Two weeks had passed since Fluttershy had convinced a dragon to stop covering Ponyville in smoke. One week ago, Applejack and Rarity had been forced to take shelter from a storm by staying in the library. To the newest resident Twilight Sparkle and her assistant Spike, things calmed down considerably since then. The weather was nice enough to take a break and go for a walk.
Twilight looked around in confusion. There were fewer ponies out and about than usual. The ones that were out had taken shelter under benches or behind bushes. Spike asked if they had missed some local holiday, but that idea was shot down by a rushed whisper.
"Didn't you hear? There's a burning monster trotting around. It's not safe!"
Twilight scoffed. "Oh, come on. Spike breathes fire, but he's hardly dangerous."
"Not him! A four-legged thing with a burning mane!" The other pony shook their head and galloped away.
"A burning mane?" Spike blinked twice. "I don't get it. Doesn't every pony's mane catch fire when they're mad?"
"Not every time," muttered Twilight.
An approaching sound interrupted their conversation. It sounded like a mare singing an unfamiliar tune. Twilight and Spike each lifted one limb to keep the sun out of their eyes. They squinted as a figure trotted closer. Before they could see any more than a few scales and a curved horn, a pair of hooves pulled the pony and dragon into a nearby building. The door was promptly slammed behind them.
"What the heck?" Twilight looked around and saw all of her new friends in one location. "Why are you all hiding in the dark?"
"Quiet," whispered Pinkie Pie.
"We're hiding from that thing." Without even looking, Applejack pointed a hoof toward the window.
"Did you see her?" asked a littler pony with a pale hide and red mane. "Did you see... Autumn Blaze?"
"Apple Bloom!" reprimanded Applejack. "I told you not to say that name."
The group peeked out the window. The mystery figure's song faded as she looked down. Her wavy mane looked like it ignited. Blue, purple, and red fires crackled above a face with white eyes. Most of the ponies flinched and stepped back.
"I've never seen a pony do that before," commented Rainbow Dash.
"She's a kirin," said Twilight. "I've read about them in passing. Allegedly, they're descendants of ancient dragons and deer."
"Such a gaudy mixture." Rarity recoiled.
The valentines in Spike's eyes cracked and split into halves.
"Okay, has any pony tried asking her what she wants?" Twilight asked.
"Well, how could we?" Fluttershy twiddled her hooves. "She lives in the Everfree Forest. We can't just talk to some creature like that."
"Yeah!" Pinkie Pie agreed. "She could be some kind of vicious wiccan!"
"Unbelievable." Twilight shook her head. "We've been through the Everfree Forest and already dealt with some of its threats. How is one resident wandering through any worse?" She focused on Pinkie Pie. "Also, you threw a party for a mean gryphon just last month! Surely, you could interact with a pony-adjacent creature."
As the group debated amongst themselves, Apple Bloom slipped out unnoticed. The kirin was skipping away while singing a different song. Meanwhile, the filly dipped around corners and trees to avoid detection.
Spike tapped Twilight's shoulder. "Uh, hey. Are we missing someone?"
Applejack gasped. "Apple Bloom!"
Fluttershy looked over. "The door's open."
Applejack sighed. "I told her to stay put!"
She galloped outside. The rest of the group followed as quickly as they could.
...
"~I once jumped in a field of blue
And flowers polka-dotted
But while the fires of anger fell
My mane turned rather rotten
La, la-la-la! La-la-la-la! La-la-la...~"
Apple Bloom thought the kirin's song was strange, but she kept moving. Every time she felt nearly caught, she rushed under a bush or behind a fallen log.
Autumn Blaze tapped her front hooves together. "What was that, Twig? We're being followed? But I didn't see anyone behind us. Hmm, well you have better drawn eyes than I do."
"Uh-oh," muttered Apple Bloom.
The kirin turned around and held up her hoof. It looked like a small stick with a leaf was stuck between two nails. Black circles were drawn on either side of the stick.
She deepened her voice as fire danced along her mane. "I know you're out there. Make it easier on yourself and stand where I can see!"
Apple Bloom gulped and slowly crawled onto the open path. She chuckled nervously and waved. The kirin gasped and dropped the fiery facade immediately. She rushed over and hugged the filly.
"Oh my gosh!" Autumn Blaze cooed. "You are so adore-rib-bull!" She paused and tapped her own chin. "Wait, is it a-door-rubble? Adorable? Wow, it's been so long since I've used that word that I can't remember how to pronounce it. How embarrassing."
