A Medicine Cat among Ponies

*Applejack's POV*

We went down the path as we found ourselves at a gate.

Kanji spoke "Whoa, what is this place? It's... kinda cute, like from a fairy tale or somethin'..."

Twirama spoke "This place kinda gives me the heebie-jeebies."

Sunao spoke "Don't let your guard down, Kanji-kun. There's no telling when the enemy will attack."

Kanji spoke "Yeah, I know."

Sunao and Kanji were silent.

Karei asks "Uh... Everything okay with you two...? You're awfully quiet. Are you not feeling well?"

Teddie spoke "*Back in his bear suit, dancer style* Awww... Nao-chan, you're all lonely because you're not with Sensei, huh? Don't worry! Teddie will stay at your side forever and ever!"

Heifa spoke "*Back in her suit, dancer style as well*Ahem!*"

Teddie spoke "Oh! And Heifa of course."

Sunao spoke "Th-That's not the case!"

Kanji asks "Y-Yeah! Same here! ...Wait, did you just ignore me, Ted!? When the hell did you and Heifa put THOSE on!?"

Teddie and Heifa were back in their suits, but they looked different. Heifa looked a bit like a belly dancer/cowgirl combo.

Teddie chuckes "Oh, I see... When Kaze's not around, Kanji's keeps us in check. *Gasp!* Does that mean... Kanji's checking me out right now!? I-Is my innocence in danger!?"

Kanji spoke "No, I'm not! And enough with that crap! It's gettin' REAL old, dammit!"

Karei spoke "*Sigh* Come on! How long are you two going to mess around? It just never stops with you!"

Sunao spoke "Well, I-I wouldn't call it loneliness, precisely, but... It does feel awkward without Senpai. Precarious, if you will."

Kanji spoke "Yeah, no kidding. We said all that earlier, but it's 'cause of them we're all together in the first place."

Kochuu spoke "I can understand that."

Kanji spoke "It just doesn't feel right, not hearing the usual "Kanji!" or "Calm down."

Teddie spoke "This is a very serious situation indeed... Without Sensei to protect me, I'll be bombarded from all sides with harsh criticism..."

Kanji spoke "Dude, just don't stir up any shit..."

Karei spoke "Alright, that's enough! Come on, guys, we need to keep our spirits up! Did you forget what we discussed? That we wanted to grow into a team our senpai would be proud of? Seiko-senpai's not with us, which makes this a perfect opportunity! Let's work together and impress everyone!"

Heh, bet that rallied 'em up.

Sunao spoke "Karei-san is right. This is well within our power!"

Karei spoke "Yeah, Sunao-kun! Totally!"

Sunao spoke "Although... our team could be better coordinated if we had a decision-maker. I suggest we come to a consensus on who should assume that role."

Karei spoke "You mean, choose a leader? I'm fine either way."

Teddie spoke "A substitue Sensei, huh!? Okay, I nominate myself! Go, team! Teddie wants YOU! Yahoo!"

Sunao spoke "Well... In a manner of speaking. To be clear, I'm declining the position. I tend to prefer the role of advisor."

Teddie spoke "Oohoohoo! Sounds like Teddie wins by default!"

Kanji spoke "Wha-Hey, hold it! There's no friggin' way that's gonna work!"

Karei asks "Wanna do it then, Kanji?"

Kanji spoke "Huh? W-Well, if that's what you guys want, I guess I can give it a shot..."

Teddie spoke "Whaaaat!? Et tu, Kanji!? My empire was destroyed in a day!"

Kanji spoke "*Tic mark* What empire!? You ain't the leader yet!"

Karei spoke "I don't care who! Just hurry up and decide! Ugh, you're both acting like foals..."

Kanji spoke "That's it, Ted... You asked for it. You and me, right now, dance battle! I'm gonna crush you!"

Teddie spoke "Challenge accepted! Prepare yourself for the ultimate in bear-reakdancing!"

*Sigh* Fer the love of...

Twirama tailslaps Kanji, sending him flying at Sunao thus causing the two to kiss.

Twirama spoke "I'll take the lead then! And Teddie, shut the fuck up."

But then the atmosphere changed, that feeling all too familiar.

Sunao spoke "*Gets Kanji off of her, calming down* Hold on, everyone…! I felt something…"

The Eerie Voice spoke "Hahaha… You sure are funny. Welcome to the Midnight Stage, featuring Sumomo Ujima."

Karei asks "There you are…! Wait, Sumomo’s up ahead?"

The Eerie Voice spoke "Hmhm, that’s what I said. It’s almost time for the performance… She will shine forever on the Midnight Stage, as the Sumomo everybody wants… Sumomo is a lucky girl. She gets to join us and share our bond."

Kanji spoke "Heh! I already heard about ya, but damn, you’re one grade-A dumbass! You kidnapped her and you’re sayin’ she’s lucky!? You got a beatdown comin’, punk, so get your ass over here!"

The Eerie Voice spoke "I’m glad to see you’re full of energy… But let me remind you of one important thing.

Kanji asks "Huh? The hell ya talkin’ about?"

Sunao spoke "Kanji-kun… In this world, no one hurts or gets hurt. I already confirmed that rule for myself. To physically assault someone here would be impossible."

Kanji spoke "Tch, stupid rules…"

The Eerie Voice spoke "Here, you can say goodbye to all your pain and suffering, and connect with everyone… Hahaha… Sumomo will be so happy. Look how many have gathered just for her…!"

The gate closed as ribbon-bound Shadows appeared.

Teddie spoke "Gaaah! Shadow alert! Shadow alert! Hrmmm? They really are tied together by those weird ribbony-thingies!"

The Eerie Voice spoke "Hahaha… You’ll understand soon enough. Come on. Just connect with us…"

That song started playing with the Shadows dancin’ makin’ us feel weak."

Sunao spoke "Ugh…! This song!"

Kanji spoke "Gah, the hell is this…? I don’t feel so good…!"

Kochuu spoke "Dammit…! It’s giving me a splitting headache!"

Teddie spoke "Ahhhehh… I’m getting all… wobbly…"

Heifa spoke "This… is bad…"

Sunao spoke "Be careful… If you’re caught in those ribbons, they’ll start affecting your mind!"

Karei spoke "Hang in there, everyone! Don’t let them get the upper hand! Their so-called “bond” is a joke. We need to make them realize that!"

Kanji spoke "Heh… I hear ya! Why should I be all buddy-buddy with ‘em when I’m only gettin’ tied down!? Hey, Karei! Gimme my homework song! I’ll show ‘em what’s up!"

Sunset spoke "Don’t leave me out just yet!"

Parasoul spoke "Same here."

Karei asks "Huh? You’re going to dance?"

Teddie spoke "Whaaaaaat!? That’s no fair! This was where I’m supposed to step in!"

Kanji spoke "Watch and learn, Ted… You’re about to see Kanji Tatsumi bring the house down with a male’s dance!"

Karei spoke "Well, you’re not gonna hold anything back, as if you ever did… It might actually be perfect for the first round. Okay! I’ll play your song, so you’d better give it everything you got!"

Kanji spoke "Damn straight! A’ight then… Hit it!"

Sunset spoke "Let’s do this!"

Parasoul spoke "Let’s get it started now."

The three were ready to dance with Sonata and Twirama helping with the vocals.

Kanji spoke "I won’t slack off!"

Sunset spoke "Time to bring the heat!"

Parasoul spoke "I’ll show you my skills."

The three started dancing with the music beginnin’ ta play.

Midnight pops up suddenly with Twiliterasu in tow after tracking Sunset's magic pattern.

Midnight spoke "I hope you don't mind my dropping in!"

The trio then looked charged up.

Kanji spoke "Huh! Rah! I'm ready anytime!"

Sunset spoke "Let's crank it up!"

Parasoul spoke "Hmph! I won't hold back."

It was soon Fever Time as Sunao, Ah and Umbrella joined in.

Sunao spoke "Alright! Let's turn it up! It's showtime!"

"Time for this rodeo to start!" Ah whooped.

Umbrella spoke "Let's do it, big sis!"

The six of us were in perfect sync as we danced great.

Sunao spoke "I feel full of energy just watching! Looking great, Kanji-kun!"

Kanji spoke "Heh, lookin' pretty cool! But, yeah... good help, Sunao."

"Yee-haw! Yer on fire, Sunset!" I cheered.

Sunset spoke "Heh, you're a wild dancer yourself, AJ. Thanks."

Umbrella spoke "Wow! You're awesome at fighting AND dancing, big sis!"

Parasoul spoke "*Chuckle* Thank you, Umbrella. You've improved as well."

Teddie spoke "Alright! That was cool!"

Midnight spoke "Consider me blown away."

Fever Time was now endin' fer now.

Kanji asks "Heh, you outta breath? Dance with me again, okay?"

Sunset spoke "*As Sunao, Umbrella an' Ah backed off* You guys were awesome, thanks for the help."

Parasoul spoke "We'll let you know if we need another splendid performance.

The trio kept dancing as they soon looked charged up again. Fever Time then came back as Sunao, Umbrella an' Ah came back with all six of us dancin' greatly. Fever Time later ended as Sunao, Umbrella an' Ah backed off before Kanji, Sunset and Parasoul finished their dance.

Kanji spoke "Take-Mikazuchi!"

Sunset spoke "Sol!"

The two summoned their Personas as Take-Mikazuchi gained a drumset and a stool with Sol gaining a rhythmic guitar before playing them like experts.

Twirama breaks a Smash ball, using Matatabi's healing yowl thus purifying all of the ribbon-bound shadows. With that and the Personas' instruments causing the Shadows to glow brightly as they melted into sparkling lights.

Kanji spoke "Damn, this is awesome..."

Sunao spoke "Hmm... Oh, but you, Sunset-hime and Parasoul-san were quite impressive yourselves, Kanji-kun!"

Kanji asks "H-Huh?"

Midnight chuckles "What the Changeling is trying to say is that she thinks you were really cool Kanji."

Karei spoke "Good job! You kinda freestyled a bit here and there, but it was very you!"

Teddie spoke "I have to say, that was an amazing performance. Not bad, Kanji!"

Kanji spoke "Y-You think so!? I mean, of course! Whaddya expect from me, huh? Heheh!"

Sunao spoke "Well done. The Shadows were going wild to see you, Sunset-hime and Parasoul-san dance.

Kanji blushed from all the comments we were givin’ him, Sunset and Parasoul.

Kanji asks "Hey, this still kinda bothers me, but… Why does dancing work on the Shadows?"

Sunao spoke "Kanji-kun… Don’t tell me you just danced without understanding why…"

Kanji asks "Wha-Course I understand! Y’know, it’s all that, uh, stuff! Right? Like, like Karei said… Dancing ain’t about thinkin’ too much, but more like, uh… lettin’ yourself out…? Yeah?"

Karei spoke "You were actually listening? I’m kind of surprised, Kanji."

Kanji asks "Well, what I’m trying to say is… I did put my feelings into it. Y’know, like sayin’ “This is who I am…” But the fact that the Shadows actually got that? I dunno, man. Shit’s weird. I mean, how’s that possible?"

Sunao spoke "You do have a point… No matter how strongly we try to express something, it’s useless if our audience is incapable of understanding it…"

Kochuu spoke "Which could mean those Shadows have and can recognize emotions."

Teddie spoke "I bet those Shadows didn’t get it at first. They were just dancing to that creepy song, feeling okay about it because they were doing it in a big crowd. But then, they saw Kanji, Suns-hime and Para-chan gettin’ down… And they were like, “Oooh, those guys’ got the groove! Forget this, I’m going over there!”

Heifa spoke "*Giggle* Only you’d say that, Ted."

Sunao spoke "I see… That may well be so."

Teddie spoke "Case closed!"

Midnight spoke "Not yet at least."

Karei spoke "In any case, we got our message across. Doesn’t that make you feel goo? Being accepted by someone, creatures or Shadows… It’s the best feeling! Okay, let’s take a quick break and get going! That voice said Sumomo was up ahead."

Kanji asks "Yeah! I’m ready to beat the shit outta-Wait, we can’t… Uh, dance some sense into those Shadows! Hey… You wanna just make her the leader?"

Teddie spoke "Yeah, we’re totally outclassed…"

Karei asks "Huh? You guys say something?"

Sunao spoke "*Smile* It’s nothing, leader. Please, show us the way."

Karei spoke "Me, the leader…? Ah well. Let’s go!"

Twirama didn’t seem to have any problem with that as we rushed past the opened gate.

Teddie spoke "But those Shadows… They felt kinda different from the ones we fought before… I wonder why. Oh, well! No time to worry about stuff like that! I’ve got some sweet ladies to rescue! Raaaaaaaaawr! I’m coming for you right now, my precious idols!"

Yep, Ted’s a die-hard fan.

Later, we arrived at another gate.

Midnight spoke "This one seems heavily locked..."

Teddie asks "*Stops sniffing* Nrgh! Cutie ahoy! Could that be...!?"

Karei spoke "That's... Sumomo! Hey, Sumomo...!"

We moved forward, findin' Sumomo as she saw us.

Sumomo spoke "*Southern Accent* Karrie-senpai... Jackie-chan and Naa-chan! Ohh, thank goodness! I was all torn up worryin' about y'all!"

Karei spoke "Geez, I was the one worried! I'm so glad you're safe!"

...So Sumomo's from the country. That explains why the last time Ah met Sumomo, I felt somethin' off 'bout her voice, like she was usin' a different accent than the one she's using now.

Teddie spoke "Woo hoo-hooo! It's the adorable piglet Momo-chan, right here in front of me! Kaze and I haven't missed a single Kanamin Kitchen appearance on TM! But... Hrmm? Something's different..."

Sunao spoke "*Surprised* I-It's her manner of speech. She sounds like a different person altogether than when I met her..."

Karei didn't seem surprised an' since Ah'm country mahself, can't say Ah'm surprised neither.

Karei spoke "I guess that is surprising, huh... Sumomo actually grew up deep in the country, so this is how she really is. She doesn't mind bugs at all, and she does a lot of farmwork back at home. She's a lot tougher than she looks."

That made me chuckle with a smile.

Teddie spoke "No way!? Cute li'l Momo-chan, the sweetheart of teenage males everywhere, it was all an act!? Everything I know is a lie..."

Sunao spoke "I was thoroughly fooled too... I'm a detective..."

Kanji spoke "Huh? So what? No big deal."

Midnight spoke "Quit being a moron Kanji."

Kanji asks "What was that!?"

Sumomo asks "Ms. Ochimizu done worked my tail off, after all. Ah’m guessin’ you were hopin’ Ah’d be the sweet li’l sister type?"

Kanji asks "The what now?"

Sumomo spoke "Y’know, like an adorable li’l kid you just wanna look after. Small an’ cute. But… you can only go so far with that… Ah’ve been thinkin’ maybe Ah oughta try doin’ sumthin’ else, even if it’s a tiny bit at a time."

Midnight spoke "Look Momo, bad things happen all the time but we of the Alicorn Alliance are trying our hardest to make the world a better place for immortals and mortals alike. And you know what? You can let some creepy voice tell you how to live your life or you can be awesome again!"

I spoke "Midnight, now ain't a good time fer a song!"

Midnight sang https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjsv-6wfqyg, causing the ribbon-bound shadows to vanish into thin air.

I tailslapped Midnight at the back o' the head. "Midnight, y'all have seriously bad timing. There ain't any Shadows here 'cause they didn't show up!"

Midnight asks "Are you saying I'm stupid?"

I spoke "No."

Midnight asks "Do I look stupid to you?"

"Ah ain't saying that." I pointed out.

But then the atmosphere suddenly changed.

The Eerie Voice spoke "Don't say that, Sumomo. Or else no one will love you anymore."

Kanji spoke "Heh, who do we have here...? Sorry, but you're too late."

The Eerie Voice laughs "Hahaha... It doesn't matter. Sumomo can't get out of here, so why hurry? Sumomo... do you want to leave this world? Do you really want to upset your fans...?

Sumomo asks "M-Mah fans...!?"

The Eerie Voice asks "That's right... Everyone wants the you they know as a helpless, adorable little child. Wouldn't they feel so betrayed, if they saw you now?"

Sumomo spoke "Ah... Ah ain't betrayed anyone...! Ah've worked dang hard up 'til now!"

Eerie Voice spoke "Hmhmhm... Yes, you've really done well. But it's still not enough... You need to become the Sumomo that everyone wishes for."

Ribbon-bound Shadows appeared, filling the empty audience stands.

Teddie asks "It's those out-of-bearacter Shadows! Trying to kidnap Momo-chan, eh?"

Karei spoke "Well, forget that! We're not handing Sumomo over!"

Kanji spoke "Heh, you ain't gonna have it your way as long as we're here!"

Eerie Voice spoke "Hahaha... You really are energetic. But you know nothing, so I suggest you keep your mouths shut. You have no idea just how much Sumomo is suffering...

Karei: What are you talking about...?

Eerie Voice: You don't need to know... Connect with us, and everything will work out. No one will get hurt. No one will have to suffer. Now... accept our bond...!

That song started playing with Shadows dancing, making us feel weak again.

Sumomo: Nngh... Wha-!?"

Teddie spoke "Arrrrrrrgh! Stop this song! It makes my fur stand on end!"

Sunao spoke "No matter how many times I hear this, it never gets any better..."

Kanji spoke "You call this freaky shit a bond...!? Get the hell outta here!"

But then Teddie, Heifa and Midnight stepped forward.

Karei asks "Teddie...!?"

Teddie spoke "Karei-chan, if you would be so kind! The bear of the hour needs your finest song! Leave it to... Teddieeee!"

Heifa spoke "Don't forget about me."

Midnight spoke "That last performance earlier might've been too soon, but at least I have an audience."

Kanji asks "What's up, you three? Itchin' to get on the floor after seein' me dance?"

Teddie spoke "I'm gonna show you who's da man! Teddie is in da house, yo!"

Karei spoke "*Smile* Gotcha! Teddie, I'm giving you, Heifa and Midnight the coolest tune I've got, so do your absolute best!"

Teddie spoke "Aye aye, Karei-chan! Nowwwwwww, drop! That! BEAT!"

Heifa spoke "Heh, I'll show 'em what's what."

Midnight spoke "Time to boogie!"

The trio were ready to dance.

Teddie spoke "This'll be a piece of cake. Easy as pie."

Heifa spoke "Alright, let's move it, move it, move it!"

Midnight spoke "This foxcat's 'bout to get wild!"

The three started dancing as the song began.

To be Continued...