we track it down!”

“Twilight, you’re overreacting like usual. We have plenty of time before we—” Spike burps up a scroll tied by a red ribbon from the green flames of his breath.

“Spike, what’s that?” Twilight trembles.

“It’s a letter from Princess Celestia.” Twilight instantly gasps. “Now hold on, we don’t know what it says. She could just be asking about some kind of friendship thing.” Spike unravels the ribbon and opens up the scroll. His eyes scan across the paper as his confident smile quickly vanishes.

“What does it say?!”

“Umm. . . She says, she hopes the testing’s going well.”

“Uh-huh, go on.”

“And that she’s excited to hear what you’ll discover about this magical artifact.”

“Oh. . . Is that all?”

“She’s . . . very excited.”

“Okay, Spike, does it say anything else?” Twilight asks quickly growing impatient.

“She’s so excited, that she’ll be coming down to Ponyville shortly to observe and discuss what you’ve found out.” She screams at the top of her lungs nearly shattering Spike’s ear drums before collapsing to the ground. “Welp,” Spike sighs. “That’s no good.”

“It’s awful!” Twilight picks Spike up and stares into his eyes insanely. “Do you have any idea what she might do to me if she found out I lost the rucksack?!”

“Uh . . . maybe?”

“I’ll give you a hint! It’s the opposite of good!”

“Well, that narrows it down pretty good.”

“Spike!” Twilight drops Spike to the ground. “You’re not helping!”

“Maybe I’d be more helpful if you’d stop dropping me like that.” Spike wipes the dust off his shoulders. “Look, I’m sure something’ll come up to give us a lead as to where the backpack is. . . Oh, look!” Spike points his claw to a pony galloping towards them. “It’s Applejack! Maybe she knows where the runaway backpack is.”

“Twilight!” Applejack shouts.

“Applejack, what’s the matter?” Twilight asks.

“What kinda crazy experiment are ya doin’ now?!”

“What do you mean? And why are you soaking wet?”

“We just got paid a visit by some colt with some kind ‘a cursed bag! He hosed me down, picked a fight with Big Mac then took off! An’ I literally mean he took off! He shot through the sky like a bottle rocket!”

“Ah-hah!” Spike cheers. “You see? I knew something would come up!”

“Applejack,” says Twilight. “Where did he go?”

“He went down over yonder,” says Applejack as she points her hoof. “But I figured I’d track you down first an’ see if you could explain this nonsense to me.”

“Alright, then let’s get moving. You said he attacked Big Mac?”

“That’s right.”

“Then we should be cautious. This pony could be dangerous.”

“Um, Twilight?” Spike pokes at Twilight’s leg.

“Oh, don’t worry,” says Applejack with a smirk. “I ain’t afraid ‘a some colt with a fancy bag. When I see ‘em, I’ll show ‘em what for.”

“Twilight, I don’t think—”

“Not now, Spike,” Twilight interrupts. “We don’t have a lot of time. We need to stop this pony before he causes any more trouble.”

“Agreed,” says Applejack as they both take off galloping in the direction Applejack alluded to, leaving Spike behind.

“Oh, this is not good. . .” Spike mutters to himself. “I gotta find him before they do.”

Galloping at full speed, Twilight and Applejack come to a halt as they come across Rainbow Dash and Rarity. “Woah, what happened to y’all?” Applejack asks noticing Rainbow Dash fur is coated in splotches of chocolate.

“What happened?!” Rainbow Dash exclaims. “Some crazy pony with that green bag Twilight told me about trapped me in chocolate!”

“A pony ‘crazy-in-love’,” Rarity teases.

“I said we’re never talking about that again!”

“Chocolate, huh? This pony must be more deranged than I thought. Quick! Which way did he go?” Twilight asks anxiously.

“I do believe he went into town,” says Rarity.

“Good, then let’s go track him down! We need to stop him before things get out of hoof!” The four of them team up and gallop straight into Ponyville, checking every corner for any sign of the thief. “Let’s split up! We’ll cover more ground that way!”

“Good thinkin’!” Applejack agrees as they all diverge, each of them taking a different road to explore and investigate. By herself, Twilight gallops down a road lined with produce stands. Everything seems normal, aside from a gathering of ponies that blocks off the entire road. Twilight moves in to investigate, and comes across several ponies with loads of things stacked up on their backs. “Excuse me, Sir.” Twilight gets the attention of a random stallion with a stack of cardboard boxes on his back.

“Yes?” The stallion asks. “Is there something I can help you with?”

“As a matter of fact, there is. What is that you’ve got there?”

“These? They’re just cardboard boxes.”

“Oh. . . Well, where is everypony getting all this stuff?”

“Oh, there’s a stallion I met over there who’s giving away all sorts of free stuff!”

“Really? What kind of stuff?”

