Chapter 12

The past few days have been what could only be described as quite the eventful few days for the gunslinger. After the encounter with Duke Venture, Arthur had found himself involved in a number of complicated circumstances. Apple Bloom had come down with a strange disease known as the Cutie Pox, thanks to a strange plant that she had taken from the zebra shaman Zecora. The results were that the poor filly had cutie marks appearing not just on her shoulders, but all over her body and was all over the place doing a variety of special talents. It took a stern talking to from both her sister and her new sheriff friend to finally confess her deed so that the cure could be made and she had learned a valuable lesson.

Just recently, Arthur was making his rounds when Rainbow Dash had been flying around Ponyville and helping ponies in need. Whether it be simple tasks or even saving ponies from dangerous situations, she was the mare everyone would look to for help. At first, Arthur didn’t mind the extra pair of hands to aid him, but she soon found herself becoming full of herself and began flaunting her success. It admittedly irked the gunslinger’s pride that he was no longer looked to for support, until Twilight and her friends hatched a plan to help see past her inflated ego. They all planned to pose as a masked pony known as Mare-Do-Well who would steal her spotlight and drive the attention away from her. As a result, Rainbow became disgruntled by all of this and decided to ask a certain Gunslinger for help to catch the new caped crusader.

Rainbow was flying around in the sky, looking for Arthur when she spotted him lounging on a park bench. The sight of him always made her flustered, on account of their first meeting, but she would have to put her distractions aside in order to seek his aid. After taking a few deep breaths, she descended to the ground and approached the gunslinger as he sat with his legs crossed and was humming a small tune to himself until he noticed her.

“Afternoon, Rainbow,” Arthur greeted with a tip of his hat. “What can I do ya for?”

“I need your help catching somepony,” she said to Arthur as she made her way to him.

“And who might that be?”

“Mare-Do-Well! Who else?” Rainbow exclaimed as her wings expanded.

“Ah, her…” Arthur trailed off as he tapped his chin with his index finger and hummed in thought. “Nah.”

Rainbow’s jaw dropped a little but closed a second later. “W-Why not!?”

“She seems to be doin’ some pretty good things lately, it honestly feels nice to just kick back once in a while. So I’ll just let her be,” Arthur sighed with a smirk as he leaned his head back behind his hands.

“B-but, she-” Rainbow tried to speak but was interrupted when she heard a crowd of ponies march over the horizon. The pegasus’ shock was replaced with deep frown when she noticed the Mare-Do-Well merchandise they wore.

Since when did Ponyville start selling Mare-Do-Well hats and shirts?! Rainbow thought angrily in her head.

“Rainbow Dash?”

Rainbow shook her head when she heard a voice call out to her. A familiar feminine voice that belonged to her number one fan. But from what the hat she wore, the cyan mare knew she was not number one anymore.

“Oh, Scootaloo…” Rainbow forced a smile on her face. “What’s going on over there?”

Scootaloo beamed and pulled out a pamphlet from her backpack. “The Mayor is hosting a Gratitude Event for Mare-Do-Well, and Mare-Do-Well is gonna make an appearance! Can you believe it!?” she asked Rainbow as she still had a wide smile on her face, but it soon diminished when she saw the glare on the elder pegasus’ face. “Rainbow?”

Almost immediately when her name was called, Rainbow crumbled the pamphlet and threw it to one side. Before another word could be said, she took flight with a strong flap of her wings which sent some dust into Scootaloo’s eyes. The elder pegasus didn’t bother looking down on the filly and flew with haste towards the event.

“What was that all about?” Scootaloo wondered.

“I wouldn’t worry too much, kid,” Arthur sighed as he stood up. “But I think it best we head over to that event so she doesn’t cause too much trouble.”

The filly nodded and followed Arthur towards the center of town. Once they arrived, Rainbow was already causing a commotion by chasing after the masked mare all over town.

“Naw shoot, she’s already on the boards…” Arthur said, shaking his head.

“Get back here!” Rainbow shouted angrily. But it seemed like Mare-Do-Well was quicker on her hooves and evaded the prismatic mare as if she were in two places at once.

“How is Mare-Do-Well doing that?” Scootaloo wondered.

“You’ll see, just watch,” Arthur smirked as he crossed his arms and stood there.

After many failed attempts of trying to catch the mystery masked mare, Rainbow had finally gotten the drop on her target and tackled her to the ground. She pinned Mare-Do-Well with a tight grip.

“All right, miss mysterious!” Rainbow announced as she grabbed the mask and pulled it off. “Mystery solved!” Only who she discovered to be Pinkie Pie, of all ponies, she gasped with a slack jaw and utter shock. “P-P-Pinkie?!” she gasped out and slid back from her downed friend and scurried backwards as though she were contagious with a fatal illness. Wh-yo-how-HUH?!”

“PINKIE PIE WAS MARE-DO-WELL?!” Scootaloo yelped.

“Nope,” Arthur said as he pointed down the street with his thumb. To her and Rainbow’s surprise, another Mare-Do-Well walked towards them as she took off her mask and hat to reveal Twilight. Arthur cleared his throat once again, pointed in the other direction for yet another masked mare to walk around the corner to reveal herself as Applejack.

“There were three of you?!” Rainbow exclaimed..

“Not bad, ladies,” Arthur nodded. “Ya’ll played her like a well tuned lute.”

Rainbow did a sharp turn towards Arthur. “You were in on this?!” she pointed a finger at him that shook from both shock and fury.

“Kinda, I was just told not to get involved nor provide any aid,” Arthur shrugged. “Wasn’t even my idea, that credit goes to Twilight.”

“Yep, we all played Mare-Do-Well at different times,” Twilight said.

“I stopped the carriage bus with these babies,” Applejack said, showing off her strong legs. “Buckin’ McGillicuddy and Kicks McKee.”

“I saved the construction workers with my Pinkie Sense!” Pinkie chirped. She soon began shaking and pushed Rainbow out of the way before a flower pot fell on her.

“Sorry!” A mare called out from the window.

“It’s alright!”

“I still don’t understand any of that…” Arthur mumbled to himself.

“And I used my magic to fix the dam,” Twilight said.

“Oh! Oh! And I did the flyby afterwards!” Fluttershy said.

“I made the costumes,” Rarity said. “Fabulous, if I do say so myself.”

“I…I don’t understand,” Rainbow shook her head. “Why?!”

“To put it bluntly, you were gettin’ too cocky fer your own good,” Arthur said.

Rainbow Dash huffed and sneered at Arthur before she turned her attention to her friends, who all showed a little concern for the cyan pegasus’ reaction. “So that’s it then? As soon as I start being a little proud of myself for helping others… My friends will just go behind my back and humiliate me, making me the joke of Ponyville for years to come?!” she shouted out her last word, which echoed across the alleyway.

