Element of Balance (Season 1)

by SamSwordsman123

Rating: everyone
Tags: Main 6, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Romance, Original Character, Moondancer, Spike, Adventure, Princess Celestia
Length: 140072

What if Celestia had a son in Friendship is Magic? How would he fit into the story? Find out as he joins Twilight Sparkle and her friends on their journey.

Used to be called Element of Strength.

This fanfic was inspired by A New Hero

As the time for Nightmare Moon to return draws closer, Celestia gives birth to a son she names Fire Sword. To her surprise he ends up being an alicorn. Knowing he will have a role to play when her sister returns. When his mother disappears, Fire Sword joins Twilight Sparkle on her quest to defeat Nightmare Moon and bring Celestia back as they make new friends, as well as keep old ones from Canterlot and undergo the journey of a lifetime to study the magic of friendship.

Updates weekly now.

Published 2023-06-17 15:00:01 UTC
Last updated 2024-08-24 04:31:09 UTC

Chapter 2: Friendship is Magic Part 2

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Chapter 3: Home Planning

Author's Note

Okay, this will be an original part of this story that doesn’t happen in the TV show where Fire gets his own home. Hope you guys like it. Now just to address any concerns you might have about my character being a Mary Sue, I’m gonna work so that doesn’t happen. He may have won last time but he’ll without a doubt face some foe that will be able to defeat him. Also, I think he could have the flaw of being a bit of a hot head and irritable as well, he did show some anger when Celestia went missing. Also, he could potentially focus too much on offense and leave himself open to counterattack, just an idea. That happens to me quite a bit in my fencing club. You attack when you see an opening and your enemy gets you at the same time. That would be a weakness for sure. He could also be eager to jump into fights as well in contrast to most of the Mane 6, with the obvious exception of Rainbow Dash at least. But let's just see what happens.

Also, I will be making some changes to the story and might not follow the same format as many of the episodes. You’ll see some here with two members of the CMC as we saw in the first episode the three of them hugging each other, with Applebloom acting like she didn’t know Sweetie and Scootaloo in their first centric episode. I know it was said those were meant to be different fillies but it was still clearly them. There will likely be more to come, and I will make edits as needed so don’t hesitate to tell me of grammar and other errors.

Chapter 3: Home Planning

Fire Sword began building his house, or at least, making the designs he wanted his house to look like. He levitated a pencil and began drawing in pictures. He, being a prince, needed to have not only a perfect home to live in while he was here in Ponyville, but also the perfect location on which to build it.

“I need somewhere with a decent amount of space,” he said to himself as he sketched various designs. “But first let’s see about the shape.”

He drew rough sketches of different kinds of homes.

“A house?” he wondered. “Nah, too small. I need something big befitting a prince!”

While he tried not to act stuck up like his cousin Prince Blueblood, he didn’t want to have just a small house that was the common pony home. Still, the quaint little houses around the majority of Ponyville were not bad at all. Regardless, Fire Sword did want to at least display his royal status, but not flaunt… too much.

He drew up another design, one of a mansion with a long exterior and several windows.

“Mansion, could work,” Fire Sword said.

He took a look outside, gazing up at the clouds. He saw the Pegasus City known as Cloudsdale up above. Maybe a small castle in the sky?

“Nah, no pony but Pegasi would be able to visit me there,” Fire said to himself.

He had one final idea come to mind.

“A tower.”

He drew a tall cylindrical building that reached high into the sky. First the raw sketch, putting on a hill, though that might not work out, he would see. There were a few hills around Ponyville that might work. One of them was near Sweet Apple Acres that could do. Or perhaps one elsewhere? He then made a layout of the inside of the tower, dividing it into several sections. First was the entry area, He could have his kitchen and dining room down there. Then a basement below for storage as well as servant quarters and barracks for a small number of guards he might have. Then going up he could put a study, a set of guest rooms, and his own bedroom on the three floors above. That sounded good enough. It would be a good-sized tower with that. With the interior idea drawn on paper he then shifted his attention to what it would look like on the outside, taking some colored pencils he’d brought with him when he returned to Canterlot briefly to get his necessities. Art was an occasional hobby of his, so he kept a number of things in his room in the castle for drawing.

He was currently in his room in the Ponyville Grand Inn, the best Inn in town. He would be staying here while his house was being built. As soon as he came up with a plan, he could turn it over to the royal architect to have the building start. The best builders from around Equestria would be summoned to make the home for their prince. Of course, Fire would help where he could. Some royals might feel that building their home was a job for the common workers but Fire felt he should do his share.

He used his pencil to make the shape of the tower once again, this time adding more color to the doors and elsewhere. When he was done the image of a lovely white tower with a pair of gold rings around it in the middle and at the top appeared.

“Perfect,” he said. “This will do nicely. Now I just need to name the place.”

It was a common practice for pony homes which were often businesses at the same time to be named. Applejack lived at Sweet Apple Acres, Rarity had Carousel Boutique, Pinkie stayed at Sugarcube Corner, and Twilight had moved into the Golden Oaks Library. The only one of Fire’s new friends that didn’t live in a place that had a name was Fluttershy who had a simple cottage on the edge of the woods. This might not be a business, but it was a royal home and should probably have a name.

He thought back to what he was sometimes called. Celestia’s warm hearted son. Then another idea clicked in his head.

“Aha! Warm Heart Tower!”

He wrote the name above the final design. Then another idea suddenly occurred.

“I should give the place a flag and hang it over the door!” he said. “Oh, Fire Sword you are a genius! You have your mother’s wisdom… or… maybe just creativity. Though that might just be all me.”

He chuckled.

“Now, now, let’s not compliment ourselves too much,” he said. “Okay, that should do.”

He got up from the desk in his room and headed outside. He was supposed to meet the others for breakfast at Rarity’s place. He walked outside and soon arrived at Carousel Boutique. He knocked on the door. Soon the beautiful unicorn arrived and opened it.

“Oh, good morning, Prince Fire Sword!” she said with a bow.

“Rarity, I think after what we went through with the whole Nightmare Moon thing there’s no need for you to call me ‘Prince’,” Fire said. “You are a… friend after all.”

“Um, thank you Prince… um, I mean just… Fire Sword,” Rarity stammered with a blush. “I’m honored to have you join me as my guest!”

He looked around and saw the front of her store/home. The dresses were for the moment put away in the nearby closet until the time to open the store was here. But there wasn’t anypony else here yet.

“Where’s everypony else?” Fire asked.

“Oh, they haven’t arrived yet. But they should be here any-

“Hello!” a voice called loudly as Rainbow Dash entered the room on her wings.

“Morning Rainbow Dash!” Rarity greeted.

“Hey Rarity,” Rainbow replied. “Hope you’re ready to eat! Cause I sure am! I need to keep up my energy for all my flying!”

“Breakfast is still cooking,” Rarity said.

Fire looked off to the side where the kitchen was. A pile of toast was visible along with an assortment of fruits and vegetables. Also at a table was a young filly with a white coat like Rarity’s, but her mane was a mix of pink and purple and her eyes emerald-green in contrast to Rarity's sapphires.

“Hello!” the filly said looking at Fire. “I’m Sweetie Belle! Rarity’s little sister!”

“Sweetie Belle, please make sure to address a guest such as him properly!” Rarity said. “This is Prince Fire Sword.”

“But he said its okay not to call him ‘Prince’,” Sweetie said.

“That was meant for me,” Rarity said. “We went through quite an adventure together so he feels I don’t have to address him by his title. Please be polite and keep the formalities.”

“That’s alright,” Fire said before walking up to the filly. “Its nice to meet you, Sweetie Belle.”

He extended his hoof to shake hers. She took it with a smile.

“Anypony home?” a familiar voice said.

Twilight entered the room with Spike on her back.

“Yeehaw!” a country voice said. “Me and my sister are here!”

Applejack entered along with another young filly with a light-yellow coat, and red mane with a pink bow in it.

“Apple Bloom!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed running to the other filly.

“Sweetie Belle!” the yellow filly, Apple Bloom, grinned as she and her friend hugged each other.

Soon Pinkie Pie arrived with a box in her mouth.

“Hey everypony!”

Then finally, Fluttershy. “Good morning,” she said in a quiet voice that was barely audible.

“Ah, that’s everypony!” Rarity said. “Just in time, breakfast is just about ready!”

“I bought us cupcakes!” Pinkie said as she opened the box she’d carried in. "Made sure to bring lots since there are so many of us!”

They all sat at the table. Rarity had had to get out a longer one she normally used for displaying things in her store since there were so many. Rarity divided the large pile of toast which had already been buttered and the fruits among all her friends evenly. The two little fillies and Spike meanwhile sat at their own small table.

Pinkie Pie got out her cupcakes and began eating one right away. Twilight looked at her.

“You know Pinkie, you should really eat that for dessert,” she said.

“Oh please, I eat dessert first thing every meal!” she said. “Don’t any of you?”

Many of them shook their heads and said,

“Nope.”

“I don’t think so.”

“Certainly not!”

“Eh, I just eat normal breakfast.”

Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity and Rainbow Dash said.

“A pony must eat well,” Rarity said. “Meals first and then dessert! Don’t you agree, Fire Sword?”

She looked at the prince.

Fire Sword hesitated. “Uh, if I’m being honest, I do sometimes just have a piece of cake for breakfast.”

They gaped at him.

“My mom has cake around a lot,” Fire Sword said.

“Ooh! I love it!” Pinkie said. “That’s the best breakfast ever I say! Here have a cupcake!”

She slid one of them down to him across the table perfectly.

“Uh, thanks but I’ll wait until I’m done with the meal first today,” he said.

He ate his toast, levitating the first piece up to his mouth. As his mouth closed around it, he made a soft “Mmm.”

“You like it?” Rarity asked.

“Like it?” Fire Sword said. “I LOVE it! Its as good as the toast back home! Of course, a certain stuck-up pony would probably not agree with me!”

He could imagine Prince Blueblood spitting the toast out and complaining about it being made of inferior grain.

“Uh! My royal lips have touched common pony toast!” the more stuck-up prince would say as an image of him appeared in Fire’s mind’s eye.

“Why, whomever do you mean?” Rarity asked.

Fire Sword was about to say but then his mother appeared in his minds eye.

I know you don’t like your cousin Blueblood but you must not say bad things about him. Even if they are true.

“He shall remain unnamed,” Fire said as he took another bite of toast.

There was a moment of silence.

“So uh, how’s your stead coming?” Applejack asked. “Come up with a plan yet?”

“Actually yes,” Fire said. “I managed to make a drawing that I really liked just before I came here.”

“Oh, I would LOVE to see it!” Rarity said. “Perhaps after we are finished eating, if you wouldn’t mind showing.”

“Not at all,” Fire said.

They ate their breakfast, followed by a cupcake or two. Or in Pinkie’s case, cupcakes and then breakfast. Then Fire led the girls to the inn and showed them the drawing he’d made of his dream tower.

“Oh, it’s simply divine!” Rarity said as she admired the sketch at the bottom. “I see you had several ideas. But I think the tower is the most perfect!”

“I could send that to Princess Celestia if you want, Fire!” Twilight said. “Spike can send it right away along with my letter!”

“Yeah!” Spike said.

Fire frowned. “Uh, how can he send it? He’s just a baby dragon.”

“Oh, didn’t you know? I send letters to your mom thanks to a spell she put on me. Any paper that I use my fire on appears in front of her!”

“Oh, so that’s how you send those letters that just seem to appear out of thin air!” Fire said. “Well alright.”

Twilight had Spike write a letter explaining Fire had drawn a picture of his idea for a home and they were sending it. They then folded their letter on top of Fire’s drawing (after he circled the tower one to be sure there was no confusion) and sent it.

“I’ll be sending a friendship report later sometime,” Twilight said.

“So have you picked out a spot around Ponyville to have your awesome tower built?” Raindow Dash asked.

“I was thinking a hill, like the one near Sweet Apple Acres?” Fire asked looking at Applejack. “If you don’t mind that is. I think I saw a hill that didn’t have any trees on it.”

“Oh, not at all. That will be perfectly fine,” the cowgirl pony said. “It’ll be nice to have a neighbor nearby. Maybe you’d like an apple seed or two as well?”

“Well, I suppose that couldn’t hurt,” Fire said. “I do like apples, I snack on them every now and then actually.”

“Ah shucks. Sounds like you’d really like one then!” Applejack said.

“Sure, maybe some grapes as well, I do like those. Could have a garden around the hill!” Fire Sword said.

“Oh, you must include roses as well! A royal refuge cannot be complete without beauty!” Rarity said.

“Now hold on Rarity! You need function!” Applejack said.

“Fashion is far more important! Especially when it comes to royals!” Rarity said.

“Function!”

“Fashion!”

“Function!”

“Fashion!”

“Girls!” Fire intervened putting up his hooves. “This is going be my house! I’ll decide what it looks like!”

“My apologies, Fire,” Rarity said. “You are right! It is your house and you should decide what it looks like.”

“Yeah, its gonna be your place.”

“I was merely offering a suggestion,” Rarity said.

“And it was a good one,” Fire said. “I do want my place to look nice. Some roses would accomplish that, and I can have fruit as well to feed myself and any servants, guards or guests.”

“It sounds wonderful,” Twilight said. “Send the letter, Spike!”

The baby dragon blew out and turned the letter into ash. It would soon appear in front of Fire’s mother.

“Oh, and I’m sure you will be needing decorations,” Rarity said. “I would be honored to make you some if you would permit it!”

“Thanks Rarity,” Fire said. “I’d be happy to see what you can whip up.”

“Oh, thank you! You know it’s always been a dream of mine to be a fashion designer for Equestrian Royalty!”

Fire smiled. “Well, I’m sure if you impress me, I can put in a good word to my mother.”

“You’d do that, for me?”

“Of course!” he said.

“Oh, thank you! Thank you!” she said.

Then she kissed him on the cheek… twice. He blushed.

“I’ll get to work on something right away!” she said before galloping back to her boutique.

“Hey hold on!” Fire said going after her. “Not until the place is at least partially built!”

…

Applejack sniggered. “Looks like Rarity’s got her sights set on him!”

“It was very sweet of her to kiss him,” Fluttershy said. “Of course, it maybe just because he is royalty.”

“Maybe, although she would probably love to be able to actually marry a royal!” Twilight said. “It would probably be a dream come true for her!”

Spike made a soft growl as he folded his arms.

“And I’m not royal enough for her, huh?” he mumbled to himself even though he wasn’t royal at all. “I’m already a big strong dragon that does lots of work around here.”

“Eh, I don’t need that mushy business!” Rainbow Dash waved her hoof. “Flying with the Wonderbolts would be everything I could wish for!”

“Who knows though, you might find a stallion to match your energy?” Fluttershy suggested.

“Uh... maybe. Well, see you girls later!” Rainbow said before flying off.

…

Fire soon caught up with Rarity and told her to hold off on making any decorations until after his home was getting built.

“Well, if you insist,” she said. “But perhaps I can add them in as its built? Its probably better to have it all furnished and decorated by the time its done.”

“That’s probably a good idea,” Fire agreed. “Thanks a lot.”

“Just let me know when you are ready,” Rarity told him.

“I will,” Fire said before grinning softly. “Good day, my lady.”

She blushed at him and looked away with red cheeks.

“As you wish, my prince,” she said with a bow.

Fire chuckled. His heart seemed to skip a beat as he looked at her. She was so beautiful, perhaps the most beautiful unicorn he'd ever seen. And she wasn't just lovely on the outside but the inside as well. She’d given her tail to a sea serpent from what he’d heard and now she was offering to help him decorate his home. She had wonderful taste as well in her love of fashion. Fire had at times disliked shopping when he was a colt, but he’d grown to outgrow it in the recent years and could appreciate the style and effort that went into making clothes nowadays. Though he didn’t particularly want to spend long periods of time shopping.

“Say um… would you…” his tongue began to twist in his mouth as he struggled to form the words he wanted to say.

“Yes?” she asked.

“Would you like to… um… spend some time together later?” he asked. “Just the two of us?”

He couldn’t bring himself to say go out. He wasn’t quite as shy as Fluttershy but asking a mare out wasn’t quite an easy thing to do the first time. He’d spent time with plenty of mares like Moondancer and the others, but he’d never quite felt like they were the one.

“Certainly. I would never turn down a wonderful stallion such as you,” Rarity said. “Oh, and there is somepony I’ve been meaning to ask you about.”

“Oh, well, alright,” Fire said. “Who would that be?”

“Prince Blueblood of course!”

Fire’s golden eyes widened. “What about him?”

“Well, he is the most eligible bachelor in all of Equestria! I’ve always wanted the chance to meet him! He is my prince charming!” Rarity said. “Handsome, classy, and royal.”

Fire frowned slightly, a slight crack forming in his heart. She was already head over hoofs in love with his spoiled cousin.

“Can you tell me about him?” Rarity asked.

Fire hesitated a moment, a sick feeling welling up inside him as he said, “I’m afraid he and I do not get along. I’m sorry but I need to go.”

He walked off.

“But I thought you wanted to spend time together?” Rarity asked. “Have I done something to offend you?”

“No,” he lied. “It's just I don’t get along with Blueblood.”

“Oh, well I suppose that might be the case as you both likely grew up together being princes. You must be like brothers!” Rarity said.

At that point Fire’s mane lit up with flames.

“We aren’t even CLOSE to brothers!” he shouted.

With a single strong flap he took off into the sky, leaving a bewildered Rarity.

…

Rarity watched him fly off so suddenly.

“Hmm. Royal tensions it seems,” the mare said. “I only hope I haven’t done any damage to my friendship with him. Perhaps I should apologize later and agree to never bring up my dashing Prince Blueblood again.”

She sighed as she went back to her boutique. She thought of the feelings in her heart. There was sadness, as well as a tender feeling she was unsure of. Fire’s face kept appearing in her mind. She’d often imagined herself meeting Prince Blueblood when she was one day invited to a special event in Canterlot where he would notice her and ask for her hoof. But suddenly when the same fantasy happened, Blueblood was replaced with Fire Sword.

“Oh, what’s gotten into you Rarity!” she said to herself. “This is the actual son of Celestia herself that you’re thinking of! There’s no way he would ever want your hoof!”

She hesitated a moment. “Although, if you are willing to try to woo a prince, he is one too! But I’m not sure we’re right for each other! What if it doesn’t work out? It could mess up our friendship! No, better not to pursue it!”

She looked down. “I just hope this tension resolves itself soon. Although if he and Blueblood really don’t get along, will he resent me when I become the prince’s bride? I hope not. But this is my dream! I must pursue it… or him. Blueblood that is!”

She took a breath.

Chapter 4: The Prince's Job

Princess Celestia’s reply came soon and was sent to Twilight. It responded to both her and Fire Sword’s letters.

“Ahem,” Spike cleared his throat before reading Celestia’s response to Twilight. “Dear Twilight, I’m glad you are enjoying yourself with your new friends and of course my son. Speaking of which, please tell him that I’ve already sent his depiction of the home he wishes to the finest architect in Equestria. He and his team will be there soon and have that tower built lickety-split. I am also working on having a new part added to the Royal Guard specifically made for both my sister Princess Luna and my son. Fire’s guard should be there soon as well sometime after the architects.”

Twilight smiled. “They must be very good builders if they are able to complete it so quickly.”

“Well, this is the son of Celestia we’re talking about,” Spike said. “He has to have it done as soon as possible.”

He grew a frown. “I just hope he doesn’t have Rarity as soon as possible.”

Twilight giggled. “Looks like some dragon is a little jealous.”

“I’m not!” Spike said with folded arms.

Twilight raised her eyebrows.

Spike sighed. “Okay, fine. I’m a bit jealous of the way Rarity looks at Fire Sword.”