“Just about anything, really! Whatever you ask for, he’s pretty much got it! Hey, maybe you should go ask him for an ice cream or something, you look a bit sweaty.”

“Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.” Twilight leaves and approaches the crowd. “Excuse me. Pardon me.” Twilight apologizes as she squeezes through the group. As soon as she makes her way to the front, she points her hoof toward the stallion she sees accusingly. “Ah-hah! I’ve found—!” Twilight stops herself upon seeing a stallion pulling a huge cart with a big sign that reads: Carriage Sale. “—you. . .”

“Um, you lookin’ for somethin’, Miss?” The stallion asks.

“A . . . A carriage sale?”

“Yup! I’m givin’ away all my old junk to make room for my new junk! Whatever you need, I just might have it!”

“Oh. . . I see.” Disappointedly, Twilight smiles awkwardly before lowering her head in shame. Feeling defeated, she takes a seat in the middle of the road. “Who am I kidding?” she mutters. “I might not ever catch this thief, and who knows what sort of punishment Princess Celestia will have in store for me?”

“Hey,” somepony asks, approaching her. “What’s the matter?”

Refusing to look up at the pony speaking, Twilight sighs. “Nothing.”

“Oh, come on. Nopony takes a seat in the dirt like that unless something’s bothering them. Trust me, I should know.”

“Thanks, but I’d rather not talk about it. I just need to try and clear my head.”

“Maybe I can help! I’ve got this—!”

“I appreciate it, but whatever it is, it’s probably not enough to cheer me up.”

“Oh . . . well . . . would you just like somepony to talk to? I remember whenever I had a problem, I never had somepony to talk to. I always wonder what kind of difference it would’ve made if I did. So, whaddya say? Wanna talk?”

Twilight smiles. “Thanks, you’re too kind. Well, I lost something very important. Somepony trusted me with it, and I let somepony go and steal it. The pony that lent it to me will be here at any minute, and I’m at a complete loss.”

“Please, you were robbed. How can that be your fault? I’m sure whoever you’re talking about will understand.”

“I doubt it. I was supposed to keep it under close watch, and I failed. That thief can anywhere by now. I might as well just not even bother.”

“Well, sitting in the dirt isn’t gonna do you much good. I say you pick yourself up and keep moving forward. I mean, I came across something incredible today, probably the best thing to ever happen to me! I could’ve done what you’re doing, sit in the dirt and just give up, but I’m glad I didn’t. I bet that if you keep looking, you’ll find something eventually! Maybe your lost thing! If not, then just explain to the pony that it was just an honest mistake, and that you tried your best to get it back. I’m sure that ‘this’ isn’t your best.”

“You know . . . I think you’re right.”

“Then, that pony might not be that mad at you after all!”

“Yeah,” Twilight stands face forward brimming with confidence. “Giving up’s never the answer! I need to do everything I possibly can!”

“There you go.”

“I’m glad you bumped into me. I can’t thank you enough.”

“Don’t mention it! Oh, and here, have an ice cream. You look a bit sweaty.”

“Wow! Thanks!” Twilight uses her magic to grab the ice cream cone from the mysterious pony with a gleeful smile, then is struck with a sudden realization as her heart nearly skips a beat. She turns her head to see Knick Knack smiling at her, and notices the green rucksack strapped to his back. “W-What is that?” she stammers as she points at the rucksack.

“Oh, this is what I was talking about! It’s a special backpack I found just lying on the ground!” Twilight’s jaw drops. “Anyway, I’d love to stay and chat, but you’ve got something to go find! So, I’ll just leave you to it. Good luck!” Knick Knack hops away, leaving Twilight in pure shock. She shakes her head to wake herself from her hypnotized state, and dashes for Knick Knack. They collide and tumble across the dirt path of the road kicking up dust and catching everypony’s attention. Fearfully, Knick Knack lays on the ground as Twilight lays on top of him with a furious look in her eyes. “O-Or we can talk more if you like.” Knick Knack nervously smiles. “Has uh . . . anypony told you how pretty your eyes are?”

“That rucksack! It belongs to me!”

“Oh. . . Well, ain’t this a coincidence?”

“It most certainly is, and you’re going to give that back right this instant!”

“Umm. . .” Suddenly, Twilight is thrust off of him as something explodes from his rucksack: a huge, colorful tarp that quickly starts to inflate. Twilight, disoriented from the impact, watches as Knick Knack is lifted up into the air by a huge, red balloon as his body hangs helplessly from the rucksack. “Gee, I won’t be afraid of heights anymore when this is all over.” Twilight scrambles to her hooves, focusing her magical power as her horn glows with a bright, pinkish hue. A beam of magic shoots from her horn and straight through the balloon, creating a gigantic hole that causes it to dart crazily in the air. Knick Knack screams as he is helplessly carried by the wild balloon. “Never mind! Still afraid! Still afraid!” Twilight watches as he shoots through the air, and chases after him.