“You sure are a little thick in the head, aren’t ya?” Arthur pointed out, making Rainbow sneer at him again.

“Rainbow, it’s not like that at all,” Fluttershy said.

“Then what?! Don’t you want me to be a hero?!”

“Of course we want you to be a hero!” Twilight said.

“But a real hero doesn’t brag,” Applejack said with a wink..

A hoarse laugh escaped Rainbow’s mouth. She jumped towards Applejack and poked her chest hard. “Well excuse me Miss I’m the most dependable pony who ought to get an award, I don’t remember you being taught a lesson by having us make you the laughing stock of the town! Or maybe we should have just ruined your apple harvest to get a point across!”

“Hey! That’s goin’ too far, Dash!” Arthur snapped as he marched over to her. “No one here said you can’t help anyone out who needs it, but there’s a limit to how helpful you can be! Sure you did some noble deeds this day, but you let the glitz and glam get to your head. I saw how you were constantly showing off your flying skills and what not but it got to the point where it was too much!”

“What about that thief I helped catch for you?!”

“She weren’t no thief! She just put her items in her bag so she wouldn’t lose track of them! She was gonna pay for them, but you swooped in and nabbed her without a second thought! I had to escort the poor mare back to the shop since you were too busy bein’ all heroic! That’s why your friends did this, to knock some sense into you by messin’ with your inflated pride!”

Rainbow starred off with Arthur but broke eye contact to look at the other friends who still wore Mare Do Well outfits. Instead of being faced with pride, her friends were now worried for her. The cyan pegasus looked down to the floor as she thinned her lips. “You still hurt me…” she muttered.

Without warning, Rainbow found herself tackled to the ground by Pinkie Pie. What shocked her though was that her friend hugged with all her might.

“Oh! Dashie! We didn’t mean to hurt you or make you feel like we didn’t appreciate what you did for us or Ponyville!” Pinkie assured her friend as she lifted herself from the ground and helped Rainbow Dash to stand up too.

“Yeah, I know that now,” Rainbow sighed.

“Celebrating your accomplishments is natural,” Twilight explained. “But-”

“Rubbin’ them in everypony’s faces is not,” Applejack said.

“I can agree with that,” Arthur nodded. “I can recall many a times when I thought I could walk the walk and talk the talk, but I can also recall when I just ended up gettin’ into more trouble than I care to admit.”

“I’m sorry for not being the number one fan like I used to, Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo said with a frown. “But you kinda did show off a little too much.”

“I guess I did,” Rainbow said sheepishly. “And I guess I should also act with grace and humility when others outshine me, like Mare-Do-Well.”

“Sounds like you’ve got a letter to write to Princess Celestia,” Twilight said with a smile.

“Already got it covered!” Spike said as he appeared, wearing a press outfit. “As your post writer, I already penned a letter to the Princess.”

“That’s nice of you, Spike, but I really wanna write this letter myself,” Rainbow said.

“Aw, come one! I wrote the whole thing already!” Spike complained, showing the rolled up scroll.

“I think that defeats the purpose, Spike,” Arthur shook his head.

“Okay, let’s hear it,” Rainbow rolled her eyes.

“A-hem! Dear Princess-”

“Look out! It’s. A real ghost!” Rainbow shouted, pointing behind him.

Both Pinkie and Spike panicked and ran off, making the group laugh as Rainbow took the paper and pen so she could write her letter. Arthur simply chuckled to himself as Rarity approached him.

“Today sure was entertaining,” Arthur hummed.

Rarity nodded and giggled as she removed the hat from her head. She caressed the hat in her hands, but then looked back at Arthur. “I agree, darling. By the way, do you remember tomorrow is the day we head out to Canterlot?” she asked the stallion.

“Sure do, I asked Mayer Mare to give me the next couple days off. There any reason why you’re going to Canterlot anyway?” Rarity simply pulled Arthur to the side so her friends wouldn’t hear and she whispered to Arthur.

“Well you see, darling, it is Twilight’s birthday in a couple of days. And I need to, shall we say, get away so that I may make her birthday dress.”

“It’s her birthday? Shoot, I wish I’d known so I could’ve gotten her somethin’.”

Rarity waved her finger in front of her. “No need to worry, I always have spare gifts to provide friends in case they forget or miss a birthday,” she winked at Arthur.

“Well alrighty then, I’ll just see ya tomorrow then,” Arthur nodded.

“Toodaloo, darling!”

The Next Day

The morning sun had risen a couple hours ago and Arthur was sitting on one of the benches at the train station. He had to ask a couple of ponies where the station would be, which was admittedly a tad awkward, but he managed to find it nonetheless. Before Arthur came to the station, he had figured that he would at least look the part since he was going to a fancy looking city that was Canterlot. Back at his camp, he rummaged through his pack, which to his surprise, was also filled with a variety of clothes he had purchased back on Earth! It was a very unexplainable thing to Arthur, how such a small satchel could hold so many items was beyond him. Not wanting to overthink it, he just chalked it up as something to do with magic that somehow affected his satchel in the process. As for Arthur, he wore a nice brown overcoat, grey button up vest, dark red collared shirt, black slacks, and a black tie that hung loosely around his neck. He also wore his signature hat, which he always made sure to wear at all times. To any who saw him, one would’ve mistaken him for some rich aristocrat from a foreign land.

“Yoo-hoo!” Arthur’s ears perked up and turned to see the mare he was waiting for. She wore a nice looking light blue early autumn dress and a nice pink hat. The gunslinger smiled as he stood up to meet Rarity halfway. As for Rarity, she was caught completely off guard from how incredibly dashing the gunslinger looked.

“Mornin’ Rarity,” he greeted with a tip of his hat.

Rarity blushed with a hand before her mouth with a small smile behind it. “My my, what a fine gentle-stallion have I met today?” she asked him rhetorically and stretched out her hand towards her. “Shall you be my escort for the day, good sir?”

“Of course,” Arthur nodded as he offered her his arm. She accepted as she hooked her arm around his. The two paid for their tickets and boarded the train and took their seats. As they waited for the train to start the journey to Canterlot, he noticed a young stallion carrying many luggage cases and seemed to be struggling to load them in the car. “Sweet Jeezus, that all yours Rarity?”

“Why of course, Arthur. I cannot be seen as bland in Canterlot, so I packed my best dresses and other accessories too. Not to mention the luggage also contains my tools for my designs and dress-making.”

“Well ya sure are committed, I’ll give ya that,” Arthur hummed as the colt managed to load everything. “By the way, can ya tell me what exactly it is I’m in for?”

“Whatever do you mean?”

“Well for starters, what’s this Canterlot city all about?”

Rarity gasped before she spoke. “Why Arthur, it’s the capital of Equestria! This is where Princess Celestia and Princess Luna live and govern from, with ministers and advisors helping them too of course.”

“I also reckon this is where all them fancy nobles and what not live?” Arthur said as he frowned unenthusiastically.

