Riki and Liz's Grand Adventure!

You and I!

“Three days!” I shouted, “Wait, Liz, Twilight, Pinkie, Applejack, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Rarity!” I throw off the covers and rip out the IV. The moment I touch the ground, pain shoots throughout my body. “Awww, fuck!”

Celestia gently me back to bed, “Riki, you are in no condition to move… When the girls arrived back, you were at death’s door.”

I looked at my body and noticed new clothes. A plain white t-shirt and black gym shorts, no hoodie in sight. My arms and legs are covered in bandages. Pulling up my shirt to see more bandages. I see some dry blood on the left side of my stomach. It’s the wound that Taboo gave me. Touching my side, I’m surprised to feel stitches. I carefully run my fingers over the stitches as I count them. 15…16…17… 23 stitches! Damn, that’s going to leave a scar. Running my hand through my hair, “Celeste, how are the girls?”

Celestia used her magic to pull up a chair, “They are doing well. Only a few bumps and bruises, that's all.”

“What about Liz?” I asked.

“She’s okay too,” Celestia said with a smile, “Liz woke up the moment she arrived here. Her only injury was a sprained wrist.”

I let out a sigh of relief, “That’s good. I was so worried about them. Where are they now?”

“Home, they have been watching over you in shifts for the past two days, waiting for you to wake up. I told them to go back to Ponyville.” Celestia says to me.

“Okay, why are you here?” I asked.

“After Fluttershy and a nurse gave you a sponge bath and new benches. I told them I’ll watch over you tonight.

“Fluttershy and a nurse saw my dick,” I muttered, shoving my face into my hands. But that doesn’t matter. Liz and the others are doing well. I still have something on my mind, “…Celeste, you said I was at death’s door. How bad are my injuries? Not including the one Taboo gave me.”

Celestia took a deep breath and said, “…Both your arms and legs were shattered. You have broken seven ribs, a shoulder, and a hip. Some torn muscles, concussion, and internal bleeding.”

My jaw just dropped, “Holy shit!”

“Luna and I use our magic to heal you, but your magic resistance limited how much we could heal. So, the doctors handle the rest.” Celestia then looks away from me.

“Is everything okay?”

“The doctor said you lost your…sheath.”

There is a moment of silence before I say, “Sheath? How can I lose my sheath if I never had one?” Is she talking about my tonfas?

“You don’t have a sheath?”

“I don’t. I just let it hang.” I said casually, “But sometimes I have to play with it a bit to keep both in place.”

“You have two!?” Celestia shouted as her cheeks started to turn red.

“Umm, yeah, I have two.”

“Well… I will make sure the doctor knows about all of this.”

I don’t know why, but I think we’re talking about two different things. “Celeste, what about Taboo?

“A lot happened when you were asleep,” said Celestia, “When the doctors finally got you in stable condition, Luna and I personally delivered Taboo’s jar to Tartarus.”

“Tartarus, the weird dungeon prison place?”

“Oh, know about it?”

“Yeah, but it’s all a story back on earth.” I scratched my head, “Did you find any information about Taboo?”

“No. But, the past three days, hundreds of ponies had come to Day and Night Court about the big beam of light.”

“Beam of… Wait, you saw that!?”

“Everypony in Canterlot saw it. Even ponies from Ponyville saw the light.” Celestia drops her on the bed, “Luna and I had to tell them something. We couldn’t keep avoiding the questions. And to make it worse, the journalists somehow found out you and Liz were involved.”

That is bad. I hope they don’t blame us for something terrible. “So, what did you tell them?”

“What they need to know,” Celestia said, starting up.

She makes a newspaper appear on my lap called Equestria Times. I read the headline out loud, “The Elements of Harmony triumphantly stops vicious monster with help from the humans.” As I read the article, I don’t see any mention of Taboo, La-la, or Wrath. But the ponies don’t really know about them. “Equestria knows about Liz and me. Is that good?”

“Don’t worry, I use this opportunity to put you and Liz in the good light.”

“Smart, anything else?”

“Yes, it’s about La-la and Wrath,” Celestia said, getting my full attention. “They escaped, but I have wanted posters going throughout Equestria as we speak.”

“That’s good,” I said, placing the newspaper on the nightstand.

“Riki, do you remember what happened when you and Liz were resealing Taboo?” asked Celestia

“It’s a little fuzzy. The only thing I remember is when the jar starts to absorb the Harmony blast thing.” I said, scratching my head. “Need to know something?” I should tell her about the voice, but I want to keep this to myself.

Celestia says it’s okay, and we continue talking for about an hour or so. We stop when I let out a yawn.

