A few days had passed since their first meeting and Twilight was headed back to Baltimare to visit him again. Even though it ended on a slight sour note, she was still going to visit as much as she could. Besides, this is only the beginning. Knuckles wouldn't change right away. It will take time. So, she would continue to be nice to him and show him compassion. If then and only then will Knuckles change and be open towards friendship again.

Form what she heard from him, he wasn't a very big friendship person. In fact, he hated it. Just like she did at one point in her life. Yes, there was a time where Princess Twilight Sparkle absolutely hated friendship and wanted nothing to do with it. She considered it a waste of time and invested her time in books instead. However, with the emergence of Nightmare Moon, it forced her to have to interact with others. At first thought, she thought these five ponies she met were nuts. But as time went on, she began to appreciate each of them and she eventually called them her best friends so she could defeat Nightmare Moon.

So, the two of them could relate a lot with each other. But he would be more closed off to talking about it than she would because she has seen the light and he has not. He will soon though. The result might be clear, but it's worth a try to see if he will talk about it. She arrived to his house and knocked the door. Knuckles came over to it and opened it. He said "Oh. Good morning, Twilight. I didn't expect to see you here."

Twilight smiled and said "It's been a few days since we last spoke and I wanted to check in on you. That isn't a problem, is it?"

Knuckles shook his head and said "No, not at all. Come on in. It's kinda cold out there." Twilight stepped inside the mansion and Knuckles shut the door closed.

Twilight looked at him and said "So, how are you doing right now?"

Knuckles didn't exactly want to answer that question, but he didn't want to be rude. He said "I'm doing fine, I guess. Not much happens here anyway. I'm usually pretty busy doing activities a lot." He darted his eyes around a lot to make sure no one picked up on that.

Twilight was confused on why he was doing that, but she decided to not press him about it. It wasn't really important anyways and she had bigger fish to fry at the moment. Knuckles said "There are some more interesting books in the library if you want to read them. I have to go do something. I'll be back in a bit." Twilight went inside and chose a book to read.

This one was a detailed book about American history. Twilight got excited at the title and started to read it. As she read through it, she learned many different things about the United States ranging from the Boston Tea Party to 9/11. She was horrified at how some of these events took place, but all of it was still important information to her. She took out her notepad and wrote down all of this information for safe keeping. After a bit, she heard noises coming from down the hall.

She stopped what she was doing and went out the doors to see where it was coming from. She heard it coming from the right and kept walking. The sound suddenly got louder and louder until she saw a huge bowling alley. Knuckles was busy bowling and Twilight watched him do it. She saw him throw the bowling ball with a lot of force and managed to knock down all ten pins easily. Her jaw dropped at it and she asked "How is that even possible?!"

Knuckles stopped what he was doing and turned around. He got into a defensive stance and charged up his red lightning. But when he saw Twilight standing there, jaw agape, he stopped the flow and cleared his throat nervously. He said "Sorry. I wasn't expecting you. You scared me for a second. Anyways, to answer your question, whenever you don't get visitors often, it gives you a lot of time to practice. I've always been pretty good at bowling for as long as I can remember. I actually used to be in a bowling league once. That was kinda cool."

Twilight seemed amazed at that and asked "Do you mind if I try?"

Knuckles said "Be my guest. Let's see what you got." He stepped back in courtesy and Twilight stepped forward. She rolled the ball down the lane and she knocked down all ten pins as well. Caleb's eyes went wide in shock and Twilight was excited about it as well.

She said "I did it! I have never gotten a strike before in bowling! Well, at least without reading something. That is the first time I have ever done so! Uh, are you alright?"

Knuckles was still shocked at that and was still trying to grasp the concept of her getting a strike. After a few seconds, he hardened his face and said "Oh, it is on! You want the competition, I shall give you one! Prepare to fall, Princess!"

Twilight took that as a challenge and said "I don't think so, but I'll spare you a little bit." The two of them started their lightning rounds of bowling and they were getting strikes time and time again. The scoreboard was moving back and forth and it got pretty close at the end. Once it was all said and done, Knuckles had 1,560 points and Twilight had 1,557 points, which meant Knuckles won by three.

The two of them sat down to catch their breath and talked about the results with each other. Twilight said "I was so close to beating you! I could have had you there!"