“Do you…not like the nobility?” Rarity asked.

“Let’s just say I’ve had a few unpleasant experiences with those types of people, back where I’m from.” Arthur trailed off as he gazed upwards.

Rarity nodded and remained silent for a moment and then turned to look out of the window as the train began to move and passed through the scenery. “I have one question, that’s always been on my mind since we found out about your origins…”

“Sure, ask me anything.”

“Have you ever robbed a train?”

The question surprised the gunslinger, but it was a question he was somewhat expecting down the road. Arthur reached up and took off his hat and sighed as he gazed at it in his lap.

“Yeah…I have, many times in fact,” he confessed. “It was always an easy score, when I was part of my gang. All we ever did was pinpoint when and where trains would come and go and we’d be on it faster than flies on manure. I’d hide my face and point my gun at anyone who’d give me their valuables. Although it wasn’t always easy, but a score was still a score.”

Rarity nodded at Arhtur’s words. “Were you the leader of your gang?”

“Naw, a man by the name of Dutch van der Linde was. He was my mentor…up until he lost himself.”

“Lost himself?”

“A story for another time,” Arthur shook his head. “Ya must hate me now, knowing I hurt and robbed a great many people before my arrival in this world.”

Instead of answering him, Rarity nuzzled against his neck and leaned into Arthur’s frame. “I could never hate you, darling… You’re a special stallion to all of Ponyville, all my friends, and me…” she whispered to him with her eyes closed.

Arthur could only smile in appreciation that Rarity held no ill will towards him. He looked out the window and wondered how the people here could be more forgiving than those back home.

Maybe…things are finally starting to look up from here on.

A few hours passed and the train had finally come to a stop. Arthur and Rarity departed from the train and the gunslinger was met with a wondrous sight. The pristine city of Canterlot was as prestigious as Rarity had described it. Large buildings, ponies wearing fancy attire, and it smelled rather cleaner than expected.

“Well I’ll be damned,” Arthur said as he took in his surroundings. “I was expecting Canterlot to be all fancy, but not this fancy.”

Rarity giggled at Arthur’s words. “This is the home of most nobility and royalty in all of Equestria, darling… so of course it would this fancy…” she imitated Arthur’s voice but coughed lightly to clear her throat. “Now good sir, please be a dear and follow us. Be sure not to drop any of the luggage~” The young stallion who volunteered to carry her bags nodded as he struggled to lift them all at once.

“Ya need some help there, son?” Arthur offered.

“N-No sir, I’m fine!” The stallion said as he trudged along.

Arthur could only stifle a laugh as he offered his arm to Rarity again and she accepted by hooking her around his. They made their way through the streets and Arthur occasionally looked around so that he could take it all in. He remembered his time in Saint Denis, how it had a certain stench in the air due to the factory buildings polluting the skies. Also, while there were some nice areas in the city, he felt like the inhabitants of Saint Denis were all people with rat tails hidden underneath their clothing. However, Canterlot seemed to have a different atmosphere about it. The air was much cleaner, most of the ponies all had smiles despite the obvious noble ponies, and he felt like he could let his guard down a little and relax.

Further down the street, a few noble mares were enjoying a cup of tea together and conversing about their husband’s accomplishments when one of them spied the gunslinger and arched her brow.

“I say, ladies, who is that?” She asked, gesturing to Arthur. When the others looked, they couldn’t help but stare at him as he passed by.

“Oh my, he certainly is a catch, isn’t he?” The second mare purred.

“Indeed, his attire is a tad rustic, but they do fit him quite nicely,” the third mare said, lidding her eyes.

“I wonder if that mare he is with is open to sharing him?” The first mare whispered.

“How uncouth of you!” The second mare giggled. Unbeknownst to them, Arthur had somewhat keen hearing and could hear most of what they said.

“Aw hell…” Arthur grumbled as he pulled his hat over his face a little.

Rarity, who didn’t hear the other mares’ voices, heard Arthur’s. “What’s that, darling?”

“Eh nothin’, just thinkin’ out loud,” Arthur shrugged.

After about another five minutes or so, the pair had finally arrived at Canterlot Castle. To say Arthur was amazed at the structure itself would be considered an understatement. Never before had Arthur seen such a pristine looking building and couldn’t bring himself to say anything. Rarity noticed Arthur’s expression and giggled to herself.

“I am pleased you safely made it to Canterlot, Rarity. And it is a nice surprise to see you too, Mr. Morgan.”

Arthur blinked and looked down to see the solar Princess herself, Celestia, gracefully walk out to greet them at the gates.

“Good mornin’, Princess,” Arthur said politely as he took off his hat and bowed his head.

Before Celestia could greet Arthur in return, the grumble of a particular cat in her carrier was heard from atop the luggage pile.

“Don’t you worry, Opalense. Once we are in our room, I’ll let you out,” Rarity reasoned with the grouchy feline who settled with a permanent glare to all of her viewers. “It is really good to see you again Princess,” Rarity bowed towards the alicorn. “And thank you for providing us with accommodation.”

“You’re very welcome,” Celestia smiled as she led them into the castle.

“No really, this is so nice of you!” Rarity said as she left Arthur’s side and walked beside the Princess.

“It’s nothing, really.”

“Oh, but it isn’t nothing, it’s everything! I-I just don’t know what to say but thank you!” Rarity beamed.

“Uh, Rarity? I think she gets the idea,” Arthur said.

Celestia and the others then arrived at a room in one of the towers. The inside was as fancy as one might think as Opalense hopped up on the bed. As Arthur scanned the room, he noticed something that made him turn to the Princess.

“Excuse me, ma’am, but if this is where Rarity will bunk, where’s my room?”

“Oh!” Celestia exclaimed with a slight blush on her face. “I completely forgot! Well…” she hummed and looked between Arthur and Rarity. “I suppose you could share a bed with her, after all this is a couple’s suite.”

Share a bed…with Arthur!? Rarity’s thoughts went into overdrive as she pictured what the night would bring. Her and Arthur alone…her frame against that chiseled chest of his…her and him in embrace…their lips…the mare’s vision became blurry and she started to wobble. She almost hit the floor but was caught by Arhtur just in time.

“Woah there! Rarity?” Arthur said to her but her mind was blank as her face was as red as a cherry as she smiled.

“It appears she is a tad fatigued from her trip,” Celestia surmised.

“Y-Your luggage, mademoiselle?” The young stallion strained as he carried the bags in the room.

“Just set them over there, son, and be careful,” Arthur sighed as he carried Rarity to the bed and laid her down.

“Well then, it is time for me to return to court. Please enjoy your stay,” Celestia said with a curt nod as she left. “Oh and Arthur?”

“Yes?”

“Luna wanted to tell me that she thanks you for helping her on Nightmare Night, and that I thank you too for giving my sister the confidence she needed.”