“Well, looks like it’s time for me to go,” said Celestia, “Need anything else before I leave?”

“A goodnight kiss will be nice,” I joked.

“Really?” Celestia said, getting close to my face.

I frantically shake my head, “Wait, Celeste! It was a joke. I'm all good!”

She looks at me with a smile and says, “Luna was right. You do have cute freckles.”

Quickly touching my cheeks, I can feel them heating up. “Wait, Luna told you!?” Celestia nods as she backs up, “Once I get out of this bed, I’m going to kick her ass.”

Celestia chuckles, “I never seen freckles appearing on somepony’s face when flustered.”

“Yeah, I know, weird.” I huffed, “My mom has freckles, but I don’t know why my freckles act like this.”

Celestia walks to the door, “Good night, Riki. I’ll let Twilight know you woke up first thing in the morning.”

“Thanks,”

And like that, Celestia was gone. I’m now alone in a room with only the moonlight shining through the window. All of this made me realize how much I hate bed rest. Pulling the covers over my head, I sink into the bed, “Tomorrow’s going to be a long day.”

The next day in Ponyville, sunlight shines through the Sugarcube Corner’s window. Pinkie finishes serving a pony at the counter, saying, “Thank you, and come again!”

“Pinkie,”

“Yes, Mr. Cake?”

“Your friend doesn’t look too good,” he said, gesturing to Liz sitting in a booth.

“I thought bringing her here would make her feel better.” Pinkie skips to Liz. She watches Liz lazily playing with her slice of pie, “Lizzy, you have to eat,” Pinkie said worriedly.

“…Not hungry…” Liz said dryly, pushing the plate away.

“Twilight told me you didn't eat last night,” Liz looks out the window and watches the ponies go through the morning routines. She likes to watch people back on Earth whenever she has free time. Now with ponies, it’s a bit better. But watching ponies is not making her feel better. All Liz can think of is Riki.

“Lizzy, come here,” Pinkie said soothingly as she sat beside her. Pinkie pulls Liz into a hug, “I know you are worried about Riki. We are all worried about him too.”

“I know, all you girls are worried,” Liz mumbles, getting out of Pinkie’s hug. She plays with a napkin, “Pinkie, do you think I’m a good sister?”

“Yes, why would you say that?”

“It's because I didn’t go with Riki when you went out to help you guys.”

“But you did come, and you saved Riki too!” Pinkie exclaimed, “You were amazing!”

“But when I got there, he was already fucked up. If I went with Riki in the first place-”

“Lizzy, don’t blame yourself, but if you really think that, just ask Riki yourself. And if you want to do that,” Pinkie pulls the plate to Liz, “You need to eat, what would Riki say?"

“You better eat. If not, I’m going to eat it for you.” Liz said, trying to mimic her brother’s voice.

They both laughed, “Hahaha, that was pretty good.”

“Thanks,” Liz smiled as she started to eat. "Do you have siblings?”

Pinkie playfully taps her hooves, “I have three amazing sisters! You and Riki should meet them!”

Before Liz can ask for their names, she sees Spike running towards Sugarcube. He threw open the door, “Liz, Pinkie!”

“What's wrong, Spike?” Liz asked in between bites.

Spike catches his breath, “…Riki woke up!”

Back at the castle, a blue and yellow nurse mares, Berry and Nana. The two bandage and apply medicine to Riki’s bruised body.

“Mr. Phillips, please stop moving around,” Berry said.

“And can you take off your gym shorts?” Nana added, “We need to apply medicine to your lower body.”

“Umm, I can do that myself,” Riki said, putting his shirt back on.

“Okay, we’ll just finish wrapping your legs then.”

“Do you know how long I will be like this?” Riki asked as he stretched. “I don’t want my muscles to get stiff or anything.”

Berry finishes wrapping Riki’s right leg, “We all thought it would be longer, but a week for your body to be in okay condition, that includes your stitches.”

"The human body is pretty weird?" Nana said under her breath

“That’s great!” Riki said joyfully as Nana finished his other leg. There is a knock at the door, “Come in!” The door opens to reveal Feather, Specs, and Bebop.

“Riki!” Feather exclaimed, dropping her saddle bag and running to him. She was about to hug Riki, but Berry stopped her.

“I don’t want you to accidentally open his stitches,” Berry warned her. She looks at Riki and then says, “We'll be leaving now. Make sure you don’t move around a lot.”

“We’ll check up on you in a few hours,” Nana added as she closed the door behind them.

“How are you feeling?” asked Feather,

“All good in the hood, but I could be better. I feel a little pain when I move, but I got used to it.” Riki smiled, “I should ask how are you two?”