"Um... I'm Apple Bloom." The filly stared in confusion. "You're Autumn Blaze, right?"
"That's me!~" Autumn practically sang. "I've got to say, this is the first time I've ever had a little stalker before." She twirled around, still hugging Apple Bloom. "New experience! Usually, they just hide away. Oh, this is so exciting!"
"But I'm not a stalker," said Apple Bloom. "I just wanted to see if you were friendly. If the others knew you were like this, I don't think they'd be so afraid."
Autumn Blaze dropped her not-stalker. "Well, I can't blame them for keeping their distance. Not really."
"Why not?" Apple Bloom tilted her head.
Autumn Blaze frowned. Her mane and tail flared up. Her golden eyes turned solid white. "It's this gosh-darn fire! I can't exactly convince some pony that I mean no harm when my own body is telling them otherwise."
"Get away from my sister!"
Applejack galloped over and scooped Apple Bloom over her head. Her friends soon ran up beside her. Rainbow Dash practically punched her hooves together while flying above eye-level. Autumn Blaze took a step back and her fire blew out, revealing her brown mane and green scales underneath.
Twilight Sparkle gasped. "By Celestia's day! She's a nirik too? Kirins are niriks and niriks are kirins. I had no idea."
Autumn Blaze lifted her hoof that wasn't holding Twig. "I wasn't trying to hurt her-"
"I'm warning you." Applejack stomped. "Back off!"
"A.J., stop!" Apple Bloom turned around and tugged her sister's mane. "Autumn Blaze is a nice kirin."
"I don't know..." mumbled Fluttershy.
"Anything that can catch fire on impulse can't be good news," said Rarity.
Autumn Blaze sighed.
"~Zaijian, sayonara, adieu
Sorry to have caused so much discomfort
I'll walk away and give you all the space you need
Fire's a pain
But I am used to it
I'm all alone~"
The kirin turned around and walked further into the forest.
"Yeah, you'd better run!" called Rainbow Dash.
"Come on, we're going home." Applejack adjusted her hat and turned.
"Applejack!" Apple Bloom looked upset.
"I can't take my eyes off you for a minute," said Applejack.
"I ain't a baby no more," Apple Bloom fumed.
"The vicious wiccan is repelled once again!" cheered Pinkie Pie.
The others turned to walk out of the forest as well. That was everyone except Twilight and Spike riding on her back.
"Twilight, you okay?" asked Spike.
"I'm fine, just... nostalgic." Twilight idly scratched her neck. "I used to have a similar problem with my mane when I was younger."
Spike crossed his arms. "Yeah, if my fire was a candle, yours would have been the Equestrian Game torch."
"Spike!" Twilight turned her head to look at him.
"What? You were emotional growing up." Spike shrugged. "Every pony is."
Twilight looked down the path. "If Autumn Blaze could learn to control her fire, if she just had help..." She levitated Spike down to make him stand on the ground. "You should go home. There's something I have to take care of."
"No way!" Spike gripped Twilight's tail. "If you're going deeper into the Everfree, I'm watching your back. Last thing we need is for you to run into a chocolate chicken with a snake's head without a lifeline."
Twilight tilted her head. "What kind of comic books have you been reading?"
"Hey, every imagination has a nugget of truth somewhere." He ran up to stand beside her front hooves. "Besides, not knowing what happened to you would make my nap uncomfortable."
Twilight sighed. "Fair enough. Let's get going. She couldn't have gotten that far." The two briskly walked deeper into the forest. "By the way, you seemed in pain earlier after Rarity said dragons and deer was a bad combination. You doing okay?"
Spike shook his head. "Yeah, just thinking that's probably how she feels about dragons and ponies."
"Oh, Spike..." Twilight looked down with sympathy.
He sighed. "Deep down, I think I already knew she wouldn't reciprocate my feelings."
...
Twilight and Spike yelped and ran around. A hissing head chased after them on a pair of talon-feet. Twilight tried firing a couple spells at the abomination, but they just bounced off its rock-hard skin. Spike was hyperventilating so much that his inner fire wasn't reaching his breath. Meanwhile, they had run over the same patch of blue flowers multiple times just trying to confuse the beast.