Arthur smiled and nodded as she left and closed the door with the young stallion following as he held his back in pain. The gunslinger chuckled as he glanced at the still unconscious Rarity and wondered what else to do.

“Hmm, I reckon I should at least see the sights,” Arthur hummed as he put his hat back on. He too went to leave and looked over his shoulder to the fashionista. “I’ll be back soon.”

Arthur had spent most of the day wandering the streets of Canterlot and was having an interesting time of it. He visited a variety of shops, was greeted by many ponies who passed him by, and had even sat down at a café for a cup of coffee. Just as he had guessed, this town had a much better atmosphere than Saint Denis ever did. During his touring, he caught the sight of a distressed looking unicorn mare as she rummaged through her purse as if looking for something. Arthur’s sheriff instincts kicked in and he approached the mare and cleared his throat.

“Afternoon, ma’am, there somethin’ the matter? Ya look a little frazzled,” Arthur said.

The mare looked up from her purse, where she was faced with a rather handsome stallion. “W-Why yes, my golden necklace is missing!” she replied, her voice laced in panic as her eyes started to water.

A thief, huh? Guess not everything is perfect in this town.

“I’m awfully sorry to hear that, ma’am, maybe I can help ya?” Arthur pulled his coat aside and showed the mare his badge that was pinned to his vest. “My name’s Arthur Morgan, I’m the sheriff of Ponyville and I’m here visiting with a friend of mine.”

A sheriff, hmm? She thought to herself before she composed to greet him in kind. “My name is Fleur, Fleur de Lis…” she held out her hand towards Arthur.

Arthur smiled and took her hand and gently shook it. “Now then,” Arthur reached into his satchel and pulled out a pencil and notepad to write down on. “Can ya tell me what happened before your necklace got snatched?”

Fleur went into detail about how her necklace looked like, whilst Arthur took down the notes in his pad. Just as she was done, a light gray stallion who wore a suit with light azure hair walked towards them. “Fleur dear, whatever is the matter?” he asked her after they both hugged and lightly placed a kiss on each other’s lips.

“Oh it’s horrible, Fancy! My necklace is gone…I think it was stolen!” she exclaimed and tears started to stream from her eyes. They ceased for a moment when she felt a tissue wipe them away, courtesy of her stallion. “Thank you,” she said with a soft smile. “Oh! Dear, this is Arthur…a sheriff of Ponyville,” she introduced him to the sheriff. “And Arthur, this is my husband, Fancy Pants.”

“Pleasure to meet you sir,” Arthur said as he reached out for a shake. Fancy Pants nodded and accepted as the two shook hands with each other. “Your lady here was explaining to me how it happened. Said she was on her way to meet ya when she bumped into someone and her necklace was up and gone.” He turned to Fleur who was still a little upset. “Ma’am, do ya have any recollection as to what the feller looked like?”

Fluer thinned her lips and frowned in thought. “Well, I didn’t get a look of his face… but he was a pegasus with green fur, green like the grasslands. He also had a rather peculiar colour for hair, what’s that term that the teens use? Oh yes! Ginger. Funny enough, he wore a hat similar to yours, Sheriff Morgan…” she trailed off as her eyes landed on the said stallion’s hat.

“Mine?” Arthur quirked a brow. He glanced around to the other ponies walking around and not one of them wore any kind of headwear like his. “No offense, ma’am, but these folks don’t exactly look like they’d wear anything like my clothes. They’re too clean to dress like me.”

“So somepony not from Canterlot?” Fancy voiced his thoughts out loud. He sighed and fixed his monocle. “The cheek I tell you. The cheek of some ponies to steal from hard working individuals like my wife here.”

“Thief’s come in all shapes in sizes, sir,” Arthur hummed as he tucked his notepad away. “I should know, I deal with them more often than you’d think in Ponyville. Anyway, I ain’t here in Canterlot long but I’ll be sure to gather whatever information I can about this thief. I’ll certainly try my best to track the varmint down and return what was taken from ya.”

Fleur signed and smiled at the sheriff. “Why thank you, Sheriff Morgan.”

“Yes, thank you,” Fancy said. “Come along, dear, we mustn’t be late for the Derby.”

“Of course, I’ll just be getting along now,” Arthur tipped his hat and waved goodbye to the two.

The day dragged on for the gunslinger as he spent the majority of it going around and asking questions to any who were willing to speak with him. So far, he had learned that this thief, whomever it was, had been stealing items for a good long while now. The thief’s description was always the same: a pegasus pony with grassy green fur, ginger hair, and a hat similar to Arthur’s. Arthur admittedly wished he had more time to investigate further, however time was not on his side. Arthur sighed as he made his way back to the room he shared with Rarity and made his way up the stairs of the tower suite. When he arrived and opened the door, he found Rarity already sleeping on the bed. He smiled as he took off his coat and hat and hung them on the rack. He then noticed a mannequin off to the side that had a nice looking yellow dress with a pink ribbon tied around the neck.

“Hmm, seems a little simple, but then again I’m no fashion guy,” Arthur shrugged. He took off his vest and collared shirt and draped them over a chair, along with his satchel and belt, until he wore only an undershirt and his slacks. He quietly and gently laid on the bed next to Rarity and waited for his eyes to shut, sending him to the land of dreams.

The Next Day

The sun shined through the windows as Arthur began to stir from his slumber. His eyes managed to open as he lifted himself up as he smacked his lips and let out a yawn. He was met with Rarity looking a little frantic as the young stallion from before struggled to carry her bags.

“Rarity? What’s going on?” He asked sluggishly as he picked himself up to sit on the edge of the bed. Rarity looked over to him, only for her cheeks to burn. As she suspected, Arthur was a very built stallion. His arms looked almost as large as Big Mac’s and the undershirt he wore hugged his well-toned chest. Strands of his unkempt mane hung in front of his eyes as he stared at her with those gorgeous sky blue marbles.

Rarity stammered and tried to look away from Arthur’s chest, but her eyes were locked on it like an eagle to its prey. “O-oh it’s nothing Arthur!” she answered him. She was finally able to look away when saw a letter slip from the opening of her door. “Oh! For me?” She walked towards the letter and used her magic to lift it from the ground and open it. She grabbed hold of the letter inside and pulled it out whilst she unfolded it to read it. Her eyes scanned the letter and she gasped. “The Canterlot Garden Party!”

“Huh?” Arthur asked as he stood up.

“It’s only the most prestigious event in Canterlot, next to the Gala itself!” Rarity said. “I just got invited to it by Lord Jet Set and Lady Upper Crust!”

“Uh-huh, and what about that there dress you said you were working on for Twilight?” Arthur asked, pointing a thumb to the unfinished piece. “Weren’t you supposed to work on it for her birthday?”