“We’re doing good,” Specs answered, pushing up his glasses.

Riki looks toward Bebop to see she has a tired and angry face, “Bebop, you good?”

She lets out a small yawn, “I’m just a bit tired,” Bebop tiredly walks up to Riki, “And I’m mad at you, Feather and Specs.”

“Mad?”

Bebop throws her hooves in the air, “You three left me out!”

“You're mad that you weren’t there.” Specs deadpan, “I should have expected that.”

“I know it’s stupid, but if I was there….” Bebop paws the floor, “Maybe things will play out differently?”

Riki pokes Bebop’s head to get her attention, “Oi, you better not be blaming yourself!?”

“I’m not, but-” Another poke to the head, cutting Bebop off.

"Next time I go on a mini adventure, I’ll bring you.”

“You promised!?”

“Yeah,”

Bebop does a little dance, and Feather begins to laugh. Feather soon stops laughing when she remembers something. She goes towards her saddlebag and pulls out a rectangular box. “Riki, this is for you,” Feather says as he takes the box. “You know my mom loves to make things out of crystal. She made you this.”

Riki opens up the box, “Wow!” He pulls out a figure crystal of himself. The crystal Riki is wearing a hoodie and pants. But something stands out, “…Do I have pony ears?”

Feather rubs the back of her head, “Mom forgot how your ears looked.”

“It’s fine, but why did she make me this?”

“It’s a thank you gift for helping save Equestria and saving me during the hotel fight.”

“You told her about the hotel fight?”

“I didn’t give her all the details,”

“Anyways, have you seen the paper?” asked Specs, “The Taboo incident is on the front page.”

Riki places the crystal statue on the nightstand, “Yeah, I read some of it last night. What about it?” He then grabs the newspaper from the nightstand and hands it to Specs.

“The two mystery creatures, now known as humans, had helped Elements of Harmony with a sinister evil.” Specs read from the paper. He adjusted his glasses, then continued, “We tried asking the Princesses who or what was that unknown evil, and they refuse to answer. Princess Celestia only told us that without the help of Ricochet and Elizabeth Phillips, that monster would still be roaming.” Specs places the newspaper back on their nightstand, “Now everypony knows what you are and thinks you and your sister are heroes. That's a lot better than thinking of you to as-”

“A hornless minotaur?” Feather said, cutting Specs off.

“Hairless diamond dogs?” Bebop added.

“Aliens,” Riki said, just to be involved.

Specs sighed, “I was going to say ‘A monster,' but all that can work too.”

“I really don’t care if they think I’m a hero,” Riki says as he shrugs his shoulders. “I just did what’s right.”

“What do you mean!?” Bebop shouts as she jumps on Riki's bed, “You’re the big talk here.”

“Bop, Riki was already the talk here for the wrong reason.” Specs cut in.

“I know that, but all the guards know about the fight. Rainbow Dash and Applejack told us!”

“The way they told the story made me wish I was there!” Bebop exclaimed, “Rainbow Dash said you knocked Taboo's head off!”

Riki let out a small chuckle, “Trust me, you probably don’t want to be there.” He then rubs the back of his head, “Is there anything I need to know about?”

Feather taps her chin, “All the guards are on high alert? Not just in Canterlot, but all over Equestria.”

“Because of Wrath and La-la, right?”

“Yeah,”

“What about Shiny?” Before anyone can answer Riki, they hear a knock on the door, “Come in!”

The door opens, and Shining walks, “Oh, you have company.”

“Captain!” the three ponies said in unison.

“Oi, Shiny!” Riki smiled, “Good time, we were about to talk about you.”

Shining chuckles a little, “I hope it’s not bad.”

“It’s not. I just want to know how you are holding up?”

“If I don’t count having Wrath and La-la escaping, I’m doing fine.” Shining sighs, “Anyways, how’s my best human guard
doing.”

“Still alive,” Riki chuckled, but he stopped. He gets a serious look, “…Oi Shining, I want to apologize.”

“For what?”

“For not being able to finish my duty here.” Riki mumbled with his head down in shame, “Remember my community service.”

“Your community service is done?” Shining confusedly, “Did the Princesses tell you?”

“…What?”

“I take that as a no,” Shining then pulls out a letter and hands it to Riki. “Here is your proof of completing your service. Let's just say you helping with Taboo counted for your service.”

“That’s awesome!”

“But if you want to stay and become a guard….”

“No thanks. The whole being a guard was fun, but it’s not for me. Too many rules and regulations to follow.” Riki said casually, “You can give me a call if you need help with something.”