Knuckles grinned a bit and said "Ha! You've never been beaten so hard. It was a glorious victory and all shall proclaim it! Anyway, I'm curious. Where did you learn to get as good as being able to keep up with me? No one has been able to do that before."

Twilight rubbed the back of her neck and said "Well, it's a long story. But, I'll give you the short version. Basically, I read a lot of books on how to bowl properly and one day when I went bowling, I looked straight at the middle pin and next thing I know, I get a strike. After that, I tried to practice that as much as I could and pretty soon, I could do it pretty well. That's why I've been able to keep up with you."

Knuckles seemed pretty impressed with that and then said "I see. I have had a question that has been bothering me for a little bit now. Have you lived in Ponyville all your life or only move there recently?"

Twilight said "Well, I used to live in Canterlot for most of my life. But I have been in Ponyville for a little over four years now."

Knuckles said "I've never been to Canterlot before, so what exactly was it like?" That was clearly a lie, but he didn't want her to know that he had been there before in search for the Master Diamond.

Twilight said "Well, it's the capital city of Equestria, as you may know already, and there is a lot of interesting stuff there. There are plenty of places to eat, including Restaurant Row, and there is many plays and musicals to watch on Broadway. There is also the castle where Celestia and Luna rule and then there is the massive library. It was a great place to live, however, it's also where most of the nobles and dignitary ponies live as well. They are some of the most intolerable ponies around, but they still believe that Celestia finds favour with them even though she looks like that she just is not interested."

Knuckles could resonate with Twilight about that and he understood what that meant. His hometown was ravaged by crime because of the small minority of elitists trying to change the city into a war zone. The tyranny of the minority was definitely being lived out constantly. It was because of those bureaucratic fools that got... her killed and he will never forgive them for that.

Twilight noticed Knuckles' change of mood and asked "Are you alright? You seemed angry for a second."

Knuckles realized what he was doing and quickly changed demeanor. He said "I'm fine. Please continue."

Twilight didn't know how to respond to that, but she dropped it and continued with her story. She said "Well, I lived with my parents for the first few years of my life in Canterlot and during that time, I was obsessed with magic. I wanted to learn and study everything about it. There would be days where I stayed up all night and didn't go to sleep. Eventually, my parents decided to sign me up for Celestia's School of Gifted Unicorns and I was super excited. However, I had to take an entrance exam in order to get in."

Knuckles could see why that was the case. Something that fancy would require an entrance exam to see if they should let you in. It was probably one of those Ivy League schools where only "the best and the brightest" attended. That phrase sickened him and he hated it anytime someone brought up that they were sending their child to Harvard or Yale.

"I was never more scared in my life and I tried as hard as I could. But it just wasn't enough, even with the support of my parents. I was about to give up when there was a loud sonic boom explosion and I was able to hatch the dragon egg."

Knuckles raised a brow and asked "They made you hatch a Dragon egg? Where the heck did they even get it? It's not like they sell those things at the grocery store or something."

Twilight shrugged and said "I don't know. They just gave me that and told me to open it. Anyway, the explosion caused my magic to go haywire and I accidentally ended up turning my parents into potted plants and making Spike really huge. Celestia had seen it and was able to calm my anxiety. Everything was restored and after Celestia told me she was impressed with my raw magical abilities, she wanted me to attend the school. I wasn't sure at first, but my parents insisted I'd do it, so I accepted it. I was so excited that day, and Celestia told me that I had gotten my cutie mark as well. I found out years later that it was a sonic rainboom done by Rainbow Dash that caused me to be accepted."

Knuckles was shocked about that and asked "That red-headed stepchild of a pony did that?!"

Twilight gave him a slight glare and said "Yes, she did. And don't insult Rainbow like that!"

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said "Facts don't have feelings, but if you want to play petty, then I'll shut up. Continue."

Twilight lessened her glare and said "After I got in, I studied for quite a bit throughout most of my childhood. I didn't really socialize with other ponies or hang out with them a lot. I did have a group of friends back then, but they weren't really my friends. I didn't take friendship seriously back then and I didn't value it as much as I do now."

Knuckles could also relate to that. He had a group of friends he hung out with at his job, but he sort of lost touch with them after a horrific incident that had happened to him in his personal life. Ever since that night, he hasn't really talked to them.