Rarity gasped and used her magic to levitate the design sketch from atop the luggage pile. “You’re right…” She then looked back at the letter. “But if I don’t go, my reputation in Canterlot may be ruined. I might never get invited to a Canterlot Garden Party! Twilight’s Birthday? Canterlot Garden Party?” She asked as she turned her attention from the letter to the sketch.

“Rarity, maybe you should think about what actually matters right now. Is it your friend’s dress or some fancy party?” Arthur questioned.

Taking a deep breath, Rarity cheeks puffed and reddened as she closed her eyes. She hummed and shook a moment as though she turned into a kettle. Until she finally spoke. “It’s just too important!” She used her magic to summon a quill and parchment. “My dear Twilight, I’m afraid I won’t be able to make it to the party tomorrow. Because…” She paused and looked at her cat. “Because my poor Opal is ill! And she is in no condition to make the long trip back to Ponyville. I do hope you understand. Your friend, Rarity.”

Arthur frowned and shook his head as he grabbed his clothes and headed for the washroom. After he cleaned himself and got dressed, he exited the washroom to see Rarity wearing a fancy dress and an even fancier hat.

“Rarity, are ya sure this is a good idea?” Arthur asked, crossing his arms. “This garden shindig might be important to ya, but what about Twilight? It ain’t wise to lie to friends.”

“Well it’s only a white lie, Arthur… besides, I cannot let an opportunity like this fall away! It would be like Rainbow Dash missing a gathering of the Wonderbolts! Or Applejack missing a family reunion! Or even Twilight missing a book signing of her favourite author!”

“Still don’t mean it’s right,” Arthur remarked. “Lies have a way of creeping up on ya. Trust me, I should know. What ya should do is cancel on that garden thing and finish the dress for Twilight. There’ll always be another fancy party around here, missing one ain’t gonna hurt you none.”

Instead of answering Arthur, Rarity rushed towards the opposite room and slammed the door shut. Both stallions looked at each other and blinked. Just as one of them was about to utter a word, Rarity walked back into the room and wore a rather exquisite dress. “What do you think? Too much?” she asked them. When she didn’t receive an answer, she looked back at Opal who just cleaned herself. “You’re right, too little,” she said and levivated a fancy hat from her bed. “Perfect!”

“Whatever, I’m gonna go back into town,” Arthur shook his head. As soon as he opened the door, he was met with five mares that were Rarity’s friends as they smiled widely at him. “Aw hell…”

“SURPRISE!”

Rarity gasped as she froze in place at the sudden appearance of her friends. Her eyes then rolled up into her sockets as she fell flat on the floor, unconscious.

“Er, ahem, mornin’ girls, this is quite the surprise,” Arthur said after compelling himself. “What brings y’all by Canterlot?”

Pinkie Pie bounced to Rarity and neared her face to her friend’s. She saw the unicorn’s eyes begin to flutterr and she pulled away just as both eyelids we’re open. “Hi again!”

“W-what are you- How did you- Why are you-” Rarity uttered out when she stood up.

“Listen to her, she’s so excited to see us she can hardly talk,” Applejack said and turned her attention to Arthur. “I hope you weren’t bored of Canterlot and all its fancy-schmancy hoo-ha.”

“And to answer your question, Arthur, we got Rarity’s letter that she was stuck in Canterlot. So I asked Pinkie Pie if it wouldn’t be too much trouble to move my birthday party here,” Twilight explained. “So she and you wouldn’t have to miss it!”

“Ya hear that, Rarity?” Arthur smirked at the fashionista. “Ain’t your friends considerate?”

Before Rarity could reply, Rainbow cut her off. “Say, what’s with that fancy dress?” she asked her unicorn friend.

“Oh this!? I always wear this…when…Opal gets very sick, yes!”

Fluttershy’s wings expanded to lift herself into the air by a little. “Oh my! Where is the poor darling?” she asked softly.

“She’s um…she’s on the bed, yes!” Rarity rushed into the room and slammed the door shut. “I’m so sorry Opal,” she spoke to her cat who kneaded the bed but was suddenly dragged into the bathroom and thrown into a shower, where she screamed murder. When she was done, Rarity placed the very wet and very upset cat on top of it.

Just as the door opened again, Fluttershy rushed to the soaked persian. “Oh my! She looks awful!” Fluttershy hugged the cat and did not notice the feline growling at her owner.

“Ugh, Rarity? A word please?” Arthur sighed as he grabbed her and pulled her out of the room. Once they were outside, Arthur peeked inside to see Twilight examining her unfinished dress and closed the door before turning to Rarity with a stern gaze. “Ya do realize you dug yourself in a pit that’s only gonna get deeper, right?”

Rarity placed her hands on Arthur’s mouth as she looked frantly at the door. “Will you be quiet!? Don’t you think I’m aware of the situation?!” she barked out at him, but composed herself with deep breaths. “Sorry, darling…I just, I just don’t know what to do now…”

“I do, fess up,” Arthur stated, but Rarity shook her head.

“No no no no! I can’t do that!”

“Well then yer shit outta luck,” Arthur shrugged as he walked past her. “Tell Twilight I’ve got some things to take care of in town and will join y’all later.” In a state of desperation Rarity fell to her knees and grabbed Arthur’s coat as she looked up at him with pleading eyes.

Rarity started to tear up with quivered lips. “Please Arthur! You’ve got to help me! You’ve got to help a damsel in distress! Please!” She pleaded to the stallion.

“And just how am I supposed to help?” Arthur questioned.

“Erm, you-um, oh I know! You could cover for me at the Garden Party!” Rarity said.

“Do what now?”

Rarity composed herself, again, as she stood up from the ground. “It’s simple! You will be my escort for the evening,” She explained to him. “With you at the Garden Party in the beginning, you just tell them I’m running fashionably late. Meanwhile, I will be at Twilight’s party. After an hour or two, we swap places and you just say to Twilight and the others that I’m just getting some fresh air. It’s brilliant!”

“This all sounds like it’ll just blow up in the worst of ways,” Arthur shook his head. He glanced at Rarity who was giving him the biggest puppy dog eyes and her lip began to quiver again which made his eye twitch.

Damnit all, what is with the damn eyes?!

“But…I suppose I can lend a hand…”

Yes! Rarity beamed in joy and wrapped her arms around Arthur, whilst she planted her lips on his cheek. When she removed her lips, she noticed his cheeks started to brighten just as hers.”Thank you Arthur, you’re the best!”

Rarity then retreated back into the room as Arthur stood there and raised his hand to his cheek. “What…the hell just happened?”

It was later in the evening and the group were making their way to the ballroom since Twilight said that Celestia was kind enough to lend it to them for the party. Twilight opened the doors to reveal the room all decorated with party streamers, confetti, balloons and what not.

“Isn’t it fancy pants?” Pinkie asked.

“Fancy Pants?! Where?!” Rarity panicked as she hid behind Rainbow Dash, causing everyone to stare at her and Arthur facepalm.