“Awww, I thought you would say yes,” Bebop said with a frown.

“I suspected that,” Specs said, pushing up his glasses.

“That’s a shame, I had fun going on patrol with you,” Feather added.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to come back and visit.”

“You better!” Bebop exclaimed.

There was a knock on the door, “Who’s that?” Feather said, walking to the door. When Feather opened it, she was pushed out of the way by Razzle Snap.

“Good, you're awake!” She said, rushing toward Riki.

“You!” Feather said angrily.

“Who?” Specs and Bebop said in unison.

“Pony Lady?”

“…Really,” Razzle deadpan,

Riki chuckles, “Sorry, I’m just fuckin’ with you, Razzle.”

Bebop looks at Feather, “Who is that?”

Feather huffed, “That’s the journalist I told you about a few days ago.”

“Journalist Razzle Snap good to see you…again,” Shining said with a fake smile, “But, I thought I took you, we will contact you… Wait, how did you get in here!?”

Razzle giggles, “Look, Captain Shining Armor, I would love to have this conversation about how I got in here. But I have to conduct an interview with the hero of Equestria.”

Shining was about to say something but was stopped by Riki, “It’s fine, Shiny. I did promise her an interview.”

Shining sighed, “Alright, just make sure you don’t say anything… Well, know.” He then walks to the door, “I got some paperwork to finish. I’ll see you later.”

“Yeah, I think we should go too,” Feather said as she, Bebop, and Specs followed Shining out of the room.

“See you soon, Riki!” Bebop shouted.

“Don’t push yourself,” said Specs.

Riki waved them off, “Bye, guys, and Feathers, tell your mom I said thanks.”

The door shut, just leaving Riki and Razzle. She sits in the nearby chair and takes out a pencil, notepad, and tape recorder from her saddle bag. Razzle starts the tape recorder and places it on the nightstand. She used her magic to write on the pad, “Hello, my name is Razzle Snap, a journalist for Equestria Times. Today is August 18th. I’m conducting an interview. Can you please state your full name and age?”

Riki was taken aback by how serious she sounded. He clears his throat, “My name is Ricochet Gregory Phillips, and I’m 23.”

“Mr. Phillips-”

“Just call me Riki,” he interrupted.

“Sorry. Riki, can you tell me what the monster that attacked Equestria was?” asked Razzle, “Was it a demon or something else was.”

“Already asking me the big question, haha!”

“Please focus on the question,” Razzle said with a straight face.

“…I’ll answer to the best of my ability.”

“Did you fight the monster, or was it just the Elements?”

“Well, I wasn't there when the girls and monster started to fight, but I saved Pinkie from being killed when I got there. After that, I one v one him while the Elements rest up for a bit.”

“Wow, you’re very strong!” Razzle smiled, “Also coming at the last minute to save Pinkie, just like a superhero.”

“You don’t have to call me that,”

“So, you single handily defeated the monster?” Razzle asked.

“No, I had help from my sister and the girls. We all worked together to seal him.”

“So, that bright light that shut up into the air three days ago was the result of the monster being beaten?”

“Yes,”

“Can you tell me why you decided to fight the monster instead of letting the Elements of Harmony deal with it?” asked Razzle, “Were you promised something in exchange or…?”

“They didn't promise me anything. I did because I want to.” Riki said, crossing his arms. “So, how long will this interview
last?”

Razzle doesn’t answer, she just writes down a few things and says, “Does the monster's appearance have something to do with you and your sister?”

“No comment.”

“Does this monster have any affiliation with Discord?”

“No, but if they ever met. I think Taboo might or will try to kill Discord.”

“Taboo, is that the monster’s name?”

Riki's eyes widened, “Fuck, I didn’t mean to tell you his name. Celestia doesn’t want Taboo’s name in the paper, so can you please redact that.”

“Sure, I’ll do that.” Razzle said, crossing Taboo off her notepad, “What is this, Taboo? Was he a human?

“He was not human!” Riki shouted, making Razzle jump. “Sorry, I did mean to yell. It’s just….” Riki reached over and grabbed the tape recorder. He stops the recording, “Off the record, We don’t know anything about Taboo. Celestia, Luna, and even Twilight have nothing on him. I asked Celestia for any information about Taboo, and she got nothing.”

“That’s scary,” Razzle muttered as she sank into the chair, “Something even the Princesses don’t know about.”

“Yeah, but you don’t have to worry. Remember Taboo is sealed up and in Tartarus.” Riki told Razzle, hoping to cheer
her up. He starts the tape recorder again and clears his throat, “I think that’s enough about the monster, any other questions?”