“Well, he is a very handsome pony, and the son of Princess Celestia,” Twilight reminded him. “Besides, Rarity is quite a bit older than you! You’re just a baby dragon and she’s almost a full-grown mare!”

Spike growled. “So, you’re saying I’m too young for Rarity?”

“Sorry Spike but it’s the truth,” Twilight said. “But I’m sure Rarity adores you. Someday, you’ll find a special pony, or dragon, I’m sure.”

“She is just so beautiful,” Spike said. “Well, I’m not gonna give her up without a fight!”

“Careful Spike, don’t go fighting Fire over Rarity! Especially if you don’t want to get burned!” Twilight said cracking a joke.

“Dragons are fire-proof, so Fire has nothing on me! Ha!” Spike said.

Twilight sighed.

“Relax its not like I’m really gonna fight Fire!” Spike said. “Just try and win Rarity’s heart before he does!”

…

Fire Sword walked through Ponyville deep in thought. He was here in this town, which was nice enough in his mind. Some ponies back in Canterlot looked down on these country ponies but he didn’t find it that bad. At least it was less crowded and noisy, and the air was cleaner. But what was he going to do here once his tower was built? He was a prince so there wasn’t really a necessity for him to have a job, but doing nothing all day except spending time with his new Ponyville friends was quickly turning out to be boring. He’d explored the town, dined at the finest restaurants and even saved the town as well as the rest of Equestria from Eternal Night. But while he was here, he felt it would be best to actually do something. All of his friends had jobs; Twilight was running the Golden Oaks Library and giving reports to Fire’s mother on friendship, Rarity had her fashion business, Applejack ran Sweet Apple Acres with her family, Fluttershy looked after animals, Pinkie Pie worked at Sugarcube Corner with a married couple called the Cakes who baked, and Rainbow Dash cleared the clouds and brought rain in with the other Pegasi. Hay, all his friends were still mares. He seriously needed to find a stallion to hang out with sooner or later. But first he needed to get a job. But what kind of job? Then an idea occurred to him as he thought back on his cutie mark and his part time training with the royal guards while also learning magic at his mother’s school.

He headed over to Town Hall as that seemed a good place to start. Entering the building he found Mayor Mare in her office. She looked up at him and smiled, bowing her head.

“Oh, good morning, Prince Fire Sword,” she said. “How might I help you today?”

“I was wondering if there were any available jobs here in Ponyville?” Fire said.

“You are a prince though!” the mayor exclaimed. “You don’t need to work!”

“Doesn’t mean I don’t want to. It is a little boring without something to do. My mother always has lots of paper work to fill out,” Fire said. “That might be a bit boring as well but I know it’s necessary. We all have to work in some form or another. I don’t want to just lounge around and do nothing.”

Which was probably what Cousin Blueblood would do. He thought.

“I suppose you make a good point,” Mayor Mare conceded. “Very well. What sort of job do you have in mind?”

Fire brought a hoof to his chin. “Hmm. I could help here at Town Hall I suppose, with event planning and I could possibly act as a representative for my mother while I’m here.”

“That does sound appropriate,” Mayor Mare agreed. “I would be honored to have the princess more involved in our humble community.”

Fire nodded and continued. “Though my special talent is supposed to be combat magic. I’ve trained with both magic and with the royal guards. Could that be of use in Ponyville somehow?”

“Combat trained, eh?” she asked. “Well, we could use some law enforcement. We don’t have much crime here in Ponyville but there is the occasional offence. You did handle Nightmare Moon and that was probably much bigger than what we are used to on a day-to-day basis!”

Fire hummed. “I can do that.”

“Good, because we don’t really have an acting Sherriff, ponies usually just come to me to report a crime when it happens,” Mayor Mare said. “When you aren’t enforcing the law, you could also help me with event planning here if you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” Fire agreed. “A proper prince needs to be able to lead, manage and protect his home after all.”

“Very well, Prince Fire, or should I say Sheriff Fire… you are now an acting officer of Ponyville and have a seat in the Town Hall Council,” Mayor Mare said.

“Thank you,” Fire said. “How do I start?”

“We haven’t got anything major going on here in Ponyville today aside from the parties that Pinkie Pie throws for practically any reason.”

Fire nodded. “That pony is such a party animal.”

“I can let you know when we’re planning something to happen,” the mayor said. “Though now that I think about it, I suppose it would be best to announce that you will be the new Sherriff here. I’ll spread the word and have everypony meet in front of Town Hall later today.”

Fire nodded. He went back out into town and patrolled it, if he was going to be sheriff that was probably a good way to start in order to find any crime.

“Hey Fire!” a voice called from above.

Looking up, Fire saw Rainbow Dash flying over him.

“Hey Rainbow,” he greeted. “How are things with you?”

“Good, the sky’s already clear so I can just relax for the rest of the day,” she said pulling up a cloud. “Of course, I still need to stay in shape if I want to join the Wonderbolts. What are you up to?”

“Well, I just spoke with the Mayor about having a job and its looks I’m gonna have two,” Fire said. “Law enforcement and representing my mother here.”

“Great, well if you want to catch some bad guys, I’d recommend using your wings,” Rainbow Dash said spreading her own. “You’ll be able to see a lot more from up here in the sky.”

“Good point,” Fire said as he flapped his own wings and took off.

He hovered over town, and indeed could see more of it at once as he looked down. In the distance he saw Sweet Apple Acres, Carousel Boutique, Sugarcube Corner and various other locations.

“Need a hoof, or wing?” Rainbow Dash asked as she flew up next to him.

“Thought you wanted to just relax all day?” Fire teased.

“Yeah, that would be nice, but if I actually manage to stop a big crime then my chances of getting recognized by the Wonderbolts will increase tenfold!” Rainbow put her hoofs to her cheeks.

Fire frowned at the display of her ego and let out a small sigh. “Alright, I guess I could use the help. Let me know if you spot anything.”

“Will do Captain!” Rainbow Dash saluted him. “Or Prince!”

“It's Sheriff Right now,” Fire said.

“Sheriff Fire! Got it!”

“Alright, you’re now a part time deputy!” Fire said.

“And I won’t disappoint!” Rainbow said.

She then took off at an incredible speed. Fire meanwhile flew calmly over Ponyville. Then after a few minutes he heard his name being called again.

“Fire!”

It was Twilight this time. Spike walked by her side.

“Hey Twilight,” Fire said swooping down and landing in front of her. “Did you get a reply from my mom?”

“Yes, and she said to tell you that’s she’s already sent word to the best architect in Equestria,” Twilight informed. “They are probably on their way now.”

“Ah, good,” Fire said. “Then my home should be built pretty quick. Anything going on at the library?”

“Not much, which is good,” Twilight said. “Libraries are supposed to be nice and quiet. Did you know Pinkie Pie threw me a party in there when I first arrived in Ponyville?”

“No.”

“It was the night before Summer Sun Celebration,” she said. “Back when I thought friendship was a waste of time.”

“Oh,” Fire said in realization before remembering something. “Oh, and have you heard from Moondancer lately?”

“Moondancer, from the School of Magic?” Twilight asked. “No, why?”

“Oh, I thought she would have invited you to another party by now.”

“Well, parties don’t have to happen every day. Unless you’re Pinkie Pie,” Spike said as he looked at them before leaning off to the side. “Well, speak of the pony we last talked about!”

Fire turned around to see what Spike was looking at behind him. He smiled at the sight of four familiar mares from Canterlot.

"Moondancer, Twinkleshine, Minuette, and Lemon Hearts!” he said as he saw the group of unicorns he’d partied with before the Summer Sun Celebration.

“Hi Fire!” Minuette said before noticing Twilight. “Hey Twilight, hi Spike!”

“Oh, hey girls,” Twilight said her ears falling. “Hey, I’m really sorry for being such a bad friend while I was in Canterlot. I always thought that friendship was a waste of time that would only get in the way. But going up against Nightmare Moon taught me otherwise.”

She bowed her head to them.

“It’s okay Twilight,” Twinkleshine came forward a put a hoof on her shoulder. “We were kind of used to it from you.”

“Most of us anyway,” Moondancer said. “I had really hoped you would come to my party.”

“I know, Fire told me,” Twilight said in a voice filled with remorse. “I wish I could have gone now. But the princess sent me here.”

“I know,” Moondancer said with a nod.

“But I promise I’ll come to the next one,” Twilight said with a smile. "Friends?"

"Freinds." Moondancer nodded and walked up and hugged her. She was quickly joined with the others.

“So, what are you guys doing here?” Fire asked.

“Oh, we came to visit our friend Lyra,” Lemon Hearts said.

“Yeah, she moved to Ponyville just like you two! I guess that gives us three friends to visit!” Minuette said enthusiastically. “Come on, why don’t we all go together to her place?”

“Oh, uh, I’m sorry but I’ve taken a job as a Sheriff here and I can’t really abandon that,” Fire said. “But I could find you girls later!”

“Wow, a Prince Sherriff huh?” Lemon Hearts said. “Cool!”

“See you later then,” Minuette said.

They began to walk off and then Twilight looked at Fire.

“Oh, and before I forget your mom said she wanted me to tell you that she’s making you a personal set of guards that should be here later!”

“Oh, okay,” Fire shrugged.

Moondancer didn’t say anything but looked at Fire as she and the other girls walked off with Twilight to hang out. Fire then flapped his wings and ascended back into the sky. Things were quiet, but who knew how long that would last? He flew above, looking down below. For a while he found nothing out of the ordinary then…

Boom!

A loud sound filled his ears, the sound of thunder coming from above.

“Aah!” he yelped in surprise.

A laugh sounded and he looked up to see a dark thundercloud with a certain blue pegasus laying on it.

“Gotcha!” Rainbow Dash said with a laugh.

Fire sniggered. “Oh, you are gonna get it my little deputy!”

He flew at her and she leapt off her cloud. He dove through it and caused it to vanish into thin air. Fire flew after Rainbow Dash who managed to stay a good deal out of range. She was fast, a bit faster than Fire as she managed to stay just out of range.

“You’re pretty fast,” she admitted. “Nopony else can give me a decent chase!”

Fire flapped his rings but could quickly feel the fatigue catching up to him. He couldn’t catch her, but he then remembered he had one leg up on her. Flapping hard with the last of the strength in his wings he activated his magic and enveloped Rainbow Dash in a red aura.

“Uh oh!” Rainbow said as she noticed this.

Fire pulled her back and caught her from behind.

“Gotcha!” he said.

“Yep guess you did! Wow, never had a pony that could actually catch me before!” Rainbow Dash said.

He grinned and let go of her.

“Feels good to have another flying buddy around here,” Rainbow said. “Fluttershy is usually too scared to come far off the ground.”

Fire smiled. She might be arrogant and a braggart but she was admittedly cool and athletic.

“So you like to sneak up on ponies, huh?”

“Yeah, I like a good prank every now and then,” Rainbow said.

Fire grinned. “Better look out cause, I like to prank a few ponies myself.”

“Oh really?” Rainbow asked with a smug smirk.

“Yeah, when I was a colt I’d get into quite a bit of trouble in Canterlot,” Fire told her. “I’d paint the royal guard’s armor to look like clowns.”

Rainbow Dash laughed. “Oh that’s good!”

“Yeah, but they’re no fun. They hardly respond to anything at all unless absolutely necessary. So, I went out and began pulling pranks on some other ponies in Canterlot, mainly the upper-class ones I didn’t like.”

“Oh, that’s rich! I bet you didn’t get any punishment at all for it!” Rainbow guessed.

“Well, I eventually got caught by one of them doing graffiti putting things like snob or spoiled on their mansions,” Fire said with a frown. “My mom grounded me for like a month!”

“Still, that’s pretty cool,” Rainbow said.

“Yeah,” Fire said as an idea occurred to him for some payback on her. “Better look out Rainbow, cause the Prince of Pranking is coming out of retirement!”

“Bring it on!” Rainbow Dash said. “But we should probably get back to our little patrol!”

“Yeah, but you’ll get yours!” Fire promised.

She took off. Fire flew around the town for a while and eventually he heard a cry for-

“Help! Thief!” somepony, a mare screamed.

Fire flew in the direction of the voice. He caught a glimpse of somepony in a dark cloak, a unicorn by the horn that was visible. He saw it was a white horn like his own that shined in a yellow aura. Bits were levitated toward the unicorn and flew into his open brown saddlebag. The cloak hid any of his… or her other features.

“It’s the Magic Money Snatcher!” one of the ponies said.

“Hey!” Fire yelled as he soared down. “Give those bits back!”

The hooded unicorn looked up at him as he approached. Then his horn lit up again and Fire brought magic to his own horn, mentally preparing himself to dodge the incoming attack with his wings. His combat training from the royal guard as well as spell casting from the School of Magic coming into play. But instead of attacking, the thieving pony simply vanished in a yellow flash.

“Hmm,” Fire hummed. “A cloaked unicorn thief that uses magic to steal things. I guess this is gonna be my first case as the new sheriff!”

“You’re the sheriff?” one of the ponies that had been robbed said. “Please, get me my bits back!”

“Everypony please stay calm!” Fire said. “I will do my best to bring this thief to justice and get you your bits back!”

He headed back to Town Hall. Ponyville didn’t have a barracks or a law enforcement building of any kind so this was where he would have to take his findings.

“Mayor Mare!” he called.

“Prince Fire Sword?” she rose from her desk and came out of her office. “Did something happen?”

“I saw a unicorn thief using magic to steal a bunch of bits!” Fire Sword told her. “He… or she teleported away as soon as they had them.”

“Oh dear. That’s happened every few weeks for the last three months,” the mayor said. “A unicorn thief with high magic skill has been stealing things from not only Ponyville but also Canterlot, and other areas.”

Fire gritted his teeth. He had heard rumors of a thief in Canterlot but not thought too much of it.

“Whoever this thief is they obviously have high skill in magic,” Fire said. “I don’t know many unicorns that can teleport.”

“Perhaps you should speak with Twilight Sparkle, she was the star student of Princess Celestia… your mother at the School of Magic,” Mayor Mare said.

“Good idea,” Fire said.

He headed to the Golden Oaks library. Twilight wasn’t there but Spike was.

“Oh, hey Prince Fire,” Spike said as he was sitting on a small chair reading a comic book.

“Twilight out, Spike?” Fire asked.

“Yeah, she and her old friends from Canterlot are finally getting together,” Spike said. “I always told her we should spend more time with them. It was always study this and study that with Twilight. We never got to just have fun.”

“Well, Twilight’s always been hard working I’ll give her that,” Fire said. “I guess I’ll just wait for her.”

He scanned the shelves for something to read in the meantime. Seeing an adventure book called Daring Do he pulled it off the shelf with his magic and took a seat. The story was good, but eventually he was interrupted by the sound of the door to the library opening. Twilight as well as Moondancer came in.

“Here it is the Golden Oaks Library where I’ll be staying,” Twilight said looking at her fellow scholarly pony.

“Wow, it’s amazing! A library in a tree. I’m kind of jealous,” Moondancer said. “You can read a new book just about every day.”

“Yeah, this library has even more books than I had back at my tower in Canterlot,” Twilight said.

“You had a tower in Canterlot?” Moondancer asked.

“Yeah, I never had you over?” Twilight asked before looking down in realization. “Oh, I’m sorry. We probably could have spent so much together reading and talking about things we read.”

“Hey, it's okay. You learned that friends are worth it,” Moondancer said putting a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “Maybe we can do that now. I’ll come read with you when we come to see you and Lyra.”

“Hey, don’t forget about me!” Fire said with a frown.

“Oh, Fire! Didn’t see you there!” Twilight said.

“Hi Fire,” Moondancer said with a blush.

“Is there something I can help you with?” Twilight asked. “I thought you said you were gonna be acting as Sheriff around Ponyville?”

“I was. I am!” Fire said. “But while I was out patrolling, I saw some pony use magic to steal a bunch of bits from ponies in the streets!”

The two mares put hooves over their mouths.

“What?” Moondancer exclaimed. “That’s terrible!”

“And more, they could teleport!” Fire said.

“Despicable!” Twilight said with disgust. “Having such a high level of magical ability and only using it for petty theft! Somepony like that should be ashamed of wielding magic!”

“Well, I’m gonna find a way to stop him if I can,” Fire said. “I was hoping you might now a spell that could help?”

“There is a spell tracking spell,” Twilight said. “It’s a spell that can keep track of other spells in a certain location. You just select the spell you want monitored and you’ll be able to know who cast it and when.”

Fire smirked. “That sounds like just the kind of spell I need!”

Twilight quickly located the book with the spell and took it outside into Ponyville. “Okay, I need to stand in the center of town and…”

She shot a lavender beam of light onto the ground and a small magic rune appeared there. Fire then felt a wave of magic pass over him.

“I set it to track teleportation spells,” Twilight said. “The next time somepony reports a thieving unicorn that can teleport we’ll be able to find them.”

“Good, thanks Twilight,” Fire said.

“Prince Fire Sword!” a voice said behind.

Fire turned and saw a group of around a dozen ponies all wearing construction helmets and carrying saddlebags with tools. They were led by a light a gray Pegasus with a brown mane and mustache.

“I’m Hammer Hoof,” the leader said. “Your mother has tasked me to build your new tower here!”

Fire smiled, “Good to meet you!”

He’d solve the case of the thieving unicorn, but first he’d need to start working on getting his place set up. Also, there was the announcement coming up soon.

He led Hammer Hoof to the hill he’d chosen near Sweet Apple Acres.

“We’ll get started right away!” Hammer Hoof said.

“Sure you don’t need any help?” Fire asked.

“I’m sure,” Hammer said.

Fire nodded. He didn’t know much about building and architecture, so he might goof things up. Ah well, he’d found what he was going to do here in any case.

…

He soon stood in front of Town Hall.

“I would like to welcome our new Sheriff to Ponyville! Prince Fire Sword has offered to join our law enforcement! Now I heard today that we had a theft once again from the mysterious magical thief! I promise you that Prince Fire will be doing everything he can to help out!” Mayor Mare said.

She held out a hoof to the prince who stepped forward. He felt a little nervous as he was not used to addressing a large number of ponies at once. But he’d at least been by his mother’s side when she’d done it.

He took a breath and then said, “Yes, I will do just that! With my deputy Rainbow Dash at my side as well as the royal guards that will be arriving soon, and my new friends here in Ponyville we will get your bits and any other stolen things back!”

He looked at them in the crowd and beckoned them forward. They did so and stood by his side, all except Fluttershy who backed away. Rainbow Dash flew over and picked her up then propped her into the group.

“We’ll all do our part!” Twilight said. “With the magic of friendship on our side we will protect Ponyville and all of Equestria from threats great and small!”

Fire nodded and spread his wings, wrapping them around Twilight and Rarity who were closest to him. The other mares gathered close to him in a group hug as well. Their journey had just begun.

Chapter 5: Aurora of Friendship

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 6: The Ticket Master

Fire Sword put on his new Sheriff Uniform and began walking out to begin his day of rounds. As he did so however, a male pegasus in a mail delivery uniform of his own came in with...

“Letter to Prince… or Sheriff Fire!” the Pegasus said slightly out of breath as he handed the mail to the alicorn.

“Thank you,” Fire said. “You look like you flew a long distance.”

“All the way from Canterlot,” the mail pony said.

Fire reached into his pocket. “Hmm, I appreciate it. Here.”

He handed a few bits to the Pegasus as a tip.

“Thank you,” the stallion said with a bow.

“Go and get some rest before you return to Canterlot,” Fire suggested.

The Pegasus nodded and Fire continued on. He opened the letter with his magic and found it was from his mother. He began reading aloud.

Dear Fire, my beloved son who warms my heart.

Fire chuckled at that.