“Oh lord, help her…” Arthur mumbled.

The mane six and Arhtur started the party and all seemed to be going smoothly. The girls were all dancing together, though he had to admit that Twilight hadn’t the faintest idea on how to properly dance to the rhythm. Just as the birthday pony was blindfolded and meant to hit a piñata, Rarity carefully sneaked to exit and winked to her stallion friend.

“Hey! Where’s Rarity?” Rainbow asked when she didn’t see her fashionista friend anywhere when they brought out the cake. “Arhtur, have you seen her?”

“She just had to use the little pony’s room, is all,” Arthur said, trying his best not to sound like was lying.

“We’ll alright, come on and join us then!” Rainbow flew at Arthur and quickly tied a blindfold around his eyes, put a stick in his hand, and pushed him forward a little.

“What am I supposed to do now that I can’t see?” Arthur wondered. His answer would be the cyan speedster grabbing him and spinning him around in circles until he was a discombobulated mess. “Wh-What in tarnation?!” Arthur wobbled and struggled to keep himself balanced.

Applejack giggled as she guided Arthur with her voice. “Over here, Sugar. Give that mule a good whack!” she encouraged the stallion as she stood a safe distance away from his swings.

Still being dizzy from spinning, Arthur wobbled to where he heard the farm mare’s voice. He struggled to keep his balance as he took his first swing, but missed.

“A little to the left, partner.”

The dizzy gunslinger obeyed as best he could and went for one more strong swing.

WA-PACK!

When the stick made impact, the contents of the piñata spilled like water from a broken dam. Arthur lifted his blindfold to see all the sweets and chocolates that landed on the floor, which were luckily wrapped still. A round of applause came from all the mares present in the room.

“Nice hit there, Sugarcube,” Applejack said as she picked up an apple-flavoured candy from the pile. “Say, anypony seen Rarity around?” She asked the others when she gazed around the room which lacked a particular white unicorn mare.

As if on cue, Arthur spotted Rarity through the window and gestured for him to meet her at the exit separating the garden and the ballroom. “I’ll go check on her, y’all wait here,” Arthur offered as he set his blindfold and stick aside. He made his way to the door, while making sure not to draw attention, and met the posh mare at the door. “So how’s the fancy shindig?”

“Oh it’s everything I could have imagined!” Rarity answered in glee, a dreamy smile present on her face. “But now, it’s your turn to go there now… and for me to make my return,” she pushed Arthur in the direction of the Garden Party. “Be a dear and cover for me, darling.” She said and winked at the stallion.

Arthur sighed and nodded as Rarity gave him a quick hug and quickly entered the ballroom. Arthur adjusted his hat and straightened his tie and made his way into the garden. The whole place was filled with nobility and ponies whose noses were high in the air as soothing music played from the orchestra. As expected, Arthur felt a little out of place being surrounded by the snobbish ponies as some eyed him curiously.

“Excuse me, sir,” a unicorn stallion spoke as he approached the gunslinger with a unicorn mare beside him. The stallion had grayish blue fur and brownish grey mane and tail and wore a green collared shirt with a white sweater tied around his neck and slacks. The mare had light yellow fur with two toned light purple mane and tail and that wore something similar to the stallion and wore a long skirt. “May I ask who you are and what you are doing here?”

“Pardon me, sir,” Arthur said in the most polite way possible as he took off his hat and offered his hand. “My name’s Arthur, Arthur Morgan, I was supposed to come to this shin-I mean, party with my friend Rarity but had to run a little late.”

“Ah yes, Miss Rarity…she’s a fine fashionista indeed,” the blue stallion replied as he grasped his hand and shook it. “My name is Jet Set,” he greeted the sheriff and gestured to the mare who accompanied him. “And this is my wife, Upper Crust,” he said with a proud smirk on his face when he looked at his wife.

Upper Crust merely blinked and smiled smoothly at Arthur. “My my, Rarity sure knows how to pick them…” she said and licked her lips for a second. “I do hope I get to see more of you later on…”

“Erm, sure?” Arthur said. The two guided him further into the party and things seemed to be going well for him. He greeted more ponies who immediately warmed up to him once they knew that he was Rarity’s friend. As Arthur was doing his best to mingle, he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see the two nobles from the other day, Fancy Pants and his wife Fleur. “Well howdy there, Mr. Fancy, and Ms. Fleur, nice to see y’all again.”

“Oh! Fancy seeing you here,” Fancy pants punned as he greeted Arthur with a handshake. “I didn’t take you as the kind to enjoy this kind of… entertain…” he trailed off with a bored sigh.

“Well to be honest, I’m here with my friend Rarity,” Arthur admitted, catching his ear.

“Do you know where Rarity is, Arthur?” Fleur asked him. “I simply love her tales of her fashion exploits and her adventures with the other Elements.”

“She’s…stepped away for a bit,” Arthur said then cleared his throat. “I’ll go look for her.” He left the humble nobles and made his way to the ballroom entrance. He peered inside to see Rarity talking with her friends until she caught sight of him and he gestured for her to come over. Rarity nodded slightly, told her friends to excuse herself, and quickly made her way over to him. “So far, so good. How’s it goin’ over here?”

Rarity smiled and nodded very fast “All good! All good! The others have no idea that I’m at two parties at once tonight.”

“Ya mean we are at two parties at once,” Arthur reminded her. “Anyway, you’re up.”

The tradeoff between Arthur and Rarity went on for the majority of the night with both parties not really catching on to their scheme. It never really sat well with Arthur to lie and fool others like this, but since it was for Rarity, he could not bring himself to leave her high and dry. After the 4th or 5th switch of the night, Arthur couldn’t keep track, the gunslinger was being led to a table by Jet Set and Fancy Pants and a couple more stallions were waiting for them.

“Tell me, Mr. Morgan, do you know the game of cards?” Jet inquired.

“Eh, I dabble,” Arthur said vaguely. “Why do you ask?”

“How’s about a gentlestallionly game then?”

“Now? But uh, I’m kinda short on cash,” Arthur admitted.

Jet Set blew a slight raspberry as he waved his hand. “Pish posh. I’ll lend you some bits and you can always pay me back…what do you say?” he asked as he wiggled his eyebrows with a slight grin on his face.

“Well…aw hell, why not?” Arthur shrugged.

“Splendid!” Jet snapped his fingers and a butler walked up and procured a sack full of bits. “Here’s your loan of two thousand bits.”

“Two thousand?! Ain’t that a bit much?” Arthur asked as they sat down.

“Of course not, if you win, you’ll just pay me right back.”

The game soon began as the dealer gave the stallions their cards. Each player put bits in the pot for the starting bet as Arthur looked at his cards. They looked like normal playing cards but were equine themed, which made Arthur chuckle internally, and he saw that he had a seven of spades and two of clubs.