Unfortunately, they ended up confusing their own senses of direction as well. They wound up with their backs to an impossibly high rock plateau. The monster was several feet away, but it was closing in. Twilight tried to cast a teleportation, but a searing headache forced her to dispel mid-cast. Spike held onto her for what could have been the last time.
A wall of flames rose out of the ground. The monster let out a strained roar of confusion. It slid to a halt to avoid running into the fiery wall. A few soft footfalls could be heard. The burning nirik trotted right up to the wall and stared the creature in the eyes.
"Leave."
The predator whimpered, turned around, ran away, and bawked like a chicken. With a deep breath, the kirin returned to her default form. The wall of flames retreated, leaving the trio in darkness.
Autumn Blaze's horn produced a bluish light. "I'm all for getting in a nature walk, but maybe not in The Basirel's territory." She looked over at the unicorn and dragon. Whatever she was about to say next was interrupted. She rushed over and glanced at Twilight's horn. "Oh, no. You didn't happen to touch Poison Joke on the way here. Did you?"
"Poison what?" Spike's claws suddenly felt very numb.
"Blue flowers with spots on their leaves?" Autumn Blaze added.
"I mean, we might have seen some flowers like that," said Twilight, "but we were kind of running for our lives."
"Guess it can't be helped." Autumn shook her head. "If we don't take care of this, the poison will really mess with your bodies. Come with me."
Twilight and Spike gave each other a passing glance before following her.
...
Autumn Blaze had hollowed out a tree and turned it into a shelter. The decorations inside the hut were unlike anything Twilight had ever seen. They may as well have been from a different planet. While she was looking around, the kirin had heated up a vat of water and poured in various powders and herbs.
"Poison Joke isn't lethal, thankfully," said Autumn Blaze. "It does, however, make things really inconvenient for its victims. The results are unpredictable, but they usually involve messing with the body in a sort of personal attack." She chuckled. "When I first encountered the stuff, it made my mane soaking wet and smelled of rotting fish."
"So, how did you fix that?" Twilight asked.
"It's pretty simple." Autumn tapped the vat with Twig. "Just bathe in warm herbs for a few minutes and it'll render the toxins void." She looked up in thought. "Or... is 'null' a better word here?"
"Oh, okay." Twilight looked down at the water, breathed, and hopped into the bath.
She submerged herself for about five seconds. After that, she pushed her head above the surface. Her headache was quickly fading. She also felt her internal magic returning to full strength. Spike hopped up a stepladder before joining the bath. He was relieved when the pins-and-needles feeling left his claws. He blew some green embers at his hand and laughed.
"Thanks for this," said Twilight, "and thank you for saving us from... that Basirel."
"You're welcome." Autumn nodded. "It wouldn't feel right to leave some pony in danger."
"So, Apple Bloom was right," said Spike. "You are a nice kirin."
"I'm glad you think so." Autumn looked to the side and muttered, "Too bad my fire doesn't agree with that. It's so destructive when I get angry."
"That's not what I saw tonight." Twilight shook her head. "Fire can destroy, certainly. But it can also be a useful tool when you control it like you did back there."
"Sure, but how often do ponies run into the Everfree Forest?" asked Autumn.
Spike smirked. "Well, if you ever want help dealing with a hot head, look no further." He pointed his thumb claw at the bathing unicorn.
"Huh?" Autumn blinked twice.
Twilight smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, there were one or two incidents during my foalhood. I got so mad that my mane and tail caught fire."
Autumn stared in awe. "You too?"
"Mm-hmm." Twilight nodded. "Fortunately, my brother had a bucket of water and a hug ready for me. The next time I got explosive anger, I screamed into the bucket of water until it turned into steam."
"Man, it was scary the first time I saw her do that." Spike shook his head. "But when I look back on that memory, it's hilarious."
Autumn sat down on her haunch. "All this time, the solution was right there?"
"Well, it worked for me," admitted Twilight, "but everyone is different. The main point is to find a safe outlet where you can express your anger. Don't bottle it up. Find a way that won't hurt any pony."
Autumn hummed. "You've given me a lot to think about, Miss..."
"Oh, I'm Twilight Sparkle," said the unicorn.
"And I'm Spike," said the dragon.
...
Morning light shined upon Ponyville. Three figures worked their way into the village. Seeing the kirin, several ponies raced into buildings and slammed their doors shut. However, the rest of the citizens paused when they saw Twilight Sparkle and her assistant. In particular, one pony with a tan hat galloped forward.
"What are you doing, Twi?" Applejack asked in a raised voice. "It's dangerous to stand too close to that kirin!"
"Applejack, it's okay." Twilight made a lowering motion with her hoof. "In fact, I wouldn't be standing here today without her."
"What are you talking about?" Applejack squinted.
Spike hopped up and stood on Twilight's back. "A Basirel attacked us while we were in the Everfree Forest. Autumn Blaze used her fire to save us from the beast!"
Applejack's eyes opened wide. "A Basirel?! One of them killer snake birds?"
"Yeah." Twilight nodded. "After that, she realized we had made contact with a poisonous plant. She nursed us back to health."
Applejack stood quietly for a few seconds, looking directly at her friend. "You aren't pulling my leg, sugar cube?"
"I am not," confirmed Twilight.
Applejack sighed. "I guess... a critter that saves a friend of mine can't be all bad." She trotted closer to the visitor. She took off her hat. "Autumn Blaze, I misjudged you. I'm mighty sorry about that. I'll try to treat you more fairly from now on. Can you forgive me?"
Autumn Blaze swiftly pulled Applejack into a hug. "This is the first time I've ever received a genuine apology. Thank you."
Water streamed down the kirin's cheeks. Applejack slowly returned the hug. She blinked twice, and patted the scaly back.
"Huh," said Applejack. "That's softer than I was expecting."
Autumn chuckled. "My scales only harden when I'm angry. Otherwise, they're my ticklish spot." She giggled a bit more. "Hee hee hee, stop."
"Does this make her the good wiccan of the southeast?"
Every creature yelped at the sudden voice. Pinkie Pie blinked twice while she hung upside-down from absolutely nothing. Then, gravity turned on and pulled her into the ground.
"How did you...?" Twilight shook her head. "Never mind. There's no wiccan, Pinkie Pie. Autumn Blaze is an expert in wildlife and natural remedies."
"Well, I know enough to get by," corrected Autumn Blaze. "So, are you still scared of me?"
"Why would I be scared?" Pinkie Pie bounced back to her full height. "Any friend of my friends is a friend to me! Let's go tell every pony the good news!"
"Really?" Autumn Blaze smiled with hope.
...
"Absolutely!" Pinkie Pie launched confetti, scented of bubblegum.
Most of the locals had gotten used to Pinkie Pie throwing a celebration for any reason. Today was no different. Guests used the excuse to chat over each other and pile snacks onto paper plates. While a few ponies were still nervous, they still managed to give the guest of honor their pleasantries.
The atmosphere made Autumn Blaze think she was in heaven. There were so many ponies to talk to, so many to hug. She got a few laughs from the foals attending by using Twig for an impromptu puppet show. Angel Bunny sat close and allowed the kirin to pet him. This convinced Fluttershy to let her guard down just a little. Hearing the story about the Basirel and the fire wall, Rainbow Dash had to admit Autumn was pretty cool.
"Hmm, would fall colors match her or would spring colors complement her?" Rarity held up her hooves as an impromptu window. "Oo, the outfit ideas are flowing!"
Autumn Blaze was surrounded by not just acceptance, but also eagerness to be around her. She skipped along a makeshift path of rainbows and butterflies.
"~I once thought that fire and ashes were my fate
But then I met some pony that could understand my plight
Both sides of me are good if given the time and place
Who could have guessed that we would be so bright
La-la-la-la! La-la-la...~"
Author's Note
And that was what if "Bridle Gossip" featured Autumn Blaze.
Deleted scene from the what-if "Swarm of the Century":
"Autumn Blaze!" Twilight Sparkle practically crashed through the front door.
The nirik screamed before turning her white gaze. "What's your problem?" Autumn dunked her head into a cold bucket. The contents boiled into steam as the kirin came back.
Twilight pointed at the flying fuzzball with her. "Parasprites have taken over Ponyville! Is there anything you can do?"
The lone parasprite vomited a palette-swap of itself into existence. Autumn Blaze gasped and held up Twig for closer examination.
The kirin's eyes darted to the door. "Is any pony gathering instruments right now?"
"What?" Twilight blinked. "Well, I think I heard Pinkie Pie muttering about a trombone earlier, but-"
"Perfect!" Autumn Blaze levitated a tambourine while she trotted. "I'm on my way."
"Wait!" Twilight called out as she followed. "What do instruments have to do with gluttonous bugs?!"
Next time: What if "Sounds of Silence" featured Zecora?