Twilight continued and said "Not long after, the threat of Nightmare Moon had emerged and it left me pretty distraught because the Summer Sun Celebration was right around the corner."

Knuckles said "I've heard about that holiday, but I never really understood what that holiday was supposed to be about."

Twilight explained by saying "Essentially, it was a celebration that occurs every year where citizens celebrate the rising of the Sun and Celestia defeating Nightmare Moon. For us ponies, it was a momentous day, but for Celestia, it was just a painful reminder that she had to banish her own sister." Knuckles seemed to wince at that. He didn't exactly like the sound of that, but there wasn't much Celestia could have done anyway.

Twilight continued and said "Anyway, I sent Celestia a letter addressing this crisis and instead of telling me that this is urgent, she told me to get my head out of "dusty, old books" and go out to make some friends. I was absolutely livid at the time and I didn't want to do it, but I figured that there was a way around it somehow. I took Spike with me and the two of us headed to Ponyville. I wanted to go to the Golden Oaks Library, which is where I currently live, and just read up on the return of Nightmare Moon. However, I ended up meeting five different ponies. By the time night had come, I was exhausted. I thought these ponies were nuts."

It was true. Take a look at the pilot episode of the series and then come back later when you are done. Anyways, let's move on.

Twilight went on by saying "When Nightmare Moon did return, I was determined to stop her myself, so I went back to the library so I could find something called the Elements of Harmony." That seemed to ring a bell with Knuckles because there was six small diamonds that had the word harmony in it that forged together into the Master Diamond. "I saw that the last known location was in the Everfree Forest and attempted to venture off through it. I told these group of ponies that while I appreciated them trying to help, I told them that this was something I had to do by myself and could not get outside help. However, they refused to let me go by myself and they tagged along as well."

Knuckles could relate to that, but he was currently listening to a story right now, so he would have to deal with that later after this was over.

Twilight continued talking by saying "I didn't want them to do that, but they refused to budge, so I went along with it. We went through a series of challenges and every one that we faced, my friends were able to help us get through it. I started to appreciate them more as time went on and I began to warm up to the idea of friendship. We eventually made it to the Castle of the Two Sisters in the Everfree Forest and found the Elements. Well, five of them at least. The sixth one had to be revealed when all five were present. I tried to figure it out myself, but Nightmare Moon put a quick stop to that. Then, when I thought all hope was lost, I heard my friends saying they were coming to help me. I finally got it and I declared them as my friends. That was when the sixth element was revealed and we defeated Nightmare Moon with all six elements."

Believe me. It's pretty cool if you ask me. Just watch it in case you are not convinced.

Twilight said "The Elements shattered the darkness in Nightmare Moon's heart and restored her to Princess Luna. Celestia was able to get released from her Sun prison and the two of them had a reunion after 1,000 years of separation. We would then go on to defeat several other villains such as Discord, Queen Chrysalis, King Sombra, and a human named Sunset Shimmer. Then there was the Everfree Forest incident and after the issue was resolved, things had been peaceful until now."

Knuckles seemed surprised and said "Wow. That is a very interesting backstory. It sounds very unique and a lot of stuff seemed to happen in 20 some years."

Twilight nodded and said "Yeah, 26 years worth of things in my life. How old are you exactly? I was curious about it, but I wasn't sure when it was a good time to ask."

Knuckles smiled a bit and said "It's no problem. To answer your question, I'm 29. When I came here, I was 24 and I had a lot to learn, but as you could probably tell, I've managed just fine. Here. There is something I want to show you. Follow me." He got up and Twilight followed him. They went through some hallways and eventually made it outside in the backyard. "This is my backyard. It's a great place to come out to when you want some fresh air. Speaking of which, care to play catch with the football?"

Twilight seemed confused and asked "What's football?"

Knuckles sighed and said "The dictionary definition of football is a form of team game played in North America with an oval ball on a field marked out as a gridiron. But, the basic terms are you have offense, defense, and special teams. The offense is the one that tries to score points on the field, the defense tries to stop the offense from scoring points, and special teams score field goals, extra points, punt away the football, and return the football."

Twilight seemed intrigued by that explanation and asked "How exactly does football work? It almost sounds like Buckball, but there must be some differences."

Knuckles nodded and said "You would be correct. Buckball is more like soccer where you have goalies and teammates to try to score a goal. American Football is different than that. How it works is you have two teams that play each other in a game, and there is usually a coin toss. The visiting team always gets to pick heads or tails and whatever it lands on determines who gets the ball first. So, for example, if the visiting team called heads and it lands on tails, then the home team wins the toss, but if it lands on heads, then the visiting team wins the toss."

Twilight was actively listening to all of this and writing it down in her notes so that she could better understand the concept of American Football.

Knuckles continued and said "So, once the coin lands on something, the referee asks the losing team which way they want to kick and the team captain points which way they want to go. That's when the opening kickoff begins and you have someone called a return man which is basically a person that tries to run as fast as they can down the field before the defenders get to him. However, these type of players have to make split second decisions. If the defenders are too close, they call for a fair catch and defenders can't tackle them or else they'll get a penalty. But, if the runner has enough room, then they can try to take it out and only stop when they get tackled."

Twilight continued writing some notes and asked "What kind of penalty do you get if you tackle a return man when they have called for a fair catch?"

Knuckles thought about it for a second and said "I believe it is a 15 yard penalty on the kicking team and wherever the spot of the ball was gets moved up 15 yards which sets up the offense in good field position most of the time."

Twilight wrote that down and asked "So what happens after the return man runs with the ball?"

Knuckles said "Alright, so how far the return man can get out in the field is where the ball will be spotted when it stops. Sometimes though, you can get deep into the opponent's territory and near the end zone, or even go the entire distance and score a touchdown."

Twilight stopped writing and asked "How many points is a touchdown?"

Knuckles said "A touchdown is six points, but teams can opt for an extra point which would make it seven or they can try to go for the two point conversation to make it eight points. However, that is usually more difficult and it's not usually done by teams unless they are behind and are trying to tie the game so it can go into overtime. So, if the return man doesn't score a touchdown, the offense starts wherever the spot of the ball was when the return man was tackled. Their goal is to try to move down the field as quickly as possible before the defense tries to stop them. There are four downs and the offense has to make it ten yards in order to convert. If they fail to do so, they have to give it to the other team. Usually, after three, the punter kicks the ball away, but sometimes, the offense goes for it on fourth down, but that's if they are desperate and have nothing else to lose."

Twilight wrote all of this down and asked "So, what's the goal of the defense then?"

Knuckles said "I'm getting to that. So, whenever the offense is out on the field, the defense of the opposing team is trying to stop them from scoring. If they can tackle a receiver before they reach the first down marker, then the offense does not get a conversion. Of course, defenses can get bested at times when the offense has super speedy wide receivers and they score touchdowns. For a defense, you would want to limit the opposing offense to a field goal so that their offense can score some more points. If an offense can get close enough to the end zone, but fail to get a first down, then they can score a field goal which is three points. Let me demonstrate."

He pulled up an inflatable movie screen and showed Twilight a game between the Cleveland Browns and his hometown team, the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football in 2015. He showed her in action how the offense is supposed to work, along with the defense and special teams. He explained to her each position and what their role on the team is. He also explained what happens when the game goes into overtime and went over records, the postseason, and the Super Bowl. Twilight wrote all of this down and was very fascinated by how the game of football worked. She would have to tell her friends once she got home to Ponyville.

Knuckles looked at her and asked "So, do you understand now what the game of football is?"

Twilight nodded and said "I do, but what exactly is it that you're trying to get me to do?"

Knuckles said "All I want you to do is throw the ball to me, using your magic or whatever, and I'll catch it into my arms. It's sometimes part of my exercising where I try to test my speed and agility."

Twilight seemed unsure about it, but she went along with it anyways. She said "Alright, I'll throw you the ball and you'll catch it. Right?" Knuckles nodded and Twilight sighed. She levitated the football in the air and then threw it as far as she could across the field. Knuckles ran super fast and the football landed right in his hands. He kept running with a red streak behind him and he made it to the end zone within a few seconds.

Knuckles smiled and said "There you go. That's the basics of it. Now, try to keep doing that and you'll eventually get it." Twilight nodded and threw the football again. Knuckles ran super fast and caught it with the back of his hand, which left Twilight surprised. They did this some more and Knuckles did all sorts of catches. The tipped catch, the helmet catch, and the OBJ style one handed catch as well. That one left Twilight in the most amazement as she watched Knuckles turn around for the football, jump up high into the air, and landed on his back in the end zone with the ball in his right hand.

It was now night time outside and the two of them were sitting on the grass on the football field. They were staring at the stars and trying to find constellations. Knuckles said "I've always wondered what space was really like up there. I mean, man has already been to space and even the Moon, but I've never been up there myself."

Twilight smiled a bit and said "I've wondered that as well. It sounds incredible that your own kind made it up there, but I'm sure you'll figure it out someday."

Knuckles was taken aback by that statement and stared at the ground with complete shock. No one had really told him something like that in a very long time and the last person to do so, well... they're no longer around. Wait. He was starting to get soft and his mood was lightening up. He couldn't let that happen! She couldn't know the truth about him. The truth hurts and it stings to those affected, showing no mercy to anyone.

Twilight asked him "So how often do you come out here and stare at the stars?"

Knuckles looked at her with a worried expression and said "Well, more often than you think."

Twilight seemed curious and asked "If you come out here a lot, how can no one see you? Clearly, something like this would leave you exposed to the open."

Knuckles went to a neutral expression and said "Here. Watch this." He snapped his fingers and teleported up to the sky. "Can you see me from down there?"

Twilight nodded and said "I can. Can you see me from up there?"

Knuckles shook his head and said "No I cannot."

That left Twilight baffled and Knuckles came back down to the ground. Twilight asked "How is that possible? It seems so odd that I can see you from down here, but you couldn't see me from up there."

Knuckles smiled a bit and said "I did that on purpose. You see, when I came here, I didn't want anyone to disturb me or find me somehow. I didn't want to be seen outside and then get reported to local authorities because they were scared. So, I created this invisible shield where I can see anyone from the outside, but no one could see me in the inside. Its purpose was to catch enemies off guard and I could spy on them without them seeing me before eventually striking on them."

Twilight seemed interested by that and said "That's really cool! Equestria could use something like that!" Knuckles did not believe so, but he didn't want to be incredibly blunt.

He looked at her and said "As cool as that might sounds, I don't exactly want to give that away. That is something exclusive to myself in order to keep myself safe."

Twilight seemed confused by that and asked "But don't you care about others potentially getting harmed?"

Knuckles said "Of course I do! What kind of stupid question is that?! All my life, I watched innocent people get murdered in broad daylight and have families torn apart because of terrible government policies. But this is not America anymore. I will defend innocent life if I have to, but it's not something that I try to go looking for. It has to come to me. Plus, I don't want everyone to know about my identity. It's best if it was kept a secret. It's better that way."

Twilight was about to question it, but one glare from Knuckles made her drop it. Knuckles laid down on the ground and stared up at the sky. Twilight did the same and looked at the stars. She saw a bright light for a second and then looked to the right of her. She saw a bunch of bright lanterns and watched them float in the sky. She looked at Knuckles and asked "What are those things floating in the sky?"

Knuckles looked up and said "Oh. Those are just lanterns. They are usually done once a year not long after Nightmare Night."

Twilight looked up at them again and asked "Do you know why they do that?"

Knuckles gave her a deadpan stare and said "Do I look like Rapunzel to you? I don't think so."

Twilight was confused and asked "Rapunzel? Who in Celestia is that?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Oh boy. This is going to be a long one. Rapunzel was one of the princesses that is part of a massive corporation called Disney back in America. The story goes like this: In the Kingdom of Corona, there was a King and Queen who ruled benevolently and was loved amongst their subjects. When the Queen got pregnant, she became very sick, so the royal guard had to find a flower to put in the elixir in order to heal the Queen. They say that a drop of sunlight fell from space and grew into a flower, but no one really knows."

As Knuckles was talking, Twilight seemed interested in this story and wanted to know more.

Knuckles continued by saying "Anyway, the Queen was able to have a baby girl and that flower used in the elixir made the baby's hair to glow whenever she sings. Not long after her birth, an evil woman named Mother Gothel snuck into the castle and stole Rapunzel away from her parents. The kingdom tried searching for her, but they could not find Gothel's tower which was where Rapunzel was at. For eighteen years, Rapunzel was trapped in that tower and Gothel refused to let her leave. It wasn't until a guy named Flynn Rider or his real name, Eugene Fitzherbert, came to the tower and found her. Of course, this guy was a thief and was the kingdom's most wanted person, so Rapunzel was dealing with a criminal here."

It left Twilight completely shocked that a princess had met a career criminal in a tower that was locked away from society. That must have been one crazy interaction.

Knuckles continued some more by saying "Rapunzel didn't exactly trust this dude, and rightfully so, but she made a deal with him that if he took her to see the lanterns in the kingdom, she would give him his bag back because she hid it from him since it contained the crown that originally belonged to her."

Twilight was confused and asked "Why did she want him to take her to the lanterns? What was so special about them?"

Knuckles said "Every year on her birthday, the kingdom would raise a bunch of lanterns in the sky hoping that the lost princess would someday return to them. So, this was pretty important to her. Flynn was hesitant about that at first, but he eventually agreed to take her there. The two of them went through some pretty crazy adventures ranging from singing about dreams with creepy dudes in a bar to barely escaping the royal guard in the valley. Eventually, the two of them made it to the kingdom and Rapunzel was filled with joy as she got to experience the festivities for the first time in her life."

Twilight could only imagine what that must have felt like to not experience it for eighteen years and then finally do it when you become a legal adult.

Knuckles continued on by saying "After a little bit, everyone had went to the boats and Rapunzel was able to see the lanterns up close instead of miles away from a tower window. She learned a lot in that moment and she then wished she could lift up one herself. Well, as if she was heard saying it, Flynn presented her with two lanterns and the two of them launched it into the sky. It was a happy moment, but Flynn eventually gets captured and sent out onto a boat for the royal guard to deal with as bait."

Twilight asked "Why was he getting sent to the royal guard?"

Knuckles said "Well, he was a thief obviously and he was the most wanted criminal in the kingdom. Stealing a crown was considered a punishable offense and the penalty for it was death. So, they were basically going to hang him for his crimes. It left Rapunzel pretty distraught, but Mother Gothel had just showed up at that moment before she could do anything. Gothel said that she was following Rapunzel the entire time and urged her to go back to the tower. Rapunzel wanted to save Flynn, but she didn't know what to do, so she ran to Gothel instead. Gothel took her back to the tower and told her to forget everything that had happened."

Twilight could only shake her head internally at that. How could a mother tell their child to forget everything that had just happened after seeing all of those events occur? This was the first time Rapunzel felt free in her life and now she had to go back to the life where nothing happened? That sounds extremely boring. It is true that the world is dark, scary, and cruel, but that does not mean you keep a child locked up in a tower until the day they die. That's not how it's supposed to work.

Knuckles moved along by saying "Eventually, Rapunzel found out the truth about her being the lost princess after staring at her ceiling and she connected the dots. From the Sun on her crib to the picture of her with her parents as a baby in the kingdom. Rapunzel told Gothel that she was never allowed to use her hair again and that's when Gothel decided to play the bad guy. Flynn wasn't fairing much better, but he was able to escape with the help of those bar guys and a horse named Maximus. The two had prior beef, but they briefly settled it for a common cause."

Twilight laughed a bit at the thought of a human and horse having beef with each other for some dumb reason, whatever it may be.

Knuckles ignored that and said "Flynn had made it to the tower and was able to get to Rapunzel. But he saw her with a white cloth over her mouth and chains connected to the wall so she couldn't escape. Yeah, Gothel was that cruel. She was basically showing her true colors at this point. Anyway, Gothel had snuck up behind Flynn and stabbed him across the stomach with the sword he held in his hand. Gothel tried to force Rapunzel to come with her, but Rapunzel refused to just let Flynn die and the secret about her remain hidden."

Twilight's blood boiled with anger as she thought about how this evil woman would seriously restrain her "child" like that and nearly kill off a man that clearly cared about Rapunzel.

Knuckles saw that anger and said "I don't blame you for getting angry. It was pretty cruel, but that was Gothel for you. Anyway, Rapunzel tried to make a deal with Gothel where she would go with her as long as she could heal Flynn. Gothel was very skeptical about it, but she eventually agreed to it. However, she put the chains on Flynn just in case he had any ideas about following Rapunzel. Flynn tried to stop Rapunzel, but she said she couldn't let him die. Flynn said that he couldn't let her die, but Rapunzel told him it was going to be okay. She was about to sing her song, but Flynn stopped her and then cut her hair. That made it turn brown and the glowing power had been lost. Gothel had returned to her true form and she eventually fell out of the tower in embarrassment because of how hideous she looked. She would eventually turn to dust because of how old she truly was."

Twilight could only imagine how hideous Gothel looked when Flynn cut Rapunzel's hair. It must have been the equivalent of an elderly woman at that point.

Knuckles saw that speculation and said "She was pretty ugly. Anyway, Rapunzel tried to save Flynn with her singing, but that did nothing. Flynn told her that she was his new dream and she said that he was hers. When all hope seemed lost, a single tear fell onto Flynn's face and the power of the flower was able to heal Flynn. When he woke up, the two of them hugged and there may have been some kissing involved. I'm not saying anything. Anyway, the royal guard told the King and Queen that Rapunzel had returned and they went to see for themselves. Sure enough, she was standing right there. Flynn had reunited the family and the Queen brought him in on the hug as well. After that, the kingdom rejoiced as the lost princess returned after eighteen years of absence and they celebrated for a week. Those bar guys were able to live out their dreams and Rapunzel and Eugene eventually got married and lived happily ever after. So, that's the story of Rapunzel."

Twilight was blown away by that story and said "Wow. That is an incredible story. It's a shame Equestria doesn't have something like that. Broadway would get a field day out of that. Are there other stories from your homeland like that?"

Knuckles shook his head and said "Not really. But there were a lot of movies made about Princesses by Disney. The one I just talked about wasn't made during the golden era of the 90's, but it was still a great movie to watch. During that time period, there were a lot of good movies to watch. But, now they have taken a nosedive and they aren't doing as well anymore."

Twilight was curious and asked "Why not?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Well, Disney decided to embrace something that should not be shown to a young child and parents started boycotting the company which made them lose a lot of money."

Twilight asked "What kind of things did they embrace?"

Knuckles said with sternness in his voice "You do not want to know. It was that bad. It was stuff that would make any logical person disgusted. That's all I'll say."

Twilight went wide eyed and said "Wow, it must have been that bad if you don't want to mention it explicitly. That seems really stupid for a movie production corporation to do that."

Knuckles said "Yeah, I know. It sucks, but that's corporate America for you. They're not the same as they once were 50 or 60 years ago. All I can do now is move on."

Twilight said "Well, that seems interesting, but I agree. Nothing can be done." Knuckles nodded and the two of them went back to staring at the sky. He noticed that things had gotten quite silent and he looked over to see Twilight already asleep on the grass. He frowned a bit and sighed. He got up and walked away. He said in a whispering voice "Everfree Forest, you say? It looks like that might be the next stop for me to find the Master Diamond." He chuckled a little bit and gave an evil grin as he walked into his house. That pony might have given him a possible location to the most powerful artifact of his lifetime. If he can find it, he will restore his family's legacy and hide it away from enemies' hands for good. He just needed some time to do so.

Author's Note

AN: It's sad that Disney had to go woke. They had a lot of good movies in the tail end of the 20th century and into the beginning of the 21st century, but they decided to throw it all away just because they had beef with Ron DeSantis in Florida. Pathetic. But that's woke liberal corporate executives in California for you. So, whatever. They may think they'll get away with this for now, but they will pay the penalty at the box office. Ain't that right, Lightyear? Anyways, I wanted to let you guys know that there will be no new chapter next week as I am going on vacation to San Diego on Monday and will be gone the entire week. But once I get back, I'll write chapter 8. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: More Quest Finding! After Knuckles hears Twilight's life story, he believes that the Master Diamond could be somewhere in the Everfree Forest. But while he is there, he tells Twilight about how he rose up into a crime fighting vigilante. However, he leaves out certain details and this quest is getting more difficult by the minute. Will he able to find the Master Diamond, or will he have to go back to the drawing board in order to find this artifact?

Until then, my fellow readers