“Welp, I fold,” Arthur said as he tossed his cards away. The dealer played the first three cards, a seven of clubs, ten of hearts, and a queen of clubs.

“Why, Mr. Morgan…I didn’t take you for a coward.” Jet Set commented as he smirked when he looked at his cards, with the other stallions around the table sniggering to his words except one.

“Now, now, Jet Set, there’s no need to rush,” Fancy said as he pushed all his bits in, going all in. “Mr. Morgan is just playing it safe.”

“Hmph, if you say so, Fancy,” Jet Set scoffed as he and the other stallions too pushed all their bits in. They all soon showed their hands as two of the stallions each played a King high and Fancy played a queen high. “But it seems you do not know how to follow your own advice.” Jet Set proved his point by showing his cards, which were two queens, that made everyone scowl. The dealer played the next two cards, which were a three of diamonds and four of clubs.

“Lord Jet Set wins with three queens.”

Jet Set chuckled and reached out to all the bits in the pot. “Thank you for your patronage, gentle-stallions,” he said as he eyed each of the defeated ponies before his eyes laid on Arthur. “Looks like it’s just you me now…Sheriff.”

“Guess it is,” Arthur nodded.

“Time to see if you’re really the stallion you seem to think you are,” Jet Set challenged.

“Likewise, Mr. Jet Set.” The two threw in some bits in the pot as the dealer shuffled the cards. “So how’d you figure out I was a law stallion?” The dealer gave two cards to each player as he placed a seven of diamonds, ten of clubs, and a jack of spades.

Jet Set bellowed out a laugh and pushed all his winning to the center of the table. “Oh there’s always talk during these soirée’s. All in, Mr. Morgan…let’s see if you have the mettle to play the game.”

Arthur smirked as he grabbed a handful of bits and tossed them in the pot. Both players showed their hands, Arthur had two queens and Jet Set had a jack of clubs and an ace of spades, as the dealer played the last two cards; a king of clubs and three of hearts.

“Mr. Morgan wins with a pair of queens.”

“I guess my luck held,” Arthur smiled as he pulled in his winnings. “Is that you done?”

Jet huffed and snorted with a sneer on his face. “Far from it, Mr. Morgan,” he replied and snapped his fingers. Almost immediately a butler came rushing by with another hefty sack of bits. The pompous stallion grabbed the sack and emptied the contents in it to reveal over double the bits Arthur won. “Let’s up the ante, shall we?”

By this point, most of the ponies in the party had gathered to watch as Arthur arched a brow as Jet Set stared back at him. He then saw something briefly poking out of Jet Set’s sleeve, something he’d seen over the dozens of times he played cards with those who didn’t enjoy losing.

So that’s how it is?

“As you wish.” Arthur sat back down as the dealer shuffled once more and gave the stallions their cards. Arthur glanced at his cards as Jet Set wasted no time going all in once more. Arthur responded in kind by also going all in. There was a slightly tense atmosphere in the air as they played their cards. Arthur had two kings and Jet Set had two aces.

“Ha! What did I tell you?!” Jet Set grinned in triumphant as he eyed Arthur like a predator about to devour its prey. “Too bad you lost all the money I loaned you, Sheriff…for the loans I do add in interest every day you cannot pay me back.”

Arthur was silent the whole time as the party goers murmured to themselves. He then grew an unsuspected smile as he looked up at Jet Set.

“Guess you’re the type of guy who likes to run his mouth, huh?”

Before Jet Set could question his accusation, the dealer played the five cards on the table. A nine of diamonds, a jack of diamonds, a four of spades, an ace of diamonds, and a two of diamonds. Jet Set’s face went pale as Arthur chuckled to himself.

“Mr. Morgan…wins with an ace high diamond flush.”

“You were sayin’, sir?” Arthur said in a mocking tone.

Jet’s jaw nearly dislocated from this face as it dropped. Just as Arthur began to collect the bits, the unicorn noble growled and slammed his hoofs on the table. “That’s impossible! There’s no way you could have won!”

“Now, now, there’s no need to get loud,” Arthur sighed as he continued to collect his bits and pushed them all in his satchel. He left a small pile out and presented the sack Jet gave him. “Here’s your two thousand bits you loaned me, returned as promised.” He then leaned in close enough for Jet to hear his whispering. “Word of advice: the next time you try to cheat me in a game, you best hide your extra cards harder.”

“H-how did you know?!” Jet whispered with his teeth clenched together in fear and anger.

“Heh, enjoy the rest of the night, Mr. Jet,” Arthur said with a smile, patting the dumbfounded noble on his shoulder as he left. He was met with Fancy Pants and Fleur who both gave him a small applause for his victorious game. “I take it you two enjoyed the show?”

Fancy chuckled and patted Arthur on the back. “Jolly good show, you gave us there, I thought he would have a heart attack with that hand you had.”

Suddenly, the sound of a cannon going off echoed throughout the area as confetti and streamers were sent flying everywhere. Arthur whipped his head around to see Twilight and her friends running around and making a mess of everything. Rainbow grabbed a croquet mallet and swung it as hard as she could against the ball, Fluttershy was up in a tree and signing with the little birds, Pinkie Pie stuffed her face with hors d’oeuvres, Applejack was in the middle of a mud puddle and kicking it around, and Twilight was thrashing her body around with her bad dancing but didn’t seem to care. Arthur noticed Rarity downing a large glass of wine and went to fill it up again as he made his way over to her.

“So I guess the party’s goin’ well, huh?” Arthur tried to crack a joke.

Rarity’s eye twitched after she downed her wine glass. “Arthur! You must do something about them. They’re ruining the evening!”

“I think it’s a tad out of my hands at this point,” Arthur shook his head.

“Excuse me,” Fancy said to Twilight. “Might I ask where you got your ensemble?”

“Why yes! Yes you may, a very, very close friend of mine from Ponyville made it for me,” Twilight said proudly, causing Rarity to panic more and quickly walk over to them.

“Ponyville? You don’t say?” Fancy said, arching a brow.

“I do say! Her name is-”

“Fancy Pants!” Rarity cut in. “Come with me! I need to show you this…er, thing!”

“In a moment, my dear, this lovely filly from Ponyville was just about to tell me who made her charming dress.”

“That dress? Oh come now, who cares? It’s just a plain old-!”

“Oh don’t be so modest, this dress you made is beautiful!” Twilight said, making everyone gasp. “We all think so!” The rest of her friends gathered around Twilight.

“You know these ponies?” Fancy asked Rarity. She looked to the gunslinger for guidance who only shook his head.

“Best fess up, Rarity, it’s the right thing to do,” Arthur advised.

Rarity bit her lip until she relented and gazed at the crowd with a stern gaze. “Yes, yes I do know them. They may not be as sophisticated as some of you Canterlot ponies, but they are my best friends. And they are without a doubt the most important ponies I know!” The mares smiled at her admirably until there was a pompous laugh from the crowd.

“Important ponies? These ruffians?” Jet Set mocked.

“Don’t make me laugh,” Upper Crust chimed in. “And we thought that you had class, guess we were oh so very wrong.”

Arthur huffed in irritation as he marched over to the stuck up nobles and glared at them. “Now see here, ya uptight edgett’s! That mare’s got more class than either of you or anyone here combined! She’s also got more humility in her heart which makes her who she is. She don’t need some fancy shmancy title to make her worth any more than she already is. Rarity is arguably the most respectable woman I’ve come to know during my time here, and I’m proud to also call her my friend. And as her friend, I always make it an obligation of mine to make sure no one bad mouths her when she don’t deserve it. So unless you got anything else to say that ain’t the least bit negative, I’d suggest ya shut yer goddamn traps!”

Rarity’s fears melted away with each word Arthur spoke about her. Replaced was a flutter in her chest and her cheeks burned with a fierce intensity. Her eyes focused on the sheriff and she had the impulse to just run towards him and plant her lips against his. Her hooves refused to move though, as though her brain took control of them. Move, you stupid hooves! No, I mustn’t! But I really want to! I can’t! What is happening to me?!

“Well said, Mr. Morgan, and I for one find them charmingly rustic!” Fancy proclaimed, surprising them all once more. “And I think the dress you made for your friend is lovely. I dare say, every mare in Canterlot will be wanting one.”

“O-Oh! I’d like to place my order right now!” Upper Crust tried to save face.

“I think you should get two!” Jet said, but Rarity slid past them and stood by Fancy.

“Yes…well, how about you introduce me to your friends?” Fancy said.

“With pleasure!” Rarity said as Arthur walked up beside her.

“Guess things turned out better than expected, huh?” Arthur smirked, causing Rarity to blush again and turn away from the gunslinger.

Rarity fidgeted her hands together. “Yes, it sure has…” She replied and looked around for anyone that may have eyes on them. As Fancy and the girls were distracted and the coast was clear, she quickly leaned up and planted a kiss on Arthur’s cheek. “Thank you for tonight, darling.”

“Uh…it was my pleasure,” Arthur said, being caught off guard. The rest of the night was spent with happy smiles and a successful birthday party for Twilight. As for Arthur, he made sure to himself that it would be a night that he’d remember for a good long while.

Later That Night

Two beefy stallions were making their way through the halls of Cider Mac’s mansion. In between them was Jet Set as he dabbed his forehead with a handkerchief repeatedly from the sweat that made his fur quite sticky. They soon arrived at the double doors leading to Cider’s office and one of the stallions knocked on the door.

“Enter,” a voice ordered, making Jet gulp. They opened the doors to see Cider and he was doing some kind of exercise. He wore a tank top and athletic pants as he glanced at Jet.

“M-Mr. Cider Mac,” Jet mumbled. “G-Good evening…”

Cider meanwhile punched and kicked a life-size straw doll that was suspended with a noose around its waist. With one final punch, he punctured the doll’s chest. The stallion removed his fist from it and walked to the other end of the ring where a towel and water bottle was presented to him by his assistant.

“There’s something missing,” Cider said vaguely.

“M-Missing?”

“Yes, you seem to be missing something.” Cider said again. Jet looked down at himself, confused as Cider did some cool down stretches. “You don’t seem to be holding a bag of bits, why is that?”

Before Jet could reply, Cider’s assistant beat him to it. “He lost all of his bits in a game of cards against the Sheriff of Ponyville. He also had the gall to try and con the same stallion with a loan and interest of over two thousand bits,” Duke Venture replied as he stared blankly at the shocked unicorn. “Ironically, the same amount he owes you, Mr. Mac.”

“Thank you, Duke,” Cider Mac responded with a friendly smile and walked towards Jet Set as he continued to smile. He looked to his left and then with a fast hook, delivered a hayweather to the unicorn’s head. “You have a lot of nerve to try and weasel other ponies of their hard earned bits,” he lectured the whimpering unicorn on the floor. “That two thousand bits that I loaned you, you told me it was for the hospital donations…something I personally invest in.”

“I-I’m sorry, Mr. Mac,” Jet uttered out loud, but he was then forced upright by Duke Venture who dragged him to the ring. The scared noble was confused for a moment until he felt a noose tighten around his waist. “N-no no! Please don’t kill me!” he pleaded to the assistant who instead gagged his mouth shut with duct-tape.

Cider merely shook his head as he sighed. “I’m not going to kill you Jet, far from it, my boy…” he caressed the cheek of the gagged unicorn and ignored the tear drops that landed on his hand. “I loaned you two thousand bits, and with interest as of today, that makes it about four thousand.”

Jet wanted to speak but only a muffle was heard from the captive.

“Did you know that healing a broken leg or arm costs about one thousand bits each, without health insurance?” Cider Mac told Jet as he circled Jet like a shark that surrounded its prey. “Luckily you have two legs and two arms, that makes it even for your debt.”

Duke Venture snapped his fingers and the two beefy stallions marched up towards the ring and held both Jet’s arms straight with some resistance from the scared noble.

“Now, this will be a lesson from me that I learned from my mammy,” Cider spoke to Jet as he gently cupped his cheeks with his hand. “Do not borrow bits that you cannot give back,” he finished. “This is for your own good, Jet. I swear…and I also swear, if you tell anypony of my tutelage, your wife will be my next student.” Cider finished his threat with an extremely unpleasant passive aggressive smile. He then clenched his hand into a fist, and delivered a bone shattering punch to the poor unicorn’s arm.

CRACK!

Jet let out a muffled scream when he felt the immense pain that emanated from it. He had little time to focus on it as another arm of his was broken thanks to Cider’s fist. His eyes streamed with tears as his throat turned hoarse thanks to the screams that were muted by the gag. Then his legs were crushed by the earth pony’s hoof. He couldn’t register anything but pain anymore. That was until he blacked out, courtesy to Cider’s fist that collided with his face.

“Get him out of here, dump him at Canterlot Private Medical,” he instructed the two brutes who nodded and dragged Jet Set away. “You have just made life a little more interesting for me and others…Arthur Morgan,” he said and walked off to the main hall with Duke behind him. “The hospital funds being embezzled, does our dear sheriff know about that?”

Duke shook his head in response. “Not to my knowledge, Sir.”

“Good, well then I guess it’s time he finds out.”

Author's Note

Things are brewing within the shadows as the antagonist begins to make his move.

Side Note: Just a reminder, I’m back and still alive! And here’s a special treat for you all! Ta da! I give you Sheriff Arthur Morgan!

Courtesy of the very talented Neko-me!
Also, another huge shoutout to TheMyth for co-writing this awesome story with me!

Hope you enjoyed!

~WurkyWilk has left the building…