I have almost finished with having the armor made for your new personal guard. I expect they will be there soon and your home will be finished as well. Also, I plan on sending Twilight Sparkle a ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala.

He frowned. “Eh, the Grand Galloping Gala.”

It was the biggest party in Canterlot, yet it was always awful and dreadfully dull. How did they get such good ratings? He was probably going to pass this year. All he’d ever done was stand by his mother’s side and greet the ponies coming in. Though he might feel differently if there was a mare for him to dance with. His mind immediately wandered to Rarity, but he quickly pushed it out as he knew she was already infatuated with Blueblood.

He read ahead.

Please don’t mention anything about how it usually is to her or her friends for fear that she may not attend! I’m hoping that having her and one of her friends come might liven things up.

“Hmm, I suppose that could work,” Fire said. “Might make things interesting.”

I also hope that you might consider coming yourself. Perhaps you can find a lucky mare to bring as a date (wink).

Your Mother Princess Celestia.

Inside were a pair of golden tickets. Fire sighed.

“Well, if that’s what my mom wants,” he said.

He thought about who he might be able to bring besides Rarity. Maybe one of his other friends from Ponyville, or Canterlot. Well, he’d just have to decide, there was still quite a bit of time till the gala. He headed out on his rounds to patrol.

…

On Sweet Apple Acres, two ponies worked with baskets full of apples on their backs. Though in the case of a certain lavender unicorn, she also had to deal with the addition of a certain baby dragon as well. Spike inspected the apples in the baskets on Twilight’s back hungrily. He looked through the apples, inspecting them and throwing them away thoughtlessly when they didn’t meet his standards.

“Nope, nope,” he said to each one.

“Thank you kindly, Twilight for helping me out,” Applejack said. “I bet Big Mcintosh I could get all these Golden Delicous in the barn by lunch time.”

She then smirked. “If I win, he’s gonna walk down Sternup Street in one of Granny’s girdles!”

“No problem at all,” Twilight replied. “I’m glad the goal is lunch time. All this hard work is making me hungry!”

“I know, right?” Spike said throwing another apple away.

This one landed on Twilight’s head, causing her to glare at him. “Oh really Spike? You’ve been lounging on my back all morning while we worked!”

“Exactly,” the baby dragon said not getting the point. “You guys were taking so long that I missed snack time!”

Twilight’s stomach rumbled. She giggled.

“I guess we better get something to eat.”

“Nope, nope!” Spike said continuing to throw away apples he deemed unworthy until finally. “Aha!”

He pulled out a big red apple that looked to be the best of the bunch.

Twilight’s eyes went wide. “Oh Spike! That looks delicious!” she said as he held out to her as though offering it.

Instead he gobbled it all up instantly.

“Spike!” she exclaimed.

“What?” he asked cluelessly before belching.

From the green fire that flew from his mouth, a scroll materialized. At that moment, a certain fiery haired alicorn arrived on the scene.

“Morning Applejack, Twilight,” Fire said. “Spike.”

“Howdy Fire!” Applejack said. “Looks like you arrived just in time for Twilight to get some mail!”

“Oh, really, I wonder what it’s about?” he asked with what sounded like a hint of sarcasm.

“Well, it’s a letter from Princess Celestia!” Twilight said. “Your mom!”

Spike opened the scroll and cleared his throat before reading the letter in a formal voice, "Here ye, Here ye! Your grand royal highness, Princess Celestia of Equestria, is pleased to announce the Grand Galloping Gala to be held in the magnificent capital of Canterlot on the 21st day of… yadda yadda yadda… cordially extends an invitation to Twilight Sparkle plus one guest!"

Applejack and Twilight gasped. "The Grand Galloping Gala!"

They began to jump around and dance as Spike watched in annoyance before opening his mouth again and burping out two golden tickets that matched the ones from Fire’s letter.

"Look! Two Tickets!" Spike said.

"Wow! Great! I've never been to the Gala, have you Spike?" Twilight asked.

"No! And I plan to keep it that way!” he said. “I don't want any of the girly frilly froo-froo nonsense." Spike replied.

"Aw, come on Spike! A dance would be nice!" Twilight said.

Fire had to agree. If he could actually find a date, he might enjoy it.

"Nice?" Applejack interrupted. "It's a heap good more than just nice. I'd love to go. Land sakes, if I had an apple stand set up, ponies would be chowin' our tasty vittles till the cows came home. Do you have any idea how much business I could drum up for Sweet Apple Acres? Why, with all that money, we could do a heap of fixin' up 'round here. We could replace that saggy old roof, and Big Macintosh could replace that saggy old plow, and Granny Smith could replace that saggy old hip. Why, I'd give my left hind leg to go to that gala."

Twilight smiled and looked at Fire. “Well, I’m sure you must have been there, Fire.”

The prince nodded. “Yeah, to be honest, it wasn’t really that fun. At least not for me.”

He saw their excited expressions lessen, then remembered his mother’s instructions.

“But maybe it will be different this year!” he said. “Things don’t always go the best every year, you know?”

They smiled. Then suddenly something came crashing on top of the two mares while Fire watched in surprise. It was Rainbow Dash.

"Are we talking about the Grand Galloping Gala?" she exclaimed after she landed on them.

"Rainbow Dash! You told me you were too busy to help me harvest apples! What were you busy doing? Spying?" Applejack asked in irritation.

"No!" Rainbow Dash immediately responded. "I was busy… napping. And I just HAPPENED to hear that you have an extra ticket?"

"Yeah but…" Twilight tried to say.

"YESS! This is so awesome! The Wonderbolts perform at the Grand Galloping Gala every year! I can see it now, everyone will be watching, they have the rivet on the Wonderbolts, but then in would fly… Rainbow Dash! I would draw their attention with my super speedy strot, then I would mesmerize them with my fantastic filly flash, and for my grand finale, the Buccaneer Blaze! The ponies would go wild! The Wonderbolts would insist that my signature moves be added to their team and then welcome me as their newest member! Can’t you see Twilight? This could be my one chance to show my stuff! You got to take me!"

Applejack then pulled back on Rainbow’s tail. “Hold on this one pony pickin minute! I asked for that ticket first!”

“So? That doesn’t mean you own it!” Rainbow countered.

The two ponies faced each other with angry expressions.

“Oh yeah? Well, I challenge you to a hoof wrestle!” Applejack declared. “Winner gets the ticket!”

Fire smirked, this was certainly proving interesting already. The two mares went to a nearby stump and began to wrestle until Twilight broke them up.

“Girls! These are my tickets! I’ll decide who gets it thank you very much!” Twilight said pointing a hoof to her chest. “Whoever has the best reason to go should get the ticket, don’t you think?”

Applejack stepped forward eagerly. “Drumming up business for the farm?”

Rainbow cut in front of her. “A chance to audition for the Wonderbolts!”

“Money to fix Grannies hip!” Applejack cut back in.

“Living the dream!” Rainbow finished.

Twilight hesitated. “Oh my, those were all pretty good reasons, aren’t they?”

Her stomach rumbled. Fire then stepped forward.

“You know, I’m sure my mom would be able to send all of you tickets,” he said. “I could ask her!”

He looked at Spike. “Mind sending one your super quick letters for me?”

Spike looked around. “Uh, we actually don’t have paper and ink right now. Didn’t think we’d need them.”

“Oh,” Fire said.

“I’m not sure that would work out,” Twilight said her ears falling. “I mean the Grand Galloping Gala is one of the biggest parties there is. You really think Princess Celestia will have room for all of us?”

Fire did recall the event being crowded last year.

“I don’t know.”

Twilight’s stomach rumbled again. She giggled. “Well, would you listen to that? I am starving, so I’ll think about it over lunch and get back to you two!”

“Okay,” the two of them said sadly.

Fire approached them. “You know, I have an extra ticket myself!” he said drawing them out. “My mom said I could use it for a date but…”

He was silent after that, sure they would take the hint. They both smiled at him.

“Really?” Rainbow asked. “You’d do that for us?”

“Sure!” Fire said.

“Now hold on, your mom wanted you to give that to a date, right?” Applejack said.

“Well, yeah, but its not exactly required,” Fire said.

“Wouldn’t you want to take Rarity?” Applejack asked. “I’ve noticed you two spending some time together and you seem to well… like one another?”

Fire blushed in embarrassment. “Me and Rarity?” he asked with hesitation.

“Yeah, you two really seem to fancy each other. She kissed you on the cheek TWICE!” Rainbow Dash pointed out. “Of course, she can be a little dramatic every now and then and get carried away. Especially when it comes to famous ponies or royalty.”

Fire sighed. “Well, she actually likes somepony else. My cousin Prince Blueblood.”

His ears drooped. Applejack noticed this and put a hoof to her mouth.

“Well, that’s tough!” she said now putting the hoof on his shoulder. “But come on the only reason she likes him is cause’s a prince. Maybe if you just ask her out, she’ll accept!”

Fire looked at her and shook his head. “Nah, I don’t want to risk her not feeling the same way.”

“She does though!” Rainbow Dash said.

“Has she told you that?” Fire asked.

“Well…”

Their silence was clear.

“Thanks, but I don’t want to take a chance and have her feel confused. It could really upset our friendship if you guys are wrong! Look, I’m perfectly willing to take one of you to the Gala, it doesn’t have to be a date but-“

“No, you should find a wonderful mare to share the night with, your Royal Sheriffness!” Applejack said with a chuckle. “We’ll get our ticket with Twilight.”

“Yeah, I’m gonna go!” Rainbow Dash said flying off.

Applejack noticed she was going in the same direction as Twilight.

“Oh, you better not be trying to steal my ticket!” she said before running off.

“Hey wait up!” Fire said. “You know Applejack, I could still help you out with a little donation to the farm!”

“Thanks Fire but like I said we don’t need charity!” the farm pony said. “Now if you’ll excuse me I gotta catch Rainbow!”

Fire sighed and flew after them, sensing this was going to get out of hoof. He had enjoyed the chaos for a moment back there with the near hoof wrestle but he didn’t want his friends to fight. But by the time he had arrived, Twilight had run into Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie as well. All of them were looking at Twilight expectantly. Rainbow had already caught up.

“I couldn’t risk a goody four shoes like you giving that ticket to just anybody!” the Pegasus said.

“Wait just another minute!” Applejack said as she approached.

"Applejack! Were you following me too?" Twilight asked, annoyed.

"No! I was following THIS one!" Applejack said pointing to Rainbow Dash, "To make sure she didn't try any funny business! Still trying to take my ticket!"

"YOUR TICKET?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

"But Twilight's taking ME!" Pinkie Pie objected.

Bickering began back and forth, with everypony trying to win the extra ticket.

Fire heard the jumbled words and saw Twilight getting down on her stomach, cracking under all the pressure. His mane began to spark as he felt annoyed.

“ENOUGH!” he called in his royal voice that demanded absolute authority. “This is Twilight’s ticket, and she should decide who she takes!”

"Yeah, Fire is right! I’m the one with the extra ticket and I'll take whoever gets it! Now go on, shoo!" Twilight said waving her hoof.

Every other pony started walking out of the area, muttering to themselves angrily.

"And don't worry! I'll figure this out!" Twilight yelled out to them before looking down. “Somehow.”

Fire sighed and approached her. “Twilight, I really think you should at least try to see if my mother has room for all your friends!”

Twilight looked at him. “You might be right. It would be great if we could all go together and everypony could get what they want! Fluttershy wants to see the animals around Canterlot, Rarity wants to meet Prince Blueblood, she’s convinced she’ll woo him. Funny, I was thinking maybe she liked you!”

Twilight too? That was three mares that thought he and Rarity liked each other! Could it really be true? But then, there was a problem with Fluttershy’s hope.

“Pinkie wants to be in the best party there is!” Twilight continued.

Another problem. Fire clenched his teeth.

Twilight gazed at him. “You okay? You look a little nervous.”

Fire took a breath. “I’m… fine.” Just not sure your… our friends will find the gala to be quite as amazing as they think it is. He refrained from saying that as it was something his mother told him not to.

Twilight’s stomach rumbled again.

“I really need to get some food,” she said. “Care to come?”

Fire looked at the clock nearby. He’d been out on patrol for a few hours already. “I suppose it is lunch time. Alright. I guess you could probably use some support, huh?”

“Yes,” she said.

He smiled. “Let’s go.”

They gathered Spike who had followed the others when Twilight shooed everyone away then headed to a nearby café. Spike sat across from Twilight while Fire between them.

“I just hope this idea of yours works,” Twilight said. “It would be the best-case scenario for all of us.”

Fire put a hoof on her shoulder. “Don’t worry, I’m sure I can arrange something for everypony even if the gala thing doesn’t work out! I can take Fluttershy to see the animals in the garden. They’re pretty shy, like her a bit. But they know me so maybe I can help her with that! Maybe I can bring Rarity along with me as a date, that might at least get her noticed by Blueblood, if that’s what she wants.”

Fire said that with a frown. Twilight and Spike both looked at him.

“You really okay with that?” Twilight asked.

“Sure, why wouldn’t I be?” Fire asked. “She’s perfectly at liberty to pursue whoever she likes.”

“But I thought you liked her,” Twilight stated.

Fire blushed. “Okay, I admit it! She’s very beautiful and she has a good heart! As well as talent for making marvelous things!”

Spike looked away and didn’t say anything. Twilight gazed at him.

“You really sure you just want to let her be with Blueblood.”

Fire frowned. “Well, if that’s what she wants.”

“Have you made your decisions?” the waiter asked as he approached.

“Oh, yes!” Twilight said eagerly. “I would love a daffodil and daisy sandwich!”

The waiter nodded and looked at Fire next.

“And for you, sir?” he asked.

“I’ll have a hayburger and hay fries,” Fire said. “Extra crispy!”

“Ooh good choose, Fire!” Spike said before asking, “Do you have any rubies?”

The waiter shook his head causing Spike to frown. “No? Okay, extra cripsy hay fries for me too, then.”

The waiter went off and Spike scowled after him. “I think we need to try another restaurant, I like grass just fine, but would it hurt anyone to offer some gemstones?”

Fire looked at Spike. “We ponies don’t exactly eat those, Spike. You should try the jewelry store.”

“Good idea!” Spike said.

The waiter soon came back with the food.

"Oh, thank you, this looks SO good." Twilight said as Spike dug into his fries. "Just eat this and then we can see if Princess Celestia is willing to have all my friends come. But, what if she doesn’t?”

“We’ll figure something out,” Fire assured her. “I’m the son of Celestia, remember? I’m sure I can help all our friends with what they want. If they weren’t too prideful not accept help.” He muttered the last part to himself, thinking of Applejack.

“Right,” she said. “Everything will be just fine. Glad I can count on you, Fire!”

She smiled. Then somepony flew down and landed next to them.

“Did I hear you right?” Rainbow Dash asked. “You’re gonna ask Princess Celestia if we can all go?”

Twilight frowned and so did Fire. “Rainbow, stop following me!”

The Pegasus grinned nervously. “Okay, okay! Phew, here I was thinking of maybe doing you a favor like make sure you didn’t get rained on. We’re supposed to have a little drizzle right about now!”

She flew off and Fire noticed the sky was indeed being prepared for a rainstorm.

“We better get inside before the rain starts!” he told Twilight. “Wouldn’t want our food to get wet!”

They headed inside and ate their food there. Twilight rubbed her belly as they prepared to leave.

“Ah that hit the spot!” she said. “Now to get a letter to the princess!”

She looked outside and saw the rain was still going on.

“Allow me!” Fire said as he lit up his horn.

A shield formed above them and repelled the rain. Twilight and Spike walked at his side as other ponies watched with amazement.

“Um, excuse me, Sheriff Fire?” one of them asked. “Could we come with you as well?”

All the ponies looked at him hopefully. Apparently, none of the unicorns knew a rain shielding spell. Fire had never really liked the rain, or getting wet for that matter. He’d learned this spell for that reason.

“I suppose,” Fire said.

He expanded the spell in an attempt to cover the immediate area so other ponies could stay dry. They walked as close to him as possible. Those that had to head home in the opposite direction were forced make their way there in the rain.

“Well, you’re certainly REINING the rain in,” Twilight said as a joke as she walked next to him. “And you also really came up with a good set of solutions for my problem. I just hope the princess does really give us all tickets the Grand Galloping Gala!”

“The Grand Galloping Gala?” a pony with a light-yellow coat and pink and black mane said. “You have tickets?”

“That’s the prince there!” another pony said.

“Have your mother invite me!” a mare asked eagerly.

“I’ll marry you!” another said.

Fire and Twilight both clenched their teeth as many ponies began fawning over them for their tickets. Fire immediately lowered his shield and took to the wet sky. Looking back though, he saw Twilight was left on the ground as the ponies began chasing her. Fire swooped back down and grabbed her while also levitating Spike onto his back before flying away. Good thing there didn’t seem to be any Pegasi in the mob chasing them. He took Twilight to the top of the Golden Oaks Library and set her down gently.

She sighed. “Phew, that was close! Good thing I have you as a friend or I don’t know what would be happening to me right now! I’d probably still be stressing about who to give the ticket to and who knows what else would happen! I might have even been chased by a mob like that till sundown!”

“Glad I could help, uh oh!” Fire said as he noticed the mob coming this way. “Quick! Lock the library!”

They headed down and locked the doors just before everypony could get in. Fire then flew out and faced the crowd.

“Everypony enough! I get that you all want to be there!” he said. “But my mother Princess Celestia can only have so many ponies at the gala! Twilight is her most faithful student, please don’t cause her undo stress!”

“Aww!” The ponies said sadly before turning to leave.

Fire sighed. At least the rain was already clearing up. He knocked, Twilight looked out the window and saw the mob was gone. She unlocked the door and let him in.

“Phew, what a day!” she said. “Now we can write that letter!”

They turned and were greeted with a surprise. The other five mares were there already, apparently having been inside the whole time.

“Rainbow Dash told us Fire said he thought you could ask the princess to send tickets for all of us,” Rarity said.

“Yeah,” Fire said.

“We thought we’d meet you here. And sorry, for earlier,” Applejack said. “We shouldn’t have fought over it!”

Twilight smiled at them in forgiveness before saying, “Spike, take a letter!”

Spike got a scroll and quill ready.

“Write this,” Twilight started. “Dear Princess Celestia, I greatly appreciate your invitation, though I can’t decide which of my friends to take and they all have good very reasons to want to go. Fire has told me that you would probably be willing to allow them all to do so. I hope this is true because I’m not sure I could go without all of them. If you can send me four more tickets, I’d greatly appreciate it.”

Spike finished the letter and then blew out green flames. It vanished and they waited. Spike burped up something else soon enough.

"Her reply, that was fast!" Twilight said.

Spike grabbed the new letter and opened it. "My faithful student, Twilight. I’m more than happy to give you enough tickets for your entire group to come. Glad they are all so eager!"

Four more tickets were with the letter, Spike grabbed them and held them up in the air for everypony to see.

"Four more tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala!" he said.

"Yes, now we can ALL go!" Twilight said excitedly.

Every pony cheered. Fire smiled, there was still one problem, however. He had an extra ticket still.

“Guess I’ll have to find a friend or date to take,” Fire said.

But who? That question went through his mind.

Ah well, he’d answer it later.

Author's Note

Okay now we are getting back into the canon parts of the story, which will have a few alterations of dialogue and plot here and there most likely. I know I decided to change things up a little bit with at least the CMC’s since I will be going by the fact that they were shown hugging each other in fright on the night of Nightmare Moon’s return. So we’ll see what I do for Call of the Cutie, and other episodes as well. I tried to keep at least some of the tension here with Fire and Twilight still getting chased by the mob, though it didn’t last quite as long thanks to Fire’s ability to fly. Lucky for Twilight. There will probably be other parts where Fire can help out as well and save the group lots of trouble. Like Canterlot Wedding for example, being the son of Celestia, he’d probably be pretty familiar with Cadance and know something was up. But I doubt it will be the case for every episode. Maybe at least a few though.