Without skipping a beat, Razzle asks, “You were seen working with the guards. Can I ask why?”

“It was my community service,”

“Community service, can you please explain?”

“Will, I sort of got in trouble for getting in a fight with a couple of guards and Shining.”

Razzle's eyes widened, “Why did you do that?”

“There was an incident and a misunderstanding, but I can’t elaborate any further.”

“I hope that incident doesn’t affect your view about Equestria?”

“No, I really like this place.” Riki said joyfully, “A lot different from back home. Still not used to the whole clothes thing.”

Razzle looks at herself, then back at Riki, “Do I make you uncomfortable?”

“No, not at all! It’s a bit off, but I am getting used to it.” Riki said frantically.

Razzle looks confused, “Do all humans always wear clothes?”

“Yeah, we wear clothes to protect us from the elements. We’re not hairy like you guys.” Riki explained, “And that we’re all naked under the clothes.”

“Oh, I did know that.” Razzle looks up and down Riki’s body. She starts to shift around and think about what Riki just said. Razzle's face begins to heat up as her mind starts to wild, “Hehehe….”

Riki taps Razzle’s head, “Oi, you’re okay?”

“Y-yeah, yeah, I’m okay!” Razzle stuttered, “…Riki can I see your injuries…like under your shirt?”

He gives Razzle a questionable look, then shrugs, “Sure, I don’t see why not.” Riki pulls up his shirt showing his bandaged stomach.

Razzle leads forward and places her hoof on Riki’s abs, "Just like in the magazines."

“Umm, what are you doing?”

She quickly pulls back with a blush, “Nothing! Can you tell me about Earth and how you got here?”

Riki pulls down his shirt, “Okay… Well, it all started a while back.”

“Come guys, hurry!” I said, running ahead of them with Louie in my arms.

“Liz, slow down,” Applejack said, “Riki ain't going anywhere.”

“Yeah, Applejack is right,” Spike said, trying to keep up with a gift box Rarity asked him to hold. “You have been rushing us to get here since you found out Riki woke up.

Stopping so the rest of them can catch up. I place down Louie, “Sorry, I just got excited. Knowing that he’s okay really makes me feel a lot better.”

Rarity walks beside me, “You don’t need to apologize, Darling. We’re just happy that you’re not down anymore.”

“Now that you’re super duper happy, no more gloomy, Lizzy!” Pinkie exclaimed, jumping in front of me.

“I still can’t believe Riki was able to wake up so fast,” Fluttershy said concerningly, “When I was helping a nurse bath him-”

“That’s something I really didn’t need to hear,” I muttered, rubbing my temples.

“The nurse said he’ll be out for weeks with injuries like these.”

“Weeks, yeah right.” Rainbow Dash scuffed, “You saw the big guy. I know he’ll be up in a few days.”

“Really? I remember you worrying your flank off about him.” Applejack chimed in.

Rainbow’s face turns red, “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

We all laughed as Rainbow used one of her wings to cover her face. I stop to look at Twilight to see she’s in deep thought. But now that I mentioned it, Twilight has been like that for the last three days. As the others tease Rainbow Dash, I walk next to Twilight. She didn’t notice me until I gave her a little bump.

“Oh, didn’t notice you there,” Twilight said sheepishly.

“It’s fine, but Twilight, are you okay?” I asked, “You have been quiet since we got here. Is something on your mind? Is it about Riki?”

“Liz, do you remember what happened at the end of the Taboo fight when you and Riki were sealing Taboo away?”

I start to think back to it, but even thing is so fussy. There was a voice, but I can’t remember what it said. “No, not really. Did something happen?”

“Well, I saw something, and I’m trying to make sense of it.”

“Did you tell anyone, or should I say anypony?”

Twilight sighed, “I asked the girls if they saw it, but they didn’t.”

“What about the princesses?”

“I was going to tell them once we arrived here after the Taboo fight, but it slipped my mind.”

“Understandable, Riki was in bad condition when we came in.” I said, “How about this, you can go tell the princesses what you saw, and the rest of us will go see Riki.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,”

Twilight nodded and went off to find the princesses. I return to the group, and Spike asks, “Where’s Twilight going?”

“She’s going to see the Princesses,” I said, picking up Louie. I look at the gift box Spike is carrying, then at Rarity, “What’s in the box, Rarity?”

“It’s a special surprise for you, brother,” she smiled. “And he’s going to love it!”

“Alright, let’s go see that big idiot .”

As we continue to head to Riki’s room. A red unicorn walks past us, mumbling something. She has a tape recorder up to her ear. The pony is to focus on what she is listening to notice us. The weird thing is that she looks familiar.

“Liz, you’re lagging behind,” Applejack said down the hall.

“Coming!” I yelled, running towards them.

A few minutes later, we finally arrived at Riki’s room. Standing in front of the door, I don’t know why I feel so nervous. I took a deep breath and opened the door, “Riki, we’re…here?” We all walk into the room to see it’s empty.

“Where is he?” Fluttershy worried, “He shouldn’t be moving around.”

“What if he went back to Ponyville?” Pinkie wondered.

“No, we would have seen him heading to the train,” Applejack said.

“He’s not in the bathroom,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Let’s go see-”

“Oi, guy!” We all turn around to see a smiling Riki pushing a cart full of food. Going past us and sitting on the bed, he begins to eat. “Nice to see you,” Riki said casually, shoving bread and cheese in his mouth. “I just came from the kitchen. DI didn’t want to bother anyone, so I just took some food from the fridge and stuff.” Riki bites into a green bell pepper, “I also ate one of Luna’s pudding cups, so don’t tell her.”

There was a moment of silence before I watched everyone jumping onto Riki and hugging him,

“Riki!” They all yelled.

“Oi, don’t squeeze me so hard! My body is still sore!” he yells in pain, but they don’t listen. Riki let out a sigh as he embraced them. “Where’s Twilight?”

“She went to talk to the Princesses,” Spike said, letting go of him.

“I hope it’s for a good reason,” Riki said, “Liz, you look like shit. Have you been eating?”

I begin to cry as I hug the crap out of him, “Riki… I miss you!” Pushing my face deep into his chest, I let out all the emotions I had bottled up the past three days.

“Oi, you’re getting snot on my shirt!”

“You fuckin’ asshole, you could have died!” I cried, “Did you ever care to think how I would feel if you died!?”

“I sort of wasn’t thinking about that,” Riki said sheepishly, “Too busy thinking about protecting you guys. And Liz, you of all people think I will die to an asshole like Taboo, that’s quite hurtful.”

“Quit joking around, Riki!” I yelled, punching him in the shoulder.

“Hahaha, sorry, Liz!” Riki laughed, pulling me into a hug. “Always, how are you guys?”

“A lot better now that you're awake!” Pinkie exclaimed.

“That's good, that’s good to hear,” Riki smiled as he let go of me. He then picks up Louie and starts to pet him. “Spike, what’s in the box?”

“I don’t know?” he answered, “Rarity told me to hold it.”

“It’s a gift for up,” Rarity chimed in, “Go on and open it, Darling. You’re going to love it!”

Riki takes and opens the box, his eyes widening. “My hoodie!?” Riki gasps. “I thought it was gone?”

“No, it wasn’t, but it was in bad shape.” said Rarity, “It was torn and had blood stains. After a little cleaning, it was as good as new!”

“You’re the best!” Riki beamed, “I'm glad you saved my hoodie. I just feel naked without it, thanks Rare-bear!”

“Darling, stop. You’re making me blush.”

After Riki puts on his hoodie, Pinkie jumps on his back and asks, “Riki, since you’re all better now-”

“I won’t say all, but go on,”

“How about we throw you a party!” Pinkie exclaimed, “Wait, we can have two parties in one. To celebrate the defeat of that meanie Taboo and your recovery!”

“That sounds great, but I think I’m not in the partying condition,” Riki said, giving Pinkie a pat on the head. “How about when I’m at 100%, then we can have a huge party.”

“Okie dokie loki!” Pinkie said, sitting down next to him.

“Speaking of condition, how are you feeling?” Rainbow Dash asked,

“A bit stiff, and it hurt a bit when I move.” Riki said casually, “They said my stitches will be healed in a week or two.” Riki shows us his bandages on his stomach, “Taboo really did a number on me. I could have done better.”

“Better?” Spike said, “They said you were fighting Taboo evenly all by yourself. I wish I was there to see it!”

Riki crosses his arms, “To tell you the truth, if the fight between us were to continue… I would have lost.”

“Don’t say that,” Spike said, shanking Riki’s leg.

“Yeah, you were amazing fighting him!” Rainbow Dash added. “It was sooo cool when you dodged all those tentacles and knocked Taboo’s head off!”

“Don’t forget when you came out of nowhere and saved Pinkie,” Applejack said.

“My hero,” Pinkie said lovingly, nuzzling Riki’s arm.

But he doesn’t seem to notice since he looks lost in thought. Fluttershy sees this and taps his leg, “Riki?”

“Hmm?”

“You okay?”

“Just thinking about something, nothing important,” Riki said, trying to play it off.

I was going to say something, but the knock on the door got our attention. A few seconds later, Twilight, Celestia, and Luna walk inside.

“Riki!” Twilight exclaimed as she hugged him. He takes it, too sore to stop her if he wants to. “I was so worried about you. I didn’t know when you would wake up!”

“Good to see you, Riki.” Luna yawned.

“You’re doing much better than the last time I saw you.” Celestia smiled.

“So, why are you two here?”

“We came here to thank you and Liz for helping save Equestria,” Celestia answered.

“It was no problem,”

“Yeah, what he said.” I said, “But, you should just thank Riki. He did more than me, I was support.”

“Bullshit!” Riki yelled, “If you and the girls didn’t help me fight Taboo, I would be dead.” He rubs the back of his head, “So, thank you for saving my ass.”

“You really don’t need to thank us, right girls?” Twilight said, and the girl agreed. Celestia coughs slightly to get our attention, “Riki and Liz, for helping the Elements of Harmony beat Taboo, my sister and I would like to reward you.”

“Is there anything you two want?” asked Luna.

“I don’t think so…” Riki mumbled, “Liz, anything we need?”

What do we need? I thought about this for a while, then I got it. “Riki, I have an idea!”

“lay it on me,”

“That’s it! Keep it coming, keep it coming!” Riki shouted at Luna.

The two are on the outskirts of Ponyville, about a 15 minute walk to town. Riki is currently guiding Luna as she levitates his house in the air.

“You don’t have to guide me, I have eyes!” Luna yelled.

“I wouldn’t be doing it if you didn’t hit those trees back in Everfree!” he yelled back. “A little to the right… That’s it, stop!

"Now drop it-”

Luna drops the house.

“Gently… I was going to say gently.” Riki muttered. Riki looks at the house and then at Ponyville, “You think this is a good distance?”

“I believe so,” Luna answered, “But why so far? If it’s about the ponies there not liking you and Liz, I can go down-“

“It’s not that,” Riki interrupted, “I really don’t care if it was. I want my house here because of the space.”

“The space?”

“Back in New York, it was very crowded.” Riki explained, “And now it’s all the space. I can pretty much do anything I want. Plus, the location here is amazing.”

“If this New York you lived in was so crowded, why did you stay?” Luna wondered.

“I have my reasons,”

“So, you don’t want to tell me?”

“Correct!” Riki smiled, and Luna just rolled her eyes.

Riki looked at the sky to see if the sun would set. Celestia must have started to move the sundown, he thought. The whole sun and moon thing hurts his head because the sun constantly moves. “Maybe the sun is under a spell?”

“You said something?”

“Nothing,” Riki muttered,

After a few minutes of silence, Luna said, “Are all humans like you and Liz?”

Riki shook his head, “You guys got lucky having us sent here. Can’t imagine if a bad guy was sent here.”

“Riki, Luna, we’re back!” Liz shouted as she, Louie, and Celestia got close to them. “Riki, nice spot for the house. It’s not too close, but not too far.”

“So, how is everything on your end?”

“Talking with Mayor Mare was easier than I thought,” Liz said, taking off her backpack. “But, I think having one of the rulers of Equestria really helped.”

“All I did was add a few words here and there.” Celestia chuckles.

“Anyways, the Mayor agrees that the house is now a part of Ponyville. A few ponies will come out here tomorrow to connect us to the water.”

“Good,” Riki sighed in relief, “Hmm, what’s this?” He watches Liz pull out a thick stack of paper.

“Stuff the Mayor wants you to sign,” Liz hands Riki the papers, “I told her, ‘My big bro Riki will have this done in a flash!’ she said in a cutesy voice.

“I hate you.”

Riki flips through the stack of paper. He was surprised to see all this just to move his house closer to Ponyville. Riki will just skim through it. Probably nothing really important here he needs to know.

…Right?

“Anyways, thanks for the help with all of this,” Riki said, leaning on Luna.

“It was our pleasure,”

The Princesses both say their goodbyes and head back to Canterlot. Riki and Liz start to clean the house since Luna dropped it. Lucky for them, nothing really broke. Just a few things fell over. Applejack and Apple Bloom stopped by and gave them a few apple pies as a housewarming gift. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie dropped by next. Pinkie has a cake with the words, ‘Welcome to Ponyville!’ written on with icing. Rainbow didn’t bring anything, so she said the cake was from both of them.

Next was Fluttershy and Rarity. It was a pretty short visit. Rarity came in and just took Riki and Liz’s measurements. She wants to make clothes for the only humans here. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity. And Rarity remembers Liz telling her about mainly wearing overalls. Fluttershy has a bag of cat food. Even if they already have some, they don’t have the heart to tell her no. Riki was about to bring up the whole, bathing him, but he decided not to.

It’s now night, and the moon is high in the sky. Riki is sitting at the kitchen table with Twilight. She's helping Riki with the forms as Liz shows Spike Riki’s manga collection. Right now, Twilight tells him about Ponyville events, but Riki is barely listening.

“Riki, did you hear what I said!?” Twilight yells and slams a hoof on the table.

“Yeah! Yeah, I heard you….” Riki said tiredly.

“What did I say?”

“Something about Winter Wrap something, Running Leaves, and some heat wave thing?.” Riki said tiredly, “Look, can we work on this tomorrow? I really want to go to bed, and we’ll finish it at your place.”

Twilight lets out a little sigh, “Okay, but are you sure you and Liz are fine here? You guys can easily sleep at the treehouse.”

“Good night, Twilight,”

“Alright,” Twilight said, sounding a bit disappointed. “Spike, time to go!”

“Okay!” Spike yelled from upstairs. A little late, he and Liz come down the stairs. Riki sees Spike has one of his manga. Spike noticed this and said, “Riki, can I borrow this?” He holds up One piece volume one.

“Yeah, sure,” Riki said casually as he stretched carefully, making sure not to pull his stitches. “Just don't burn it.”

“Thanks, Riki!” Spike smiled, going to the front door.

As Twilight makes her way to the door, Liz stops her. “Twilight forgot to ask, but can you teach me how money works here?”

“Oh, absolutely!” Twilight beamed, “Riki, do you want to join too?”

“Why not,” Riki shrugs.

“Good! I’ll see you two tomorrow!”

Holy fuck! Today was something. Staring up at my ceiling and trying to get comfortable in my bed. I don’t know how long I have been awake.

There is a knock on the door, “Riki… Are you up?

“You couldn’t sleep, too?” I said, leading up from my bed.

“Yeah… So I came to ask if I can sleep in your room tonight.”

“Of course,”

“Good!” Liz said happily, “I’ll be back. I need to get something.”

A few minutes later, I heard struggling. “Liz, you good?”

“All good!”

Next thing I know, Liz bursts into my room with her mattress and blanket. I’m too stunned to say anything. I see Louie lazily on the blanket Liz is dragging. She places the mattress beside my bed, “Now I have somewhere to sleep.” Liz drops to the bed face first, and Louie hops onto her back, “…Riki?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you think everyone back home thinks we’re dead?”

“What, no!” I shouted, but I started thinking. We have been gone for a while. “…I hope everyone doesn’t think that.”

“Oh,” Liz mumbles as she rolls over, “…Do I have to go to school?”

I rolled to my side, too, “No, you don’t have to. You’re smart as fuck. I still don’t know why you’re in school in the first place back home.”

“Because if you didn’t, the judge said he’ll take me away from you. Just like he took me away from mom.” After she said that, the room got pretty quiet, even if it was just the two of us. I can hear a bird fluttering outside.

“Liz-”

“Riki, I want to apologize,” she interrupted, “I want to apologize for not coming with you to fight Taboo.”

“Liz, it’s fine.”

“No! It’s not fine!” Liz shouted, sitting up from her bed. “I’m your sister, and I just leave you to fight Taboo alone. Riki, I'm sorry for being so scared. I turned my back on you and the others! And yes, I know I did show up later, but what if I didn’t? What if I decided to stay here, you and-”

“Shut up,” I lazily, throwing a pillow at Liz’s face. “Listen up, you saved our pony friends and me. That’s it. Stop thinking about the what if, Liz!”

“But I-”

“But nothing,” I said, “We beat Taboo together! And you were amazing!”

“Riki…” Liz mumbles, pulling the covers over her head.

“And I remember you said, ‘We’re not the same.’ or something like that?”

“What about it?”

“I’m glad you’re not the same.” I said happily, “I like how you are nothing like me. You're special in your way. And just remember this, no matter what happens here. You and I are in this together, got it!?” After I said all of that, I could hear some… Crying? I sit up to have a better look at her, “Liz, are you-”

“Riki!” Liz cried, hugging me.

“Liz, get off. It's too late for this!” l said, annoyed, trying to remove her grip. “And I don’t want you to break my stitches!” then see Louie jump on my bed and start to nuzzle me, “Not you too,”

“You’re the best!” she cried out.

As the two humans continue to talk the night away, a three-legged crow with four glowing white eyes watches them.

The crow’s eyes squint before stretching its wings, then flies away.