Chapter 7: Applebuck Season

Applejack stood on a hill overlooking Sweet Apple Acres with her brother Big Macintosh who had a bandage wrapped around his middle section. “Boy howdy!” The cowgirl pony said. “I got my work cut out for me. That there is the biggest bumper crop o' apples I ever laid eyes on.”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac said. “Too big for you to handle on your own.”

Applejack smiled confidently. “Come on, big brother! You need to rest up and get yourself better. I haven't met an apple orchard yet that I can't handle!” she patted him on the back, directly on the bandage, causing him to wince then glare at her. “Oops, sorry. I'll take a bite out of this job by day's end.”

Big McIntosh wasn’t so sure. “Biting off more than you can chew is just what I'm afraid of.”

Applejack now looked annoyed. “Are you sayin' my mouth is makin' promises my legs can't keep?

“Eeyup.” He confirmed.

Applejack was really annoyed now. “Why of all the-” Applejack muttered while slapping air with her hoof. “This is your sister Applejack, remember? The loyalist of friends and the most dependable of ponies?” she got up in his face.

“But still only one pony,” he reminded her. “And one pony plus hundreds o' apple trees just doesn't add up to...”

“Don't you use your fancy mathematics to muddy the issue!” Applejack interrupted. “I said I could handle this harvest and I'm gonna prove it to you! I'm gonna get every last apple out of those trees this applebuck season all by myself!”

As soon as she said it, she gulped.

…

Fire stood on another hill nearby where his tower was nearly complete after a couple weeks.

“Excellent!” he said. “We’re almost done.”

“Yes! By the end of today, everything will be ready for you to move in, your highness!” Hammer Hoof said.

Fire nodded and looked at all the workers still working. He’d have to thank them all personally when they were done. But for now, he had a job of his own to get done. While they’d been constructing the thing, he’d been doing things himself when he wasn’t on his Sheriff job. He’d picked up tapestries from Rarity as well as art from the local Ponyville gallery and the one in Canterlot. As the workers built the tower, he’d added things to it. Now they just needed to complete the top roof.

He sighed in content and then flew off. It was a day off for him so he could just enjoy himself now. The only he would have to do later besides thanking the workers was welcome his new guards which he’d gotten a letter from his mother saying were ready and would arrive at sunset. Just in time for Fire to show his friends the grand opening of the tower.

He flew over the acres of Applejack’s family and soon spotted the Earth pony beneath him.

“Morning Applejack!” Fire greeted.

She jumped as she looked up. “Oh, howdy Fire! You scared me there!”

Fire chuckled. “Sorry. Working again?”

Applejack nodded. “Yeah, and I better get kickin'. These apples aren't gonna shake themselves outta the trees.”

Suddenly there was a rumbling sound and all the trees began shaking and an apple actually shook out of the tree, landing on Applejack’s head.

“Hey!” She exclaimed before looking over her shoulder. “Oh no.”

She then galloped off.

“What’s going on?” Fire asked as he followed her.

“A stampede of cows!” she said. “I gotta get my lasso and Winona to round em up!”

“Can I help?” Fire asked hopefully.

“Unless you know how to do rodeo, then no!” Applejack said. “Fly over to Ponyville and warn them!”

Fire nodded. He flew over to Ponyville, only to hear Rainbow Dash yell, “STAMPEDE!”

A distant moo sounded and the ponies in town started running and getting into their homes. Except for a certain silly pink pony that just stood there as the ground vibrated and caused her to move with it.

Pinkie Pie laughed. “Hey! This makes my voice sound silly!"

Twilight looked at her in concern. “Pinkie Pie, are you crazy?! Run!”

Mayor Mare appeared and tried to keep order. “Everypony calm down. There is no need to panic!”

Fire flew over to them as Rarity approached the older pony with fear on her face. “But Mayor, whatever shall we do?”

“Don’t worry!” Fire said. “Applejack seems to know what to do!”

Rainbow Dash looked at the stampede. “He’s right! Look there!”

Applejack and a small brown and white dog were running alongside the stampede.

“YEEHAW!” Applejack cried out.

The ponies watching cheered at the sight of the apparent hero-to-be. Fire watched, trying to think of something that could help if Applejack failed.

“Move aside, Winona!” Applejack said. “Put 'em up, girl!”

Winona barked in response.

Rarity moaned in fright closing her eyes. Fire put a hoof on her back. “It's gonna be okay, Rarity!” he said trying to sound confident while he was a little worried himself.

Pinkie Pie took a bag of popcorn from seemingly out of thin air. “This is the best rodeo show I've ever seen!” she said cluelessly as she ate.

Twilight sighed in annoyance at their friend’s lack of intellect. Fire then came up with an idea.

Then an idea occurred to Fire. “Twilight, Rarity!” he called. “Come on! All unicorns listen up!” he called to the rest of the town. “We need to put up a shield in case Applejack’s plan fails!”

Twilight and Rarity followed him a few steps ahead and they channeled their magic. Red, lavender, and blue lit up on their horns. A shield appeared in front of the bridge the cows were heading towards. Hearing him call out, several other unicorns came as well. He spotted Moondancer, Minuette, and his friends from Canterlot among them. Various shades of magic joined with theirs. Hopefully with all of them combined they would be enough to stop the stampede from reaching Ponyville.

Applejack was still hard at work. “Come on, little doggies! Turn!” she ordered while ramming the cow near to no effect. She then whistled. “Winona, put 'em up!”

Winona barked and jumped on top of the cow near her. Applejack did the same and looked at the lead cow. “Gotcha!”

She pulled out her lasso and threw it, wrapping it around the leader with a laugh. She then pulled as Winona barked in support.

“Atta girl!” Applejack said as she grunted and diverted the lead cow away from the bridge and along the river. The others followed suit. “Yee haw!”

The residents of Ponyville cheered as they were safe and the alicorn and unicorns lowered their shield.

Applejack then managed to get the cows to stop. “Whoaaa.” Once they did, she turned to them and asked. “Hooie. Now what was that all about?”

One of the cows mooed and then coughed and cleared her throat. “Oh my! Begging your pardon, Applejack, but Moo-riella here saw one of those nasty snakes.”

This caused the other cows to gasp.

“And it just gave us all the willies, don't cha know?” the first cow said.

Applejack nodded. “I completely understand. Just next time, try and steer clear of Ponyville.”

The cow nodded as she and the others began walking home. “We certainly will, Applejack. So long, Winona!”

The dog barked in response cheerfully. Applejack then made her way across the bridge into town where the ponies began cheering for her.

“Applejack!”

Grinning at the praise, Applejack flailed her hooves. “Yee haw!

“Yee haw!” Pinkie Pie imitated while kicking out. “Ride 'em, cowpony!

Mayor Mare smiled. “Applejack was just... just...”

“Appletastic!” Pinkie said hanging upside down somehow.

“Exactly,” Mayor Mare agreed. “We must do something to thank Applejack for single-hoofedly saving the town.”

“I know! A party!” Pinkie said.

They decided to hold the party at the end of the week.

“Hey!” a voice called.

Fire, who had returned to his day off looked and saw Moondancer approaching along with Minuette, Twinkleshine, Lemon Hearts, Lyra Heartstrings, and another pony with a yellow coat and pink and black mane. Fire didn’t know her name but remembered her as one of the ponies that had chased him and Twilight for the tickets.

“Hey girls,” Fire said. “How are you all doing?”

“We’re good!” Twinkleshine said. “Just back for another visit with Lyra... and you and Twilight. It was sure a thrilling one this time with that stampede!”

“But you were so cool with it!” Minuette said loudly. “You just took charge and had us all put up a shield!”

“Yeah well, you gotta keep a level head in situations like this!” Fire said with a nervous grin. “But it was really Applejack that saved the day.”

“Yeah, she was amazing!” Lyra agreed. “I think I made the right choice moving to Ponyville! Its less crowded than Canterlot but a lot of interesting things have happened. Plus, I feel like I’ve made the bestest friend in all of Equestria here!”

She gestured to the yellow Earth Pony before looking at the rest of her friends. “Not that you guys were bad friends! Anyway, I’d like you to meet Bon Bon.”

The Earth Pony looked at Fire. He narrowed his eyes at her, not in a hostile manner, but a curious one. He knew her. Not personally but he was aware of her real identity, Special Agent Sweetie Drops. She’d stopped a Bug Bear and then assumed a new identity when it escaped a year ago after the organization disbanded. He’d been there in the throne room when the matter had been discussed. She ran a hoof across her mouth, telling him to be quiet, and he nodded.

“Hi,” he greeted.

“Um, it is quite an honor to meet Canterlot Royalty!” Sweetie Drops said with a bow.

Fire smiled and played along. “Nice to meet you, Bon Bon. You all have any plans today?”

“Not at the moment,” Moondancer said.

Fire looked around and saw the spa was nearby. “Anypony up for a little r and r?”

They headed inside where they were able to soak in warm water, get hooficures, and massages. Fire sighed in content again as he felt the spa ponies there knead his back. It felt good.

“So is your house almost done, Fire?” Minuette asked. “I can’t wait to see it!”

“Well, I’m inviting a few of my friends over!” Fire said. “You all can come too!”

They grinned eagerly. As the sun began to go down, Fire headed to the hill where his now complete tower stood. Both his Ponyville friends and the ones from Canterlot were there. The workers stood in front of it. “All finished your highness! We were afraid it might fall in that stampede but we got lucky!”

“Good,” Fire said lighting up his horn. “Alright I declare this… the grand opening of Warm Heart Tower!”

He unveiled the banner he’d had made for the front door showing a red heart above a campfire. The tower was pretty much exactly like he’d sketched. A building that was mostly white a pair of gold rings, one in the middle and one at the top. A pair of torches burned at the top on either side. The doors themselves were painted with flame designs and outlined in gold. Fire was about to open the doors, but as he looked around, he noticed one thing, quickly followed by another.

First, was that somepony was missing.

“Where’s Applejack?” he asked looking around for the hero of the day.

“I tried to get her to come but she said she had too much work to do,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Oh, too bad,” Fire said. “Guess I’ll have to show her later.”

He then noticed the second thing. A group of six stallion ponies, two Earth ponies, Unicorns, and Pegasi, all clade in orange and yellow armor like Fire’s mane. A few other ponies were with them.

“Ah just in time, my new personal guards,” he said.

The two groups of mares parted space to allow the guards through. The guards saluted him and the leader, a green Earth Pony with a bow and arrow stepped forward.

“Prince Fire Sword. We are at your command! I’m Lieutenant Vine Archer, I’ve been appointed acting officer of your personal Flame Guard!”

“Good evening, Lieutenant,” Fire said. “For now, settle yourselves in! You must be tired from the train ride.”

“Sir!” Vine saluted. “Um, where do we sleep?”

“I made some barracks in the basement,” Hammer Hoof said. “Along with some servants quarters.”

“Good,” Fire said.

They headed inside and Fire gave everyone a look at the inside. The entry way had Fire’s throne (which had been moved from Canterlot) in the back as well as a kitchen and dining room with a row of tables large enough for all of them. Below was the basement where the guards and servants could sleep as well as a storage area. The first floor held a study with bookshelves that Fire could fill along with a desk for writing should the need arise. The second floor had some extra beds for a guest room and also served as a gallery where Fire could display paintings or other things he might collect; the tapestries he’d gotten from Rarity were already hung there. One showed his mother’s sun and the other his aunt Luna’s moon. Finally, at the very top was his room, with a red sheeted bed. The sword he’d gotten during the Nightmare Moon fiasco hung on the wall. There would still be much more to come as Fire needed to fill this place in several locations. But it was more then adequate.

“Oh, this is simply divine,” Rarity said.

The others made likewise sounds of approval.

“Glad you like it,” Fire said.

“This calls for a party!” Pinkie said pulling a confetti canon out.

Pinkie Pie brought several boxes of cupcakes while the servants brought food and prepared fine dishes for everypony. Fire smiled as they all celebrated his housewarming. But he knew another party was coming as well.

…

A few days passed, and that party was upon them. The party for Applejack in honor of her saving the town from the stampede. All of Ponyville was decorated and had balloons and banners everywhere.

Twilight and Fire approached Rarity who was wrapping a red ribbon around a tree.

“We all ready?” Twilight asked.

“Just one last thing,” Rarity said as she lit up her horn.

A large apple themed banner was put on top of Town Hall.

“Now we're ready,” Rarity declared.

“Is Applejack all set?” Twilight asked.

“Actually, I haven't seen her all week,” Rainbow said.

“Not since the stampede,” Pinkie elaborated without breaking her smile.

“Yeah, I’ve been hoping to show her my new place,” Fire said.

“But she'll be here for sure. Applejack is never late. Then you can show her after we’re done with the party,” Rainbow said.

A few minutes later, Twilight and Fire both stood before Town Hall below the banners. Twilight levitated a section of cards for her speech and soon found the first one. “Welcome, everypony! Today we are here to honor a pony we can always count on to help in matters great and small. A pony whose contributions to—

Rainbow Dash suddenly flew into the deck of cards and took over, to Twilight and Fire’s annoyance. “Did you see Applejack's slick moves out there? What an athlete. This week she's gonna help me with my new flying trick, and I know it's gonna be so awesome.

“Uh, Rainbow Dash… Twilight was speaking,” Fire said.

Twilight smiled at him in appreciaton. “Yes, thank you, Prince Fire. But Rainbow does raise a good point. And...”

Pinkie Pie interrupted this time jumping in front of Twilight. “This week, I get to run Sugarcube Corner for the first time!”

Twilight looked at her. “What does that have to do with Applejack?

Pinkie Pie smiled. “Oh. Applejack, one of the best bakers ever, is gonna help me. Applejack makes everything great, so free samples for everypony!

The ponies cheered at this news.

Twilight pushed Pinkie out of the way as well. “Oh-kay, that's great. Now if I could just make a point without being inter—

Fluttershy was there now too. “Twilight?”

“-rupted.” Twilight finished.

Fire frowned at Fluttershy. “Look Fluttershy, Twilight’s already been interrupted twice. I’m gonna have to ask you to wait! And that goes for the rest of you too!”

He pointed a hoof at the others.

“Its rude to interrupt a speech,” he said.

Fluttershy looked down. “Oh, I'm sorry, you’re right. I just wanted to mention that Applejack is also helping me this week with the official bunny census, where we count up all the new baby bunnies that were born this season. She's gonna help gather them using her wonderful herding skills.”

Twilight looked around. “Anyone else?”

“No one else!” Fire said in his royal voice. “Twilight has been working really hard here! Let her have her speech!”

Mayor Mare who had been looking at Twilight with a bright smile hoping to take over now, turned sad.

“Urgh!” Twilight screamed in frustration. “We’ve probably used up all the time before Applejack gets here anyway!”

She stepped off the stage. Fire walked alongside her.

“Sorry it didn’t work out, Twilight,” he said.

“Not your fault, Fire,” Twilight said.

Mayor Mare took over now. “Ah-ahem. And so, with no further ado, it is my privilege to give the prize, Pony of Ponyville Award…”

She gestured to a large golden trophy with a blue ribbon on it. “To our beloved guest of honor, a pony of the utmost trustworthiness, reliability, and integrity. Ponyville's most capable and dependable friend, Applejack!”

The crowd cheered as the curtains on the stage parted to reveal… nopony?

Spike began cheering with his eyes closed. “Cool! Way to go Applejack, that was awesome! I mean— heh.” He opened his eyes and saw the girls glaring at him for the ruined cheer.

Mayor Mare cleared her throat.

“Awkward.” Spike said.

Where was that pony? Everypony no doubt wondered the same thing.

And speak of the pony and she would appear. “I'm here. I'm here.” Applejack appeared carrying a bunch of apples on her back. She yawned and sighed, dropping a few apples. “Sorry I'm late…whoa… I was just... whoa... did I get your tail, Miss Mayor? Thank you kindly for this here... award thingy.”

She yawned again and chuckled nervously as she saw her reflection in it. “It's so bright and shiny and, heh, heh heh, I sure do look funny, heh.”

She began moving back and forth with Pinkie joining. Fire frowned. He hadn’t known Applejack long, but this certainly seemed abnormal.

Twilight was clearly weirded out a little but nonetheless continued. “Okay. Well, thank you Applejack for saving us from that scary stampede, and always being there for everypony."

Applejack yawned again. “Yeah. I like helping the ponyfolks and and stuff. Oh, uh, yeah. Uh, thanks."

She began dragging her reward off, earning strange looks from everypony. Twilight, Fire and the others watched and Twilight asked, “Was it just me, or did Applejack seem a little—

“Tired?” Rainbow said.

“Dizzy?” Fluttershy suggested.

“Messy?” Rarity said, earning looks from everyone. “Well, did you see her mane?”

Pinkie Pie bounced in front of Twilight. “She seemed fine to me. Woo! Woo!” she celebrated cluelessly.

Twilight looked after Applejack. “Hmm."

“I think something is going on with her,” Fire said. “Maybe we should go check it out.”

“I agree,” Twilight said.

The two of them headed after Applejack. They watched her and saw her go home, put her award away and then move from tree to tree bucking them to knock apples down. But after a few successful ones she missed.

“What in Equestria is that pony doing?” Twilight asked.

Applejack hit the bucket now instead of the trees. “Whoops.”

"No idea,” Fire said. “But it’s obvious she’s overdoing. Look how tired she is!”

Twilight called to their friend who fell asleep as she walked. “Hey Applejack!”

Applejack merely snored.

“Applejack?” Twilight repeated.

The Earth Pony snored again.

Fire sighed and flew toward her, yelling, “APPLEJACK!”

Applejack woke up and looked around. “Huh, what? Oh, howdy, Fire, Twilight.”

“What is all this?” Twilight asked walking up and gesturing to the orchard which was heavily harvested.

“It's Applebuck season,” Applejack said as she sleepily walked to another tree only to be surprised when Twilight teleported in front of her. “Whoa!”

“Applewhat season?” Twilight asked.

“Neh,” Applejack mumbled. “It's what the Apple family calls harvestin' time. We gather all the apples from the trees so we can sell 'em.”

“But why are you doing it all alone?” Twilight asked.

“Cause Big McIntosh hurt himself,” Applejack said.

“Applejack, you can’t do this all on your own!” Fire Sword said. “You need help!”

“There ain’t no one else to help,” Applejack said. “Apple Bloom has to go to school and Granny Smith is too old to help out around the farm full time.”

“What about all those relatives I've met when I first came to Ponyville? Can't they help?” Twilight asked.

Applejack sighed. “They were just here for the Apple family reunion. They actually live all over Equestria and are busy harvestin' their own orchards. So, uh, I'm on my own. Which means, I should really get back to work.”

Twilight didn’t move. So Applejack cleared her throat. “Ahem... hint hint? Get back to work?”

Twilight stepped aside. “Fine.”

Applejack, however, was getting worse. “Could you step aside, Twilight?

Twilight looked at her. “I just did. Applejack, you don't look so good.”

“Yeah, I’d say you need to sleep!” Fire said.

Applejack scoffed. "Eh, don't any of you three worry none, I'm just fine and dandy.”

“Three?” Fire asked. “There’s only two of us!”

Applejack tried to kick another tree but missed. “Whoa.”

Fire flew up to her while Twilight teleported again.

“Applejack you sound and look like you’re having hallucinations, or at least can’t see straight!” Fire said. “You really need to get some rest!”

Twilight looked at her. “Do you... want some help?

"Help?" Applejack asked. "No way, no how.”

“Look Applejack, I can order my guards and servants to help you harvest,” Fire said. “I’ll help out too!”

He flapped his wings and called his magic to his horn.

“There's no way you can do it all on your own,” Twilight insisted.

Applejack got up close to her. “Is that a challenge?”

“Uhm... no,” Twilight said.

“Well, I'm gonna prove to you that I can do it!” Applejack declared. “Now if you'll excuse me, I've got apples to buck.”

Fire sighed, anger lighting up inside him. “Fine, work till you drop!” he snapped. “Come on, Twilight let's go!”

And so they left Applejack to her work. Twilight was sad about it, while Fire was mad, at least for the moment. But it soon turned to sadness as well.

Fire returned to his sheriff duties for the next couple days. His guards helped him by patrolling the town and helping anypony that needed an extra hoof. For a while things were quiet though he heard a few things occurred in the reports, like Rainbow Dash being launched into the library and later.

“Sheriff Fire!” somepony yelled.

It was Twilight, Spike at her side as usual.

“Twilight? What’s up?” Fire asked.

“I just heard there’s an emergency at the hospital! Many ponies are sick!” Twilight said.

Fire ran with her.

“We came as soon as we heard!” Twilight said as the three of them entered the room.

Nurse Redheart looked at them. “Oh thank you, Twilight, Prince Fire! We need all the help we can get!”

The sick ponies moaned. There were indeed many of them, including all Fire and Twilight’s Canterlot friends.

“Moondancer, Twinkleshine, Minuette, Lemonhearts, Lyra!” he exclaimed as he looked at each of them. “What happened?

“It was a mishap with some of the baked goods,” Redheart said.

“No, not baked goods, baked bads,” Pinkie said as she looked ready to puke.

“Applejack,” Twilight muttered. “First she sends Rainbow crashing into my library and now this!”

Fire sighed. “That settles it! We have to help whether she likes it or not!”

Spike suddenly appeared holding a couple muffins, one of which he held out to Twilight and the other he munched on.

“Want one?”

“No!” Twilight said taking the muffin away. “Give me that!”

She threw it in the trash to Spike’s dismay.

“You’ll be lucky if you don’t get sick from that!” she said.

…

They headed to Sweet Apple Acres. Fire took a small detour to get his servants from Warm Heart Tower.

“Listen up everypony!” he said. “My… our neighbor, Applejack, is working herself too hard harvesting! She’s caused several ponies to get sick by misbaking treats. We’re going to lend her a hoof! Whether she likes it or not!”

The servants dropped what they were doing and followed him to Sweet Apple Acres, where Fire was able to catch the tale end of Twilight trying to persuade Applejack to accept help.

“Ugh!” the Earth Pony exclaimed. "No, no, NO! How many times do I gotta say it? I don't need no help from nopony!”

“Ugh. That pony is stubborn as a mule!” Twilight said.

A nearby bray from a mule drew her attention.

“No offense,” she added.

“None taken,” the Mule said.

“Well stubborn or not she can’t do this!” Fire said. “Come on, lets get harvesting!”

His servants immediately began working on the trees in various ways, magic, flight and bucking. Fire took as many apples in his red magic as he could.

Twilight looked at him. “You sure you want to do this when Applejack’s not okay with it?”

“She’s not thinking clearly,” Fire said. “She’ll be lucky if I don’t hit her with a sleep spell next time I see her. From the looks of it she could use one.”

“Well, I’m gonna just go back to reading,” Twilight said. “Don’t blame me if she yells at you for helping.”

She left, and Fire was left on the farm. Applejack was nowhere to be seen for a while. Then one of the Flame Guards flew up.

“Your highness, trouble in Ponyville!” he said.

“What?” Fire exclaimed. “What’s going on?”

“A bunny stampede!” the guard said.

Bunny stampede? Fire flew to the town and saw there indeed bunnies all over, eating flowers as Fluttershy tried to round them up.

“Oh my. Oh... please stop, little bunnies. Oh no! Please, let's go home. Oh my goodness,” she said.

“All right,” Twilight said before spotting Fire. “You were right, Fire. Enough is enough.”

They headed to Sweet Apple Acres, running into Fire’s servants along the way.

“What are you all doing here?” Fire asked.

“Sorry your highness but that friend of yours saw us and chased us out!” one of them said.

Fire frowned. He and Twilight continued on, finding Applejack with her eyes closed sleepily while still bucking a tree. But she’d gotten so weak only a few apples fell.

“Must… keep…buckin'... just…a few… more. Must finish harvestin’.” Applejack said through heavy gasps.

Twilight approached her. “All right, Applejack. Your applebucking hasn't just caused you problems, it's over-propelled Pegasus', practically poisoned plenty of ponies, and terrorized bushels of brand-new bouncing baby bunnies. I don't care what you say. You. Need. Help.”

Applejack scoffed. “Ha! No, I don't. Look, I did it. I harvested the entire Sweet Apple Acres without your help. How d'ya like them apples?

Suddenly Big McIntosh appeared next to her. “Um, how do you like them apples?”

Applejack looked and saw him pointing to another part of the orchard that had not been harvested. “Where'd all the
apple...?” she mumbled weakly and finally fainted.

“Applejack. Applejack,” Twilight put a hoof on her.

Applejack woke up. “Huh?”

Twilight sighed in relief. “Oh, good, you're okay. Now Applejack, I completely respect the Apple family ways. You're always there to help anypony in need, so maybe you can put a little of your stubborn pride aside and allow your friends to help you.”

“Yeah, you need it,” Fire said.

Applejack sighed. “Okay, Twilight, Fire.”

“I am not taking "no" for an answer,” Twilight said expecting a refusal before raising her eyebrows. “What?”

“Yes, Twilight,” Applejack said. “Yes, please. I could really use your help.”

Twilight chuckled and sighed.

“Finally,” Fire said.

He called his servants while Twilight got their friends, both local and from Canterlot. Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash all took one part of the orchard while Moondancer, Twinkleshine, Minuette, Lemonhearts, Lyra, and Bon-Bon did another, and Fire’s servants helped with the last. Twilight and Applejack weren’t there for a while, as Applejack needed rest after working so hard and Twilight needed to make a report to Fire’s mom.

…

Twilight wrote the letter.

Dear Princess Celestia,

My friend Applejack is the best friend a pony could ever have, and she's always there to help anypony. The only trouble is, when she needs help, she finds it hard to accept it, so while friendship is about giving of ourselves to friends, it's also about accepting what our friends have to offer.

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle

She then joined them quickly followed by Applejack who looked nice and refreshed after a long nap. Twilight levitated large numbers of apples into the buckets waiting while Fire both flew and did the same.

Applejack looked at them all in appreciation. “How about y'all take a little break?” she asked. I got some fine apple juice waitin' for ya!”

She sighed as she looked around at all of them. “Girls, Fire, other ponies, I can't thank you enough for this help. I was acting a bit stubborn.”

“A bit?” Twilight repeated with a grin.

Applejack looked at them. “Okay. A mite stubborn, and I'm awful sorry. Now, I know the town gave me the Prized Pony award, but the real award is having you all as my friends. And these friends of friends,” she added as she looked at Fire’s Canterlot friends and new servants.

"Phew!" Rainbow Dash said. "That applebucking sure made me hungry."

"And I've got the perfect treat!" Spike said.

He pulled out the bad muffins.

Pinkie Pie, for once, was not in a treat eating mood. “Eeew... Spike, I threw those all away. Where'd you get them?”

“From the trash!” Spike said.

“EW!” Everypony said and began walking away.

“Just a little nibble?” Spike asked. “Come on.”

“Ew! Gross!”

“Not a chance, Spike!” Fire said. “Those made ponies sick! Just throw them away! We’ll have our own party at my place! Besides, I haven’t had the chance to show Applejack yet!”

They did so. Pinkie asked to personally make the treats so the servants let her use the kitchen. Lemonhearts helped as well making lemon cakes. They all had a good set of baked goods while Spike reluctantly put the bad ones in the trash.

“Well, Fire this is a darn good place! Bit fancy fer my taste but it fits a prince!” Applejack said. “Especially the son of Celestia!”

“Thanks,” Fire said before remembering something. “Neighbor.”

She smiled at him. Soon everypony cleaned up and headed home.

“See you girls later!” Fire said to his guests as they all headed out.

Author's Note

Okay another chapter down and we’ll see when I get the next one out. Should be in September sometime since I’m focusing on another story right now. Just to let you know I’m debating on whether or not I will go through the whole series, I can say these things for certain, if I do make it all the way to Season 9. I will NOT have Grogar being a fake. That was one of my handful of qualms in the series. I will probably also be going by my own headcanon in regards to Celestia and Luna’s long lives. I have a different headcanon then the common one about it being alicornhood=immortality. Might bring that up at some point but we’ll see.

Chapter 8: Griffon the Brush Off

Fire headed out of his now completed house with a sigh of relief. Today was his day off, so he could enjoy himself in Ponyville while his guards patrolled the town and kept it safe in absence. As he was heading out though, he saw a mail pony with a yellow mane and crossed eyes coming toward him.

“Delivery for Prince Fire Sword!” the mail pony said. “You have a letter here from Canterlot!”

Fire took the letter and noticed a familiar wax seal on the front. He was confident they wouldn’t make a mistake and send him letters from random ponies. Fan mail could be an issue as a monarch’s time had to be spent on important tasks. He opened it with his magic first and saw it was from his cousin, or as he actually thought of her, his sister.

Dear Fire,

I sure miss you being in Canterlot. But I hear you are enjoying yourself in the small town of Ponyville. I’ll have to come down and visit sometime, I hear Twilight Sparkle is there as well. I haven’t seen her in so many years since I stopped being a foalsitter. I hope I can see her again as well and meet your new friends that helped you defeat Nightmare Moon. I’m very proud of you, just don’t take too many risks now, please? Aunt Luna is certainly nice once you get to know her. I'm about to go on a long tour so I hope to see you again soon.

Love,

Your cousin by adoption and sister by heart,

Cadance

Fire smiled. His big sister Cadance, she’d become an alicorn at a young age and been adopted by his mother as a niece so she could learn to be a monarch someday as was her destiny when she earned her horn. She’d taken care of him when he was a colt and they’d grown super close, with her teaching him to fly and use magic when he’d been in foal school before attending the School for Gifted Unicorns. She’d been his closest family member after his mother, not anything like Blueblood. She was kind and loving, fitting since her title was the Princess of Love. Once, he'd had a major crush on her as a colt. But eventually he’d found he thought of her as more like a sister then a love interest or even cousin. She’d smiled and embraced him, saying she felt the same way and they’d called themselves honorary siblings ever since.

He went inside and put the letter on his desk then walked into town. Coming to a fountain across a bridge, Fire spotted Pinkie Pie and Twilight, with the latter laying on a bench reading a book while Pinkie chatted away.

“Hoof-biting action overload!” Pinkie said as she bounced around happily. “She was like a stunt superstar, flying higher and higher, and then Rainbow Dash swooped down—swoosh—and right before she hit the ground—shoom, she pulled up—vrrrmmm!”

“Uh-huh,” Twilight said with a disinterested expression, her eyes glued to her book.

Pinkie continued without even noticing Twilight’s disinterest. “And then she looped around and around like whoo whoo whoo whoo whoo whoo whoo!”

“Uh-huh,” Twilight repeated.

“Hey girls,” Fire said as he came up to them.

“Hey Fire Sword! Chop Chop! Get it?” Pinkie asked looking at him.

Fire frowned. “No, I don’t get it.”

“Cause you got sword in your name so you gotta chop right?” Pinkie asked.

“Swords don’t actually chop,” Fire corrected her. “They slice and cut, its completely different.”

“Oh,” Pinkie said. “Well, you can always cut it then!”

Suddenly a shadow passed over them. They looked up and saw it was Rainbow Dash. Pinkie suddenly took off after her with a smile.

“Phew,” Twilight said as she noticed this.

“Pinkie bugging you?” Fire asked.

“Yeah, don’t get me wrong, she’s one of my best friends, but she can still be a little…”

“Annoying?” Fire guessed.

“Yeah,” Twilight said. “I just want to be able to read in peace but she won’t stop chatting.”

“I get it,” Fire said. “Well, I’ll just leave you too it then. I think I could do with a read myself.”

“Oh, well Spike’s at the library,” Twilight said. “Feel free to check out anything you need.”

“Thanks,” Fire said as he made his way there.

Getting to the library he found it empty, aside from the books.

“Spike?” he called.

There was the sound of feet from upstairs and the little dragon soon appeared with a checklist in hand.

“Oh, hey Fire,” Spike said with a visible frown.

“Hey… Spike,” Fire said uneasily.

He seemed to often have a foul mood whenever he looked at Fire.

“I’m here looking for a book to read,” Fire said.

“We got plenty of those,” Spike grumbled. “I’m just taking an inventory of everything Twilight needs while she’s out enjoying some book time. Seems we’re running low on scrolls so I’ll have to get some later today."

“Okay,” Fire said hesitantly. “Hey, can I ask you something?”

“Sure, what is it?” Spike asked.

“Why do you, sometimes frown at me… like you’re mad at me or something?” Fire asked.

“Uh… well,” Spike sighed. “Rarity seems to like you, and I… well… like her.”

Fire frowned at him. “There is nothing going on with me and her! Besides, she likes Prince Blueblood.”

Spike sighed. “Guess we’re both stuck with her liking somepony else huh? Sorry.”

“It's okay,” Fire said managing a smile. “As long as she’s happy. Besides, there’s plenty of other mares out there, though you probably want to look for a filly around your age.”

“Maybe,” Spike said with a frown, not seeming to agree.

Fire then remembered he still had to find a date for the Grand Galloping Gala. But for now, he’d find a book to read. Scanning the volumes he found The Tale of Gusty the Great as well as Buck Everlasting and Daring Do. He checked them out and was about to head out as Twilight got back.

“Ah hello again, Fire,” Twilight greeted warmly.

“Hey Twilight,” Fire greeted in return. “What are you doing for the rest of the day?”

“Potion experiments,” she said.

“Cool, well I’ll leave you to that then,” Fire said as he levitated the books he’d borrowed.

“Right, see you later,” Twilight said. “Spike, do we need anything?”

“Just scrolls,” the dragon told her.

“Well, you can go get them then,” Twilight told him.

Fire exited the Golden Oaks Library and made his way through town for a place to read. He found a tree and a cluster of bushes that were right in front of Rarity’s boutique. He shrugged. Maybe she’d come out and say hello? He opened the Tale of the Gusty the Great, one of his favorite stories from foalhood about a powerful unicorn that faced the dreaded Grogar.

He read for a while and then heard someone coming. It was Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie with a… vase of flowers? That was strange, Fire thought. They brought the flowers to Rarity’s door and rang the doorbell before scurrying and hiding behind the bushes just over Fire’s shoulder as he watched.

“Is she even home?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“I don't know. This is gonna be gold!” Pinkie Pie said.

Then the top window of the door opened and revealed Rarity inside. Pinkie and Rainbow Dash sniggered as they ducked down and Fire frowned in suspicion, what were they doing?

“There she is!” Pinkie said.

Rarity looked down in front of her door and saw the flowers, she bent down with intrigue to sniff them, likely thinking they were a gift from a secret admirer. But as soon as her nose touched the flowers she suddenly began sneezing uncontrollably. Soon the sound of Rainbow Dash and Pinkie laughing filled Fire’s ears, Rarity looked and both of them saw Rainbow Dash holding a shaker of allergy powder that they’d put on the flowers. Rarity frowned at them as did Fire.

“Rarity!” he said in concern as he walked over. “You alright?”

Suddenly there was a very loud sneeze behind him and he looked to see the shaker with its contents spilled, and Pinkie had sneezed herself far away, apparently Rainbow Dash had accidentally covered her with the powder as well when she flew away.

Rarity smiled at the sight. “Well, what’s goes around comes around!”

She looked at Fire with a small smile, her nose still bearing the powder. She sneezed again and headed back inside.

“Hey Fire!” Rainbow Dash called as she flew back to him. “Me and Pinkie are pulling a few pranks around Ponyville, wanna join?”

Fire looked at her. “Maybe, as long as it’s nothing to bad.”

He then heard Rarity sneeze once more.

“But first I think I need to help her.”

He made his way into the Boutique. Rarity was trying to get to the sink but the sneezing slowed her down.

“Achoo! Achoo!”

Fire levitated a towel under the sink and ran the water before bringing it over to her face and wiping her nose for her. She sneezed a couple more times but after he was done she took a breath of relief.

“Oh, thank you Fire!” she said.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes, I mean, I didn’t like sneezing my…um… face off,” she said. “But it wasn’t a bad prank, I suppose.”

Fire smiled. “Glad you think so.”

He headed outside and asked Rainbow and Pinkie what they were going to do next.

“I was thinking we could go prank Twilight!” Rainbow said. “Switch her ink with invisible ink while she’s working.”

“That sounds funny!” Pinkie said.

Fire had a bit of a mixed set of feelings about it. “I don’t know. It might be funny, but it could also mess up her experiments.”

“Ah come on, I thought you were the pranking prince!” Rainbow said.

“Yeah, but I only pulled them on snobs!” Fire said.

“Oh, come on it’s just for fun!” Pinkie said. “We spooked Spike a little earlier when he was getting scrolls and caused him to get the hiccups. Though he did burn all the scrolls.”

Oh boy, that probably meant Fire’s mother had gotten quite a few blank ones. Still-

“Alright, I suppose,” Fire relented.

He flew with them as they continued their pranking spree. Next was Twilight who was working with her potions. She went into the bathroom at one point, which enabled Rainbow Dash to sneak in and switch the ink as Fire and Pinkie waited in the tree next to the window. When Twilight returned, she put one liquid in another part of her potion system and jotted down a set of notes on a parchment nearby, only to have the notes vanish thanks to the invisible ink.

“Hmm?” Twilight exclaimed.

Fire and the two girls laughed outloud and Twilight heard, she looked out with an annoyed expression, but it quickly softened into an amused one.

Next it was time to prank Applejack, and it was a good thing that pony was super busy, and that they were all good with paintbrushes and able to paint the apples on the trees quickly. When Applejack emerged from her barn she gasped at the sight.

“Land sakes!”

Hearing the laughter nearby, Applejack quickly spotted her trio of uninvited guests with the paints. She then grabbed a bunch of apples and began throwing them at the intruders who ran. But seeing an apple that fell into a nearby barrel of water lose the paint it had acquired, she chuckled.

“Good thing those paints will wash right off, but ponies will be looking at some apples of a different color for a while!” Fire said.

That caused the two female pranksters to giggle.

“Good one, Fire!” Rainbow Dash said. “You’re a hoot!”

They headed to a pond nearby, intending to use a fake turtle to squirt some unsuspecting pony. For a while there was nothing but then Rainbow Dash sniggered from where she watched with a telescope.

“Is someone over there?” Pinkie asked with the rope to the turtle in her mouth. “Who're we gonna squirt? Who're we gonna squirt?”

“Fluttershy,” Rainbow Dash said with another chuckle.

“WHAT? “ Pinkie exclaimed in disbelief before spitting out the rope trigger. “No no no no no no! We can't prank Fluttershy. I mean, she's so sensitive. It'll hurt her feelings, even our most harmless prank.”

“Yeah, you're right,” Rainbow Dash reluctantly agreed while blowing a raspberry and looking at her friends who looked at her and saw something that made them both smile. “Huh. We need another victim who's made of tougher stuff. So, who's it gonna be?”

Pinkie Pie chuckled as Fire smirked. “Oh, I've got someone in mind,” she chuckled again. “The toughest around. Or at least one of the toughest.”

“Oh, awesome!” Rainbow exclaimed. “Who? Who? Do I know them?”

Pinkie giggled and pointed at the water Oh, yes!” she couldn’t stop giggling as she spoke. “You're very close!”

Rainbow looked into the water and saw the ink that Pinkie had put on the telescope lense on her eye. She chuckled as well and Fire did too. “Good one, Pinkie Pie!”

She held out her hoof for a high hoof, but got it out of the way when Pinkie tried to give it to her. They both laughed, then it was Fire’s turn to have some fun. He approached them with a smirk.

“Well, it was fun today pulling a few pranks,” Fire said. “Why don’t we have a little race to my house, Rainbow Dash?”

“Alright,” Rainbow said as she spread her wings. “But you’re gonna lose!”

Fire smiled and looked at Pinkie, “Pinkie, would you do the honors and say ready, set, go?”

“Sure-a-Rooney!” Pinkie squealed. “Ready! Set…”

Fire aimed his horn at Rainbow Dash whose eyes widened as she was wrapped with ropes then flung at Pinkie who just managed to say “Go!”

The two of them were bound together with Rainbow struggling against the rope.

“Hey!” she exclaimed.

Fire just grinned. “Looks like I get the last laugh!” he said as he spread his wings. “Have fun getting out of that you two damsels in distress!” he said as he flew away with a final laugh.

“Hey! I’m not a damsel in distress!” Rainbow Dash yelled as she struggled to break free from the binds.

“See you tomorrow! If you can’t break the rope just ask somepony to cut it!” Fire called after them.

…

The next day Fire was back on patrol and spotted Pinkie Pie with a hilarious outfit on.

“Hey Fire! Up for some more pranks?” Pinkie asked.

“Uh, sorry Pinkie but I have work today,” Fire said before whispering in her ear. “And don’t do a prank that gets so bad I have to arrest you.”

He chuckled to let her know he was joking and she giggled.

“Okay, well I’ll see if Rainbow Dash is up for it!”

Fire shrugged and followed her, its not like he had a certain route he needed to go on.

Pinkie Pie blew her party blower as they got under Rainbow Dash’s house. “Rise and shine Rainbow Dash! It's a brand new day and we got a lot of pranking to-“

Suddenly a creature appeared on Rainbow Dash’s house in the clouds. It was a griffon with a white eagle head, eagle front legs, and a light brown body in the shape of lion with matching tale and hind legs.

“Ooh.” Pinkie said in amazement, Fire couldn’t blame her, this was probably the first time she’d seen a griffon, he’d been pretty amazed himself when he first saw one as a colt.

“Mornin', Pinks! Fire!” Rainbow Dash said as she appeared on the roof of her house before flying down and turning back to the griffon. “Gilda, this is my gal pal, Pinkie Pie, and my guy pal, Fire Sword.”

“Prince Fire Sword,” Fire corrected. “My friends call me Fire.”

Gilda let out an eagle screech as she descended to the ground. “Hey. What's up?” she asked while looking away in a disinterested manner.

“Nothing much, except the wide-open sky for flyers like us to soar through,” Fire replied with a smirk.

Gilda chuckled and looked at him directly. “Ha, you’re not bad! You really a prince?”

“The son of Celestia herself!” Fire said putting a hoof to his chest.

“Then, where’s your crown?” Gilda asked, her eyes narrowing.

“Oh, I only wear it around here when I’m doing prince related stuff. Right now, I’m just the humble Sherriff!” Fire said.

Rainbow Dash chuckled. “Yeah the humble cheating Sherriff!” Anyway, Pinkie, Fire, this is my griffon friend, Gilda.”

“Nice to meet ya,” Fire said extending a hand to shake Gilda’s claw.

“Uh, do I have to bow or something?” Gilda asked as she took it with an uneasy expression.

“It's not really required,” Fire said with a shrug. “Maybe at formal events.”

“Good,” Gilda said managing a smile. “Meet any griffons before?”

“A few,” Fire said.

Pinkie Pie, however, looked confused. “What's a griffon?

“She's half-eagle, half-lion!” Rainbow Dash said.

Gilda spread her wings and pounced, landing next to Rainbow who she wrapped her claw around and then did a hoof and claw shake. "And all awesome. Raa. Heh-haa. Yeah, that's right!”

Rainbow Dash then went on to tell them about Gilda. “Gilda's my best friend from my days at Junior Speedster flight camp. Hey, remember the chant?”

“Sha!” Gilda said in a brush off sort of way. “They made us recite it every morning, I'll never get that lame thing out of my head!”

Rainbow Dash then got close. “Sooo...”

Gilda sighed. “Ugh. Only for you, Dash.”

The two of them rose into the air and danced while they did the chant they mentioned.

“Junior Speedsters are our lives,

Sky-bound soars and daring dives

Junior Speedsters, it's our quest,

To someday be the very best!”

They landed on the ground as they ended the chant.

Pinkie laughed while Fire smiled, but as he looked at Gilda he couldn’t help but notice her eyes were narrowing at Pinkie.

“Oh that was awesome, and it gave me a great idea for a prank. Gilda, you game?” she asked.

That seemed to get Gilda’s interest. “Huh. Well, I groove on a good prank as much as the next griffon. But Dash, you promised me we'd get a flying session in this morning.”

Rainbow Dash looked at Pinkie sadly. “Yeah, uh, well, Pinkie Pie, you don't mind, do you? Gilda just got here. We'll catch up with you later.”

Pinkie Pie looked down. “Oh. Um, well sure, no problem. Have fun you guys, I'll, uh, just catch up with you-

They were already taking off on their wings. Pinkie sighed and finished, “Later.”

She blew her party hooter sadly.

Fire put a hoof around Pinkie. “Hey, don’t worry, so Rainbow Dash has another friend. We have lots of friends too, like Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, Spike, and the others.”

Pinkie smiled. “You’re right! But I really wanted to hang out with Rainbow Dash today.”

“Well, better luck next time,” Fire said. “See you later.”

He flew off and returned to his patrol, leaving Pinkie looking up at the sky.

He spent time looking for anything that might look suspicious, that unicorn thief was still out there. Who knew where he could be in Equestria, using magic for the nefarious purpose of stealing from decent ponies. It was a disgrace.

Eventually it was time for lunch. He walked through Ponyville and came to the intersection near near Sugarcube Corner. He suddenly spotted Gilda with her back turned to him.

“Oh, hey! Gil-

“Hey! Gilda exclaimed in an unfriendly manner, not looking at Fire.

“Please excuse me,” A small but familiar voice said.

Fire walked around and saw it was Fluttershy that had apparently bumped into Gilda while backing up leading a family of ducks.

Gilda also apparently wasn’t going to accept an apology, because she said angrily. “I'm walkin' here!”

Fluttershy backed up fearfully as other ponies watched in shock. “Oh, um, I'm sorry. I-I-I was just trying to...

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry,” Gilda repeated in a small voice mockingly. “Why don't you just watch where you're going, doofus?

Fire frowned, unable to stand by any longer as he saw the griffon bullying his friend. He flapped his wings and placed himself in front of Fluttershy.

“Hey! Leave her alone! She bumped into you by mistake!” Fire shouted. “She said she was sorry! That should be enough for you!”

“You stay out of this Princey! My problem is with the lame pony!” Gilda said.

“Nopony… or griffon… bullies and insults my friends!” Fire roared. “You wanna fight?”

Gilda just frowned. “Whatever. All these lame ponies are driving me buggy. I gotta bail!”

She flew off. Fire watched, his golden eyes burning with anger before they soon turned to Fluttershy with a kinder light.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She nodded to show she wasn’t hurt, but tears still formed in her eyes “She was just… so mean!”

Fire wrapped a hoof around her to comfort her. “Shh. It’s okay, she’s gone now.”

He stroked her back for a moment and then and then pulled away. “Come on, let’s go somewhere quiet.”

He led her to the Golden Oaks library nearby. Twilight was there, she looked at them as they entered and saw Fluttershy’s face in tears before getting up from her desk in concern.

“What happened?” she asked.

“Rainbow Dash’s so called ‘friend’ Gilda was bullying Fluttershy!” Fire said.

“Gilda?” Twilight repeated. “Pinkie told me about her! I thought she was just being jealous!”

“Pinkie was here?” Fire asked.

Twilight nodded. “She came in claiming that some griffon had stolen Rainbow Dash away from her and that she was a grumpy meaney pants. I guess she was right. What did she do?”

“She yelled at Fluttershy just for bumping into her by accident and then made fun of her for stuttering. I know that can a be little annoying… no offense Fluttershy, but it’s just that you’re well… shy. You didn’t deserve that!”

Fluttershy sniffled a bit. “I’m sorry I’m so shy.”

Fire put a wing around her and pulled her closer. She leaned on him, soaking his coat with her tears. Twilight put a hoof over her mouth and walked over, wrapping her hooves around them as they comforted Fluttershy.

“It’s just the way you are,” Twilight said. “And it’s not your fault. Its Gilda’s. Hopefully she’ll be out of here soon.”

There was a knock on the door and Pinkie Pie burst in, “Hey! I’m putting on a party and everypony’s invited! Its for Rainbow Dash’s friend Gilda!”

Twilight looked at her. “Pinkie! I- wait what? You just said a little while ago Gilda was a grump!”

“Yeah, but maybe if we show her a good time it will change her!”

Fire sighed. He couldn’t really arrest Gilda since he’d only seen her being a jerk.

“I don’t really think she deserves a party! I saw her bullying Fluttershy!” he said.

“Oh, you too?” Pinkie asked. “Well I saw her stealing from a fruit stand and that!”

“You did?” Fire exclaimed. “Okay, we need to have some charges pressed against her!”

“Hold on!” Pinkie Pie said. “That might just make her even worse! Let me try first, please!”

“Pinkie…” Fire said. “We can’t let her just get away with being not only a bully, but a thief as well.”

“Please! Please! Please!” Pinkie begged taking his hoof.

Fire sighed. “Fine.”

“I’m sorry I accused you of misjudging Gilda,” Twilight said to Pinkie. “Looks like I misjudged you.”

“That’s okay, Twilight!” Pinkie said forgivingly. “Even you can’t be a super smart super smarty-pants all the time!”

“Well, let’s give this a try,” Twilight said. “If it doesn’t work, then you do what you have to, Fire.”

The Sheriff Prince nodded. They made their way to Sugarcube Corner where they met with Rainbow Dash and came up with a party plan, though they left out certain details like Gilda’s rudeness for the moment.

“Welcome, welcome. Welcome!” Pinkie Pie said as everyone walked in.

“Who's this Gilda I've heard nothing about?” Applejack asked Rarity as they stood in a corner near Fire.

“I hear she's an old friend of Rainbow Dash. A griffon, so rare,” Rarity commented.

“Yeah, even I rarely see them,” Fire said. “And it’s not always pleasant. This one certainly wasn’t.”

“What do you mean?” Rarity asked.

“She was rude to Fluttershy earlier,” Fire told them. “Made her cry.”

“Well, that ain’t right! Why’s Pinkie even throwing this party, then?” Applejack asked.

“I don’t know, maybe she’s hoping to make friends with and change her,” Fire said. “But I don’t think it will end well. But don’t worry, I’ll be here to protect you girls if she gets out of hoof.”

He winked at them. Rarity smiled with a blush.

“Oh, how very gracious of you, noble prince!” she said as she circled him and pressed her cheek to his, causing him to blush as well.

“Thanks, but I reckon I can handle myself. Most of the time,” Applejack said.

Fluttershy, meanwhile, walked over to Pinkie. “Um, Pinkie Pie, about this party for Gilda. Umm... do you really think it's a good idea? I mean…”

Pinkie Pie just smiled and ruffled her mane. “Don't worry your pretty little head about mean old Gilda. Your auntie Pinkie Pie's got it all taken care of!”

This form of coddling caused even the kind Fluttershy to frown in annoyance. “I'm a year older than you.”

Fire walked over to her. “She’s just trying to have your back like any friend would do. And if I’m being honest you maybe older but you’re not very assertive.”

Fluttershy sighed. “You’re right. I wish I could change that.”

At that moment, Gilda arrived. Noticing this, Pinkie Pie bounced over to her. “Gilda! I'm so honored to throw you one of my signature Pinkie Pie parties, and I really, truly, sincerely, hope you feel welcome here amongst all us pony folk.”

She extended her hoof for Gilda to shake. The griffon hesitated a moment and then took it, only to receive a shock from an electric buzzer around Pinkie’s hoof. Pinkie laughed at this and Fire chuckled as he saw, feeling it served her right. It might not have been intended as revenge but it was as good as for Fire. But looking at Gilda as she got up, she looked pretty angry. Fire narrowed his eyes and began to step forward in case she was about to get mean again.

Fortunately Rainbow Dash stepped in with a laugh. “Oh Pinkie Pie, the old hoof-shake buzzer. You are a scream.

Gilda said in an insincere tone and with a forced chuckle. “Yeah uh, good one, Pinkie Pie.”

“Come on G, I'll introduce you to some of my other friends!” Rainbow said.

“Right behind you, Dash!” Gilda said for all to hear then exchanged some whispers with Pinkie Pie that Fire couldn’t hear.

After a moment of whispering with Gilda, Pinkie Pie addressed the attendees. “Everyone, I'd like you all to meet Gilda, a long-time, dear friend of Rainbow Dash. Let's honor her and welcome her to Ponyville!”

She hugged Gilda, much to the surprise of all her friends (except for Rainbow Dash). All the other ponies at the party cheered.

"Please help yourself!" Pinkie Pie said gesturing to a table.

Gilda spotted the sweets on it with intrigue. "Vanilla lemon drops. Don't mind if I do." She said, beginning to chew. After a few moments, she made a sour face and released a roar of fire. "HOT!" She cried out. Pinkie Pie even roasted a marshmallow with the flames.

"G, the punch!" Rainbow yelled for Gilda.

Gilda ran to the punch bowl but received another surprise when the glass leaked out onto her chest rather then into her mouth.

"Well, whaddya know, pepper in the vanilla lemon drops, and the punch served in a dribble glass!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

"Ha! Priceless! Priceless!" Rainbow Dash said with a laugh.

Gilda raced over to another drink that was prank free. She chugged the drink and gulped. "Yeah, HILARIOUS." She said, anger clear in her eyes.

"Hey G, look! Presents!" Rainbow Dash indicated several boxes of presents lying on the table. Gilda immediately ran over to the presents with a grin.

She began with a cylinder-shaped present, which had several fake snakes shoot out and ruffle her feathers, causing the attending ponies to laugh.

"Spittin' snakes!" Applejack said. " Heh, somepony pulled that prank on me last month."

"I bet I know who THAT was." Gilda said with fake laughter again.

"You DO?" Pinkie Pie asked.

The party went, Fluttershy led a group of birds in song. Then Pinkie Pie announced, "Cake time everypony!"

"Hey, can I blow out the candles?" Spike asked hopefully.

"Why don't we let Gilda blow out the candles, Spike. She IS the guest of honor after all." Twilight said to him, apparently having forgotten Gilda’s bad deed.

"Exactly!" Gilda pushed Spike out of the way.

Fire frowned at the sight, feeling the urge to hit her right there. Gilda took a deep breath and blew out the candles. But they lit up again, Gilda noticed and tried to blow them out once more but they just did the same thing. Every pony began laughing once again. with Gilda trying to blow out the candles to no avail.

"Re-lighting birthday candles, I love that prank! What a classic." Spike said.

"Now, I wonder who could've done that!" Pinkie Pie replied.

"Yeah, I wonder," Gilda said.

Spike then dug through the cake like a mole. "Mmm, who cares? This cake is amazing!" He emerged from the top.

"SPIKE!" Twilight scolded.

"What?” he asked cluelessly. “It was great, try some."

Gilda was looking really mad now.

"Hey G, you're not upset about some silly candles, are you?" Rainbow Dash asked, apparently noticing this.

"No way Dash, like I said, I'm down with a good prank." Gilda replied, trying to avoid exploding in front of her friend.

Fire could practically feel her getting ready to crack. A couple more and it would probably do it. But he sighed. Pinkie’s plan was obviously not working. It was time to end this.

He approached her. “I think Gilda’s more upset about being pranked so many times. I don’t think she really appreciates this party at all.”

“What?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

“Finally, somepony who gets it!” Gilda said in relief.

“You… don’t like the stuff at the party?” Rainbow Dash asked in surprise.

Gilda shook her head and spread her wings before flying up and announcing for all to hear. “No way! It’s all just so lame! THIS is your idea of a good time? I've never met a lamer bunch of dweebs in all my life! And Pinkie Pie, you, you are queen lame-o with your weak little party pranks! Did you really think you can make me lose my cool?”

Unfortunately, she had just lost her cool.

“Well, Dash and I have ten times as much cool as the rest of you put together. Come on Dash, we're bailing on this pathetic scene," Gilda said as she turned to leave.

Rainbow Dash, however, stayed right where she was, her face forming an angry expression on her face.

"COME ON, Rainbow Dash. I SAID we're leaving," Gilda said.

"You know Gilda…" Rainbow Dash said. "I was the one who set up all those weak pranks at this party."

"WHAT?" Gilda gasped.

"OOH." Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

"So I guess I'M queen lame-o." Rainbow Dash continued.

"Come on, Dash, you're joshing me." Gilda said, laughing feebly.

"They weren't all meant for you specifically; it was just dumb luck that you set them all off," Rainbow Dash said.

"I shoulda known, that dribble cup had Rainbow Dash written all over it." Pinkie Pie said.

"No way. It was Pinkie Pie." Gilda continued acting stubborn. "She set up this party to trip me up, to make a fool of me."

"Me? I threw this party to improve your attitude. I thought a good party might turn that frown upside down." Pinkie Pie said twisting her neck.

"And you sure didn't need any help making a fool of yourself." Rainbow Dash walked up to Gilda. "You know, this is not how I thought my OLD friend would treat my NEW friends. If being cool is all you care about, maybe you should go find some new COOL friends someplace else."

"Yeah?" Gilda stuttered. "Well you... you... you are such a, a flip-flop! Cool one minute and lame the next! When you all decide not to be lame anymore, gimme a call!"

She made to leave, only to find Fire blocking her way.

“I don’t think so! You’re under arrest for theft!” Fire said as his horn lit up.

He shot a beam of magic at her and a cage suddenly trapped her.

“Hey, let me out of here, you lame prince!” she shouted.

“Sorry, but you need to learn a lesson!” Fire said. “Guards!”

His guards appeared at the door.

“Take this griffon and keep her to the cellar in Warm Heart Tower, make sure she is fed at least,” Fire said.

They saluted him and the Unicorn members lifted the cage and took Gilda away.

“Let me out of here!” the griffon shouted.

“Don’t worry, since you only did one known theft of a small apple I’m only be able to keep you here a maximum of 24 hours according to Equestrian law!” Fire called. “But I’d recommend you really think about stuff with that time!”

He turned to the others.

"NOT cool." Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “Well, her I mean, not you Fire.”

"Yeah, talk about a party pooper." Spike said.

Other ponies began muttering about the event.

"I'm sorry everypony, for bringing Gilda here." Rainbow Dash said looking around. "I didn't know how rude she was, and Pinkie Pie, I'm really sorry she ruined that awesome party you put on for her."

"Hey, if you want to hang out with party poopers, that's your business." Pinkie Pie cheerfully replied.

"I'd rather hang out with you. No hard feelings?" Rainbow asked.

"No hard feelings," Pinkie agreed extending a hoof to shake.

But they both had hoof buzzers on that shocked them, they both laughed at that.

“Well, this party is still in full swing!” Pinkie Pie said. “So, let’s just finish it off!”

They did so. Fire helped himself to the food and sweets then was approached by a familiar mare.

“Hello Moondancer,” he said.

“Hi Fire,” she said. “That was a pretty cool thing you did trapping her in that cage. She was pretty bad, me and the others from Canterlot saw her shouting at Fluttershy and you defend her. I’m glad somepony at least is willing to take action, or she might have just simply walked away without any form of punishment at all.”

“I’m the sheriff here,” Fire reminded her. “I can’t just let her get away with stealing and bullying my friends.”

“That’s what I like about you,” Moondancer said with a blush. “You’re smart, protective, kind, always there for your friends when they need you, talented with magic, and strong. If it weren’t for you, I probably would have sealed myself off from all my friends. Any mare would be lucky to be with you.”

Fire looked at her. “Uh… thanks. Wait… you… like me?”

Moondancer blushed deeper. “I guess you could say that. I’ve always thought of you as a great colt at school but was too shy to say anything.”

Fire managed a smile. Moondancer was a good friend, though he wasn’t sure he thought of her like that. She was… not bad looking, but… he wasn’t certain she was the kind of mare for him. Still she was smart, having been one of the Top 3 in their class at the School of Magic alongside Twilight and himself. He could admire that at least.

…

Twilight, once she was back in the library with Fire and the others, wrote a letter to the Fire’s mother. She read it aloud for them.

Dearest Princess Celestia,

Today I learned that it's hard to accept when somepony you like wants to spend time with somepony who's not so nice. Though it's impossible to control who your friends hang out with, it is possible to control your own behavior. Just continue to be a good friend. In the end, the difference between a false friend and one who's true will surely come to light.

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle

“Sound good, Twilight,” Fire said.

“I’ll go ahead and send it then!” Twilight said.

“Hold on!” Pinkie said as she drew a bottle of invisible ink. “Send this with it!”

“But that’s invisible ink!” Twilight said. “Are you trying to prank the princess?”

“Yeah, well we’re at it we might as well try and pull off a royal prank!” Pinkie said.

“I agree! That would make it the best pranking spree of my life!” Rainbow Dash said.

“You sure we won’t get in trouble for this?” Rarity asked.

“I doubt it! My mom likes a prank now and then!” Fire said. “It spices things up! I say go for it!”

Twilight sighed. “Okay.”

She took the scroll and wrapped the ink bottle in it then gave it to Spike who blew and sent the scroll to the princess.

…

It appeared in Celestia’s chamber and she opened it, causing the ink to pop out.

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

My most faithful student.

She began to write, only to have the words vanish as she did so. The ink label suddenly came off and revealed the invisible ink.

“Oh! Heh, wrong ink.” Celestia said with a chuckle as she got use the right ink and began writing again.

Author's Note

Well, here we are with another episode that includes Fire. I managed to complete that one story I was focusing on last month. Unfortunately, we aren’t going back to the normal schedule as I’ve decided to change things up in order to complete some stories quicker. This story will now be updated every two weeks on Tuesdays nights (or Wednesday morning, its almost midnight now as I write these notes). But hopefully my other two stories will be complete in a couple months and I’ll be able to do this one every week. It will probably take the longest out of all of them. Still not sure if I’ll go for the whole series. At least up to Magical Mystery Cure I think, I heard it was originally planned for that to be the series finale when Twilight became an alicorn. But we’ll see.

Chapter 9: Boast Busters

Fire stood in the Golden Oaks Library with Spike, Twilight, and Moondancer as they all practiced spells together.

“Feels good to have some ponies to practice with,” Twilight said. “I wish I’d known you were just as into magic as I was, Moondancer!”

“So far you both seem to be better than me though!” the yellow glasses wearing pony said.

“Hey, you’re still pretty good,” Fire said encouragingly. “You know almost as much as Twilight and got better grades in class at almost all the other subjects as well at school.”

She blushed at the praise.

“And you are a better fighter with magic then I am,” Twilight said to Fire. “Alright next its growing magic!”

“Ooh, try it on me!” Spike said eagerly. “I’d love to have a mustache! Maybe it would earn me… somepony's heart!”

Fire wondered if he was thinking about Rarity. Was he not giving up? Or was he thinking of other ponies?

“I don’t think so, Romeo,” Twilight said with a smile. “But... maybe somepony else wouldn’t mind get a mustache for just a few minutes?”

“Uh, pass,” Moondancer said.

Fire sighed. He wasn’t big on mustaches. “Okay, as long as it’s just for a few minutes.”

Twilight pointed her magic at him.

“Come on, Twilight. You can do it!” Spike said.

“Okay, here goes!” Twilight said.

Her magic shined and Fire stood still, the magic soon enveloped his lower face and from there a mustache of white hair sprouted under Fire’s chin.

Spike grinned. “Ha ha! Ya did it!” Spike said as he went to the nearby board and checked off the latest thing on the list. “Growing magic, that's number twenty-five. Twenty-five different types of tricks and counting!”

“I think it looks nice,” Moondancer said.

Fire smiled at her. He remembered her telling him she liked him. Maybe he should ask her to the Grand Galloping Galla? But what if something didn’t work out? It could affect their friendship.

Twilight nodded. “Yes, he looks good, though I think he prefers to be without the mustache, here Fire.”

She sent more magic at him and removed the mustache. He felt his face and let out a sigh of relief.

“Well, that was fun,” he said. “But now that that’s out of the way I think we’re done for the day.”

They walked out among the streets of Ponyville.

“Twenty-five, Twilight,” Spike said again. “Twenty-five different kinds of tricks and counting. I thought unicorns were only supposed to have a little magic that matches their special talents!”

Twilight nodded. “True, for ponies whose talents are for things like cooking or singing or math. But what if a unicorn's special talent is magic?”

“Then she is good at everything,” Moondancer said.

“Like you, Twilight! And you know a ton of magic!” Spike said.

Twilight smiled. “Oh, Spike, stop. I'm sure there are lots of ponies right here in Ponyville that know just as much magic as me.”

Spike sniggered. “Well, maybe Fire and Moondancer here come pretty close! But you probably know the most in all of Equestria.”

“Yeah, you both know more then I did, I was just third place in our class,” Fire said. “I maybe a better fighter, but you both are-”

Suddenly a group of school grade ponies came running, among them, Fire spotted Applejack and Rarity’s younger sisters and the orange Pegasus filly that had been doing daring stunts on her scooter.

“Come on there’s a big show going on!” Apple Bloom said.

Another pair of ponies, both unicorn colts, followed. “Gangway! Comin' through!”

They were in such a hurry they caught Spike on top of them as he held on.

“Augh!” the little dragon exclaimed. “Snips, Snails! What's going on?”

“Wha, haven't you heard?” Snails answered as Spike fell off of them. “There's a new unicorn in town!”

“Yeah!” Snips said. “They say that she's got more magical powers than any other unicorn ever!”

“Really?” Twilight exclaimed.

“Aw, no way,” Spike objected. “That honor goes to Twilight here!”

He gestured to his caretaker who blushed. “Come on, Spike, Fire is better than me at combat magic and Moondancer could be just as gifted! Maybe this unicorn has a talent that’s greater than what I could do? Where is she?”

“Ho, she's in the town square. Come on!” Snails said.

“Yeah!” Snips added with a laugh. “Come on! Whooo!”

They arrived at the town square and stood there for a moment before the show began. Soon a stage seemed to just extend in front of the hall, smoke clouded their view, and a voice rang for all to hear.

“Come one, come all! Come and witness the amazing magic of the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

She made a grand entrance as the smoke cleared, revealing herself to be a blue unicorn with a magician’s hat and cape.

“Ooh!” the audience exclaimed in anticipation.

“Watch in awe as the Great and Powerful Trixie performs the most spectacular feats of magic ever witnessed by pony eyes!”

Fireworks were let off with sparkles and loud bangs.

Rarity watched with annoyance. “My, my, my! What boasting!”

“Come on, nopony's as magical as Twi— Twi— Twi— Oh!” Spike cleared his throat as he saw he was talking to Rarity. “Hey, Rarity, I, uh— Mustache!”

So, he apparently hadn’t given up on her yet. Fire looked as the little dragon ran off as if to try and find a mustache to put on. Maybe Fire should try and win her heart in that case? But he hesitated as he thought of Moondancer. He felt so torn right now, on one hoof he knew Rarity liked Blueblood, but that pony was the rudest royal in Equestria. Could it really work out between them though? Rarity was very beautiful and had a heart that was equally lovely. But Moondancer had already confessed to liking him. Though Fire wasn’t sure he felt the same way. She was a brilliant pony who’d started coming out of her shell to be more social. Fire sighed, unsure.

Twilight approached Rarity. “There's nothing wrong with being talented, is there?”

“Nothin' at all,” Applejack who was nearby said. “Cep when somepony goes around showing it off like a school filly with fancy new ribbons.”

“Just because one has the ability to perform lots of magic does not make one better than the rest of us,” Rarity said.

Fire nodded. He was royalty and he never felt he was better then the rest of them.

“Especially when ya got me around being better than the rest of us,” Rainbow Dash said before receiving a glare from Applejack. “Heh... Uh, I mean, yeah, uh, magic shmagic. Boo!”

Trixie noticed the conversation. “Well, well, well, it seems we have some neighsayers in the audience. Who is so ignorant as to challenge the magical ability of the Great and Powerful Trixie? Do they not know that they're in the presence of the most magical unicorn in all of Equestria?”

Fire frowned, this braggart was getting more annoying by the second. She was worse than Rainbow Dash.

Rarity blew a raspberry. “Just who does she think she is?”

“Yeah!” Spike reappeared. “I bet Twilight, Fire, or Moondancer are all better than-“

Twilight cut him off. “Spike! Shhh!”

She led him away. Fire and Moondancer followed.

“What? What's wrong?” Spike asked her.

“You see the way they reacted to Trixie?” Twilight asked. “I don't want anyone thinking I'm a show-off.”

“Me neither!” Moondancer said. “I’ve been opening up to spending time with friends, but performing a magic show on stage? No thanks! I get stage fright just thinking about it!”

Trixie continued to do tricks and received applause in return. Rainbow Dash took the chance to ask a question.

“So, 'Great and Powerful Trixie'. What makes you think you're so awesome, anyway?”

“Heh,” Trixie scoffed. “Why, only the Great and Powerful Trixie has magic strong enough to vanquish the dreaded Ursa Major!”

The fireworks went off and showed a picture of a giant bear-like monster with moon markings on its body. A firework image of Trixie followed showing her face the monster. The audience looked at the display with amazement.

“What?” Snips exclaimed.

“No way!” Snails objected.

“When all hope was lost, the ponies of Hoofington had no one to turn to,” Trixie told them a story. “But the Great and Powerful Trixie stepped in and with her awesome magic, vanquished the Ursa Major and sent it back to its cave deep within the Everfree Forest!”

Snips and Snails were amazed. “So sweet!

They then began giving Trixie their full support.

“That settles it,” Snips started.

Snails took over. “Trixie truly is the most talented, the most magical, the most awesome unicorn in Ponyville.”

“No, in all of Equestria!” Snips added.

Spike frowned. “How do you know? You didn't see it! And besides, Twi-“

Twilight cut him by using her magic to zip his mouth shut. He mumbled in protest.

Trixie laughed. “It's true, my enthusiastic little admirers. Trixie is most certainly the best in Ponyville. Don't believe the Great and Powerful Trixie? Well then, I hereby challenge you, Ponyvillians. Anything you can do, I can do better. Any takers? Anyone? Hmm? Or is Trixie destined to be the greatest equine who has ever lived?!”

More fireworks erupted.

Spike unzipped his mouth and looked at Twilight, Moondancer, and Fire with teary eyes. “Please! She's unbearable! Ya all gotta show her! Ya just gotta!”

Twilight shook her head. "There's no way I'm going to use my magic now, Spike. Especially since-“

Trixie then looked at her. “Hmm, how about you?”

She pointed at Twilight who gulped.

Trixie then looked at Moondancer. “Or you?”

The glasses wearing pony fell on her stomach as eyes from the crowd turned to her.

“Too shy to face an audience are you, Nerd?” Trixie asked.

Fire gritted his teeth, his mane began to flicker with flames.

“Oh, you look ready to challenge me,” Trixie said noticing him. “An alicorn might actually be a challenge! But the Great and Powerful Trixie is sure she can come out on top! How about it? Hm? Is there anything your highness can do that the Great and Powerful Trixie can't?”

Fire frowned. She was asking for it! He didn’t care for showing off, but this braggart needed to be taken down a peg or two.

He was about to speak up and accept her challenge.

But Applejack had had enough as well. “That's it! I can't stand for no more of this!”

She stepped on top of the stage and Spike cheered.

“You show her, AJ!”

Applejack got her lasso out. “Can your magical powers do this?”

She began performing impressive maneuvers with her lasso. This earned her applause from the audience.

Applejack turned to Trixie with a smirk. “Top that, missy.”

Trixie lifted her hat off to reveal her horn. “Oh, ye of little talent. Watch and be amazed at the magic of Trixie!"

Applejack’s own rope began to move back in forth like a hypnotic chain, Applejack’s eyes were glued to it for only a few seconds as suddenly the rope wrapped itself around her hooves and her mouth opened in time for Trixie to put an apple inside.

The audience cheered and Trixie boasted once again.

“Once again, the Great and Powerful Trixie prevails.”

Fire levitated Applejack down from the stage and used his magic to untie her and get the apple out of her mouth.

“Thanks Fire,” she said.

Rainbow Dash was next. “There's no need to go struttin' around and showin' off like that.”

“Oh?” Trixie looked at her.

“That's my job!” Rainbow declared.

She flew up high, dove through a few clouds and spun through a nearby windmill, then landed on the stage with a rainbow over her.

“They don't call me "Rainbow" and "Dash" for nothin'!” she said.

The audience cheered once again.

Trixie’s confidence was ever persistent. “When Trixie is through, the only thing they'll call you is loser!”

With her magic she somehow took hold of Rainbow Dash’s rainbow and caused it to wrap around her and spin in a tornado.

“Whoa! Whoa! Whoa-a-a-a! I think I'm gonna be sick.”

When it was over, she looked dizzy.

"Seems like anypony with a dash of good sense would think twice before tussling with the Great Trixie.” Trixie added.

A lightning bolt then hit Rainbow Dash, causing her mane to became frizzy.

“Ow!” the Pegasus exclaimed.

Spike tried again to get one of the three major magic users to compete. “What we need is another unicorn to challenge her. Someone with some magic of their own.”

“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash agreed. “A unicorn to show this unicorn who's boss.”

Applejack grinned. “A real unicorn to unicorn tussle!”

“Uh,” Twilight started.

“Enough!” Rarity spoke up. “Enough, all of you. I take your hint, but Rarity is above such nonsense! Rainbow Dash and Applejack may behave like ruffians, but Rarity conducts herself with beauty and grace.”

Trixie turned to her. “Ooo, what's the matter? Afraid you'll get a hair out of place in that rat's nest you call a mane?”

That got Rarity mad. “Oh. It. Is. On!” she said each word one at a time then walked up on the stage. “You may think you're tough with all of your so-called powers, but there's more to magic than your brutish ways. A unicorn needs to be more than just muscle. A unicorn needs to have style.”

She took the blue curtain from the stage and turned it into a dress with gold lacing, her mane was also in a new style as well.

“Ooh!” the audience said as they witnessed her beauty.

Fire also watched with red cheeks and a smile.

Rarity smiled. “A unicorn is not a unicorn without grace and beauty.”

“Rarity won't let Trixie get the best of her! She's strong, she's beautiful, she's—

Spike was interrupted as Trixie cast another spell, earning a gasp from the crowd as they looked at Rarity who'd been transformed.

“Quick! I need a mirror! Get me a mirror! What did she do to my hair? I know she did something terrible to my hair!” Rarity cried, feeling something was off.

“Nothing,” Twilight said.

“It's fine,” Rainbow followed suit.

“It's gorgeous,” Applejack lied to spare Rarity’s feelings.

“It's green,” Spike gave away. The three mares glared at him. “What?”

“No,” Rarity cried as her mane was now seemingly replaced with something that looked like ugly green grass. “Green hair! Not green hair! Such an awful, awful color!”

She ran off crying, passing a pony who had green hair of her own as Fire watched in dismay before beginning to follow.

“Well, I never!” the green haired pony said in offense putting her nose in the air.

Fire stopped and looked at her. “Oh, I’m sure she’s just upset cause her green hair doesn’t look good. Yours is fine!”

He then ran after Rarity who ran all the way to her boutique. He followed her inside as she looked at herself in the mirror.

“Oh, how awful!” Rarity exclaimed in tears. “I’ve never looked so ugly!”

“Hey,” Fire said as he approached.

Rarity looked behind her.

“Aah! Don’t look at me, Prince Fire Sword!” she said covering herself in a pink cloak.

Fire approached, taking her chin and focusing on her still beautiful blue eyes. “It's okay, not your fault. Come on, let’s get that spell removed. I think I know just the pony to help with that.”

“Twilight?” she asked.

“Twlight’s pretty good with all sorts of magic,” Fire admitted. “But another pony I know specializes in beauty spells for hair happens to be visiting here.”

“Who’s that?” Rarity asked.

Fire led her to the pony.

…

“Okay,” Twinkleshine said as she looked through her spellbook she kept with her at all times on hair spells. “Trixie used a spell to turn your mane… bad. But I can… ah… here we are! This should get it back to normal!”

Her horn lit up with pink magic, she pointed it at Rarity who still had her hood up.

“Um, I need you to lower the hood,” Twinkleshine said.

Reluctantly, Rarity did so. Twinkleshine then cast the spell and the green grasslike mane was replaced with her usual elegant purple one. Rarity ran a hoof through it and sighed in relief. “Oh, I’ve missed this mane! Thank you, Twinkleshine!”

“Of course, anything for a friend of a friend!” the ivory unicorn said to the white one.

Fire smiled, but it turned into a frown as he recalled all the bragging remarks and insults from Trixie.

“Alright, I’m gonna put that braggart in her place!” he said, stomping off. “No pony makes fun of my friends!”

Arriving back at the scene he saw several other ponies, including his Canterlot friends had been defeated by Trixie.

“Alright that’s it!” Fire said as he stepped up onto the stage as well. “You really have magic powerful enough to vanquish an Ursa Major? Let’s see just how powerful you really are!” he made sure to emphasize the word powerful.

He lit up his horn with bloodred magic and faced her.

“Oh… uh… a combat magician, are you?” Trixie said with a slight hesitation that Fire noticed, causing him to smirk, she was afraid. “I… think I can handle a show of raw magic power. Let’s see who can best who if that is your wish oh mighty Prince Fire Sword!”

Mighty Prince Fire Sword? Fire kind of liked that. But he didn’t like her.

“I hear you defeated the Mare of the Moon, but Trixie is up to the challenge! Afterall Trixie did vanquish an Ursa Major.”

“Well then, ready, set, go!”

Fire shot a beam at her as he finished, not enough to hurt her too badly. She put up a shield of her own magic that blocked it. Fire felt tempted to use his wings, but that wouldn’t be fair. He didn’t need his wings to deal with this, it was gonna be magic to magic. He sent a series of rapid shots out that cracked Trixie’s shield, she appeared worried for a moment. Fire smirked and began to charge his magic a little bit to break the shield the rest of the way. But Trixie lowered her shield and sent a beam of her at him before he could unleash his own, she knocked him off his hooves, with a mild burn on his fur.

“Prince Fire Sword!” a voice called out. It was one of Fire’s Royal guards. He glared at Trixie. “Attacking a prince is a serious offense!”

“Oh, but he challenged me to a magic duel!” Trixie said. “It was he who initiated this!”

She was right, at least in the sense that Fire had chosen to go for a more… violent approach of magic.

“Oh, are you okay, Fire?” Moondancer asked as she, Rarity, and the mares from Canterlot surrounded their stallion friend.

“I’ll be fine,” Fire said as he felt the sting of the burn.

He walked off to Warmheart Tower where he applied some healing ointment to the burn. It soothed him. He let out a sigh, thinking of the battle. His talent was supposed to be combat magic, why had he lost? Then he recalled the words of his combat teacher from the royal guard, General Bloodheart.

“You must balance between offense and defense. If you attack at the same time as your opponent or wait too long you leave yourself open.”

The words played back in his head and he realized he’d left himself open. He’d had a habit of that in combat training during sparring. Focusing too much on power and offense. Trixie had struck quickly while he charged a powerful spell. That’s why he failed.

…

Fire sighed and after a while headed outside. He headed over to Sweet Apple Acres nearby and knocked on the door. Applejack answered.

“Oh, Howdy Fire!” Applejack said. “You okay? I heard you tried to beat Trixie as well!”

“Yeah, are you?” Fire asked.

“I’m fine, just my pride is a little wounded,” Applejack said. “Can’t believe that Trixie!”

Fire nodded. “I know, I can’t believe I let her beat me!”

“You did yer best,” Applejack reassured him. “I’ll just be glad when she leaves town. Hopefully she’s not here to stay.”

Fire nodded. He walked through town and grabbed a bite to eat. As he sat outdoors in front of the café which would be closing as night was coming soon with the sun setting, he saw Spike passing by.

“Hey Spike."

The little dragon looked at him. “Oh, hey Fire. You know, I was sure you could beat her!” Spike said. “I tried to get Twilight to do it but she’s afraid that everypony will hate her for her magic!”

Fire frowned. “There’s no way we’d do that! We hate Trixie cause she’s a bragger, not because she uses magic! I’ll go talk to Twilight!”

He made his way to the Golden Oaks Library, the sun was about to completely set by the time he arrived.

Opening the door, he found Twilight was inside reading a book.

“Hey Twilight,” he greeted.

She looked away from her book and saw him. “Oh, hi Fire. Something wrong?”

“Yeah, Spike told me you didn’t challenge Trixie cause you’re afraid everyone will hate you like her?”

She nodded and looked back at her book. “I am. I just don’t want to risk losing them as friends.”

Fire shook his head. “That’s not gonna happen, Twilight! We hate Trixie cause she is a bragger. You’re not! You’re humble and magical! You don’t brag about your magic like Trixie does. And if you faced her you’d be standing up for your friends.”

She sighed. “Maybe you’re right, but I think its late. Maybe I’ll talk to everypony in the morning and see if they’d be okay with me showing up Trixie.”

Fire nodded. He headed out and was almost back home when there was a roar from nearby.

“What the hay?” Fire wondered aloud. “Guards!”

His guards immediately ran out from inside the tower.

“With me!” he ordered.

They followed him into town where they found a… very very large blue transparent bear-like creature. It was bigger than the houses!

“An Ursa Major!” Fire stated in fear and surprise. “Protect everypony!”

They made their way to the gathering crowd in the streets and place themselves at the front while the others shook at the sight. Trixie was among them with Snips and Snails. At that moment Twilight arrived as well.

“What’s going on?” She asked.

Snips told her. “We brought an Ursa to town.”

“You what?!” Twilight screamed.

“Don't worry, the Great and Powerful Trixie will vanquish it!” Snails declared.

Trixie, however, shook her head. “I can't.”

“What?!” Snips and Snails exclaimed.

Trixie finally spilled the beans. “Oh, I can't, I never have. No one can vanquish an Ursa Major. I just made the whole story up to make me look better.”

“Made it up?!” the two colts exclaimed in disbelief.

The Ursa growled and roared again. Fire frowned in defiance and stepped forward.

“Alright no pony has managed to vanquish an Ursa Major before, huh?” he asked. “Well, I doubt any of them were alicorns with a special talent for combat!”

He lit up his horn, conjuring his armor that he hadn’t worn in a while now. His armor and crown appeared on his body. Now he looked like a knight ready to save the town.

Hopefully the armor would protect him in the event he got hit. He then began charging up his horn with a high level of magic.

“Fire wait!” Twilight called.

He was too busy to notice. The Ursa growled at him, recognizing him as a potential threat and raised a paw. Fire watched carefully and reacted in time. He flapped his wings, dodging the attack while still charging his own. He flew up high to be out of range as the Ursa swatted at him. Fire was about to fire when he heard-

“Don’t!” Twilight yelled at the top of her lungs.

Fire stopped, hearing her voice. She gulped and stepped forward, the Ursa growled at her and began making its way to her as well. Fire stood, or flew by, ready in case she needed help. She must have had an idea if she stopped him from attacking, unless she knew something he didn’t.

Twilight lit up her own horn as well, wind began to pick up a bit and a sound emanated from it, a sound like music, like a lullaby. The Ursa seemed to calm down a bit, its expression appearing soothed. Fire sighed in relief, while a part of him did relish the thought of fighting such a formidable creature it would be better if no blood was spilled.

“Nice use of number sixteen,” Spike said referring to the practice.

“Let me help, Twilight!” Moondancer said stepping forward, no longer so shy.

“Okay, grab that water tower over there and fill it with milk!” Twilight said.

Moondancer was confused but did as she was told, taking the water tower and dumping the water inside out then ran it through a barn full of cows.

“Huh, what’s that?” Spike asked.

Moondancer put the top back on as the Ursa seemed to be falling asleep. It was about to fall on Trixie but Fire swooped in and grabbed her before it did so. He didn’t like her but he still didn’t want her to get hurt. Twilight then brought the Ursa to the tower filed with milk which it took and began sucking on like a baby.

Together, Moondancer and Twilight then sent the Ursa back where it came from in the Everfree Forest. Both were left panting slightly.

“Thanks, Moondancer,” Twilight said. “That would have been difficult to do by myself.”

“No problem, Twi,” Moondancer said.

Everypony then erupted in cheer.

“Unbelievable!” Rainbow Dash said.

“That was amazing!” Spike said. “You were both amazing!”

“Heavens to Betsy!” Applejack said. “We knew you had ability, but not that much!”

Twilight looked at them in fear. “I'm sorry. Please, please don't hate me.”

Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity all looked at her in confusion. “Hate you?”

“Why, whatever do you mean, darling?” Rarity asked.

“Well, I know how much you all hated Trixie's showing off with her magic tricks, and I just thought-

Rainbow Dash put up her hooves. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Magic's got nothing to do with it. Trixie's just a loudmouth!”

Rarity nodded. “Most unpleasant.”

“All hat and no cattle,” Applejack added.

Twilight was relieved. “So, you don't mind my magic tricks?”

Applejack smiled at her. “Your magic is a part of who you are, sugarcube, and we like who you are. We're proud to have such a powerful, talented unicorn as our friend.”

She then looked at Moondancer, “Make that two talented unicorns!”

“And after whuppin' that Ursa's hindquarters, we're even prouder!” Rainbow said.

Moondancer blushed as Fire landed on the ground.

Twilight looked at them. “You are?"

The three girls nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, I’m proud to have you two by my side,” Fire said looking at Moondancer. “You may not be an Element of Harmony, Moondancer, but you sure helped out with your knowledge of magic. Looks like you overcame your shyness there, too.”

“I just couldn’t let Twilight face it alone,” she said.

Spike then ran over. “Wow, Twilight, how'd you know what to do with that Ursa Major?”

“That's what I was doing when you came looking for me. I was so intrigued by Trixie's bragging that I was compelled to do a little reading up on them.”

“So it is possible to vanquish an Ursa Major all by yourself?” Spike asked.

“That wasn't an Ursa Major. It was a baby, an Ursa Minor,” Twilight elaborated.

“That was just a baby?” Trixie asked in disbelief.

“That’s why I stopped you from attacking it, Fire,” Twilight said. “If anypony could vanquish an Ursa Major it's you, but if that Minor actually got hurt or killed its mother would probably come and seek revenge on the whole town.”

Fire shivered. Good thing he listened when Twilight called him. Perhaps he shouldn’t be so quick to leap into action. If he had attacked he might have gotten into a fight that he couldn’t win.

“And it wasn't rampaging,” Twilight further explained. “It was just cranky because someone woke it up.”

She pointed at Snips and Snails who let out a guilty, “Awww.”

“Well, if that was an Ursa Minor, then what's an Ursa Major like?”

Bigger and badder? Fire guessed. If that baby was bigger than a house…

“You don't wanna know,” Twilight said.

Fire silently agreed.

Trixie huffed. “You may have vanquished an Ursa Minor, but you will never have the amazing, show-stopping ability of the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

She threw a smoke grenade, clouding the vision of the nearby ponies. When it cleared, they saw her running away.

Rainbow Dash looked after her. “Why, that little...”

“Just let her go,” Twilight said. “Maybe someday she'll learn her lesson. Now, about you two.”

She turned to Snips and Snails, who laughed nervously.

“Uh, we're sorry that we woke up the Ursa Minor,” Snips said.

“We just wanted to see some awesome magic,” Snails added.

“Yeah!” Snips said looking at Moondancer and Twilight. “And the way you two vanquished that Ursa Minor was awesome!”

They both bowed. “We deserve whatever punishment you give us.”

“For starters, you can clean up this mess,” Twilight said before turning to her assistant and magic partners. “And what do you guys think? Should I give them number twenty-five?”

Spike was enthused and stood beside the two colts. “Oh, twenty-five! Yes! And I think I deserve it, too.”

Snips and Snails were confused.

Twilight giggled. “I think you're right.”

She then cast a spell at the three young males, who all grew mustaches and said, “Sweet!”

Twilight smiled and looked at Fire. “Well, I think I’m ready to make a letter to your mother! Wanna hear it?”

“Sure!” Fire said.

They and Spike all headed to the library where Twilight had the little dragon write the letter for her.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I have learned a very valuable lesson about friendship: I was so afraid of being thought of as a show-off that I was hiding a part of who I am. My friends helped me realize that it's okay to be proud of your talents, and there are times when it's appropriate to show them off... Especially when you're standing up for your friends.

“I’d like to make a contribution to this myself,” Fire said.

Spike got out a second scroll and prepared to write.

Dear Mom,

I learned a little something as well. My mentor always told me I need to find the right balance between offense and defense. I still need to work on that, as knowing it is one thing but being able to do it is another. But I did learn you shouldn’t rush into situations you don’t understand, or the consequences could be severe.

Spike smiled. “So, you finally admit that you're the most talented unicorn in all of Ponyville?"

Twilight nodded. “Well, one of the most talented, maybe at the top, but it's nothing to brag about.”

They chuckled. Spike then looked at his mustache.

“You know, I think Rarity might just like this!”

Yep, he was still going for her even though he knew she already liked somepony.

Fire watched him leave. Maybe he should try his luck with her, even if she did like Blueblood. Of course, she didn’t really know him. But his mind wandered to Moondancer and his ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala.

Walking outside he found her at Lyra’s house.

“Hey, Moondancer, can I talk to you?” he asked.

“Sure,” she stepped outside with him.

They walked a ways out and Fire turned to face her, blushing a bit.

“I was wondering if… maybe… you’d like to go to the Grand Galloping Gala with me?” Fire asked.

She was silent for a moment. Then her eyes lit up in a smile as she hugged him.

“Yes! Yes! Yes!”

Fire managed a nervous smile. He just hoped this wouldn’t affect their friendship if it didn’t work out.

“Great,” he said. “Well, it's gonna be a while till then but at least we can prepare.”

She nodded. “See you later.”

Moondancer headed back to Lyra’s house. Fire then began walking home as well. Little did he know, however, Rarity had heard the whole thing having been nearby.

“Prince Fire is taking Moondancer to the Grand Galloping Gala?” She exclaimed. “I thought he was probably seeing an elite Canterlot Mare!”

She sighed but then perked up. “Well, he is perfectly at liberty to take whoever he likes! Besides I still have my plans to woo the other prince!”

Her smile soon vanished though. She looked down a bit sadly.

Author's Note

Okay, I decided to give Twinkleshine a brief moment to… shine? Ha! No pun intended:). I think she has a different career then a mane stylist according to the AU but that’s never actually been shown in the show from what I can recall so I can just do my own thing here. One fanfic I read had her be a fashion lover kind of like Rarity and I felt that suited her since she has the shine in her name. Also, General Bloodheart is another OC I introduced in another MLP story just a couple weeks ago, though that version is villainous while this one is heroic.

Chapter 10: Dragonshy

Fire awoke one morning and looked outside. It was a beautiful day, the sun was shining, not a cloud was in the sky. He showered and headed down to the tower dining room, finding his breakfast of fruit, nuts and toast freshly made and still warm (in the case of the latter).

“Thank you,” he said to his servants who bowed.

Fire ate his breakfast calmly, read to enjoy today on patrol seeing Ponyville and making sure it was safe. Maybe interact with his friends as well. He then heard a tweet nearby and saw Aurora in her cage.

“Oh, you sick of being cooped up in there, Aurora?” he asked the sunbird.

She tweeted in confirmation. He sighed.

“Okay, I’ll let you out, but you can’t fly away, understand?” he asked.

She made the same tweet of agreement. Fire used his magic to open her cage and she flew out, but within sight.

“Good birdy,” he said.

She flew around and landed on the table, playing a lovely song. He hummed to it and then took her outside. She perched on his back adorably. Many ponies were out enjoying the sunshine on this fine day. Everything seemed fine.

Then suddenly Fluttershy came running in, she approached a group of ponies who didn’t seem to acknowledge her as her lips moved. Fire frowned as he looked at her expression, it was one of alarm. As he approached her, something blue zipped past her. It was Rainbow Dash, with a ball that she bounced on her head.

“Don't be such a scaredy pony!” Rainbow said. “It's just me, future Equestria ball-bouncing record holder. Three forty-six, three forty-seven…”

“Hey, not bad Rainbow Dash!” Fire said before looking at Fluttershy. “Hey, everything okay? You look like…”

“This calls for a celebration!” Pinkie Pie said as she watched from nearby and bounced her head with Rainbow’s own bouncing before running off.

“Oh, no, Pinkie Pie, this is no time for celebration,” Fluttershy said. “This is a time for panic, for-“

Pinkie Pie however, was too busy planning to notice. “Ooo! I'm going to need balloons! One for every pony in Ponyville!”

Fire looked at Fluttershy directly. “What’s wrong, Fluttershy? Why do you think this a time for panic? It’s a beautiful day! Nothing seems amiss!”

Fluttershy pointed up. “There's— there's smoke. And— and where there's smoke, there's fire. And—”

“Fire?” Fire exclaimed looking up and seeing the smoke. It had escaped his notice before. “Uh oh.”

Pinkie Pie, oblivious to the situation began counting ponies nearby. “Let's see, that's one, two, three, four...

Rainbow Dash likewise, continued counting her bounces. “Three hundred fifty four, three hundred fifty five, no, wait...” she exclaimed as Pinkie was about to point at her.

“Everypony STOP!” Fire shouted in his royal voice.

That got everyponies attention.

Rainbow Dash dropped her ball. “Fire! Now I have to start over!”

Fluttershy spoke next to Fire. “We're all going to have to start over, in a new village. 'Cause ours is gonna be—

Again, only Fire was hearing her.

“You need to speak louder, Fluttershy!” he told her before turning to the ponies nearby. “There is smoke covering our skies!”

“What? Oh no! That’s awful!” various ponies said looking up and seeing it was true.

Twilight Sparkle suddenly arrived on the situation. “Listen up! Smoke is spreading over all of Equestria!”

“We know Twilight!” Rainbow exclaimed. “Fire just told us!”

“Only cause Fluttershy alerted me and I was the only pony to notice her!” Fire snapped.

“I’m sorry. I should have spoke louder,” Fluttershy said. “But I was being as loud I could.”

Fire sighed. “Its okay Fluttershy. Just… try and actually shout in a situation like this? You’re not gonna help anypony if you are always quiet.”

She looked down.

“Well don't worry, I've just received a letter from Princess Celestia informing me that it is not coming from a fire!” Twilight said.

“Oh, thank goodness,” Fluttershy said in relief.

“It's coming from a dragon.” Twilight told them.

The ponies gasped.

Fluttershy shuddered at this. “A... d-dragon?”

...

At the Golden Oaks Library, they worked on a plan. But first there was one thing they all wanted to know.

“What in the name of all things cinnamon swirled is a full-grown dragon doing here in Equestria?” Applejack asked.

“Sleeping,” Twilight answered as she looked from her book.

Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie all looked at her in confusion and said as one “Huh?”

“According to Princess Celestia, he's taking a nap. His snoring is what's causing all this smoke,” Twilight said as she put a book along with others into her saddlebag.

“He should really see a doctor. That doesn't sound healthy at all,” Pinkie said.

“Well, at least he's not snoring fire!” Rarity said.

“Yeah, good thing he’s not snoring me!” Fire said.

Rainbow Dash laughed. “Good one, Fire!”

She hoofbumped him.

“What are we meant to do about it?” Rarity asked.

“I'll tell you what we're meant to do! Give him the boot!” Take that.” Rainbow said as she kicked a carved wood pony head.

Twilight had to straighten it with her magic and then-

“And that!” Rainbow tried to tackle the statue as though it were the dragon. Twilight moved it out of harms way and Rainbow crashed into a shelf.

Twilight walked up to Rainbow who lay on her back. “We need to encourage him to take a nap somewhere else.”

Fire would have maybe liked to fight a dragon, but it was probably best to try things the peaceful way first.

“Princess Celestia has given us this mission, and we must not fail,” Twilight continued as Rainbow got up and saluted her with a frown. “If we do, Equestria will be covered in smoke for the next one hundred years.”

Fluttershy gasped.

“Hmph. Talk about getting your beauty sleep.” Rarity said.

“All right everypony, I need you to gather supplies quickly,” Twilight said.

“Ahem,” Fire cleared his throat. “Speaking as a royal here I think I should be leading.”

“Oh, uh… maybe,” Twilight said. “Sorry Fire! I just said what I thought they should do.”

“And it was a good suggestion, I admit,” Fire said. “We need to be well prepared if we are going to go up against a dragon.”

“Hopefully we’ll only have to go up against him sleeping right now,” Twilight said. “Come on girls… and Fire. We've got a long journey ahead of us. Let's meet back here in less than an hour.

“Okay, girls, you heard her!” Rainbow said. “The fate of Equestria is in our hooves. Do we have what it takes?”

Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity all raised their forelegs in affirmation. Fire nodded. They then all made to exit the library and make their way back to their homes.

Fluttershy however, was uncertain. “Um, actually…”

But no pony heard her.

Each of them went home and prepared themselves in their own way.

Montage:

Rainbow Dash took rainbow water that flowed in her cloud house and covered her cheeks with it like warpaint. “Raaah!”

Applejack’s family packed her saddlebag. Once it was done Big Mac struggled to lift it on to her back. She struggled as well for a moment then let out a loud “Yaaa!”

Pinkie Pie emerged from Sugarcube Corner, and party stuff blew out of her saddlebag, causing her to laugh, then realizing it didn’t fit with the situation said, “Oh I mean, grr!”

Rarity put on a camouflage helmet which she soon looked at in disgust. “Eww!” She switched to a camouflage hat with a red feather that stuck out beautifully. “Much better. Onward!”

Fire put on his full set of armor, not just the breastplate. He got on his helmet that he didn’t normally wear, usually using his crown instead. But knowing there was danger, he decided he needed to protect his head too. He then grabbed the Sword of Harmony from where he’d hung it on the wall above his bed, levitating into the scabbard that had been made and sticking it on his side.

“Hmm,” he huffed with a smirk before drawing the sword which shined.

Fluttershy, meanwhile emerged from her cottage with a sports helmet and pads on her hooves. She shut the door behind her and it made a sound that startled her.

End of Montage:

They all then met back in front of the library, in their normal states with their things in saddlebags. Smoke now covered the entire sky.

“Let's go!” Applejack said.

“Um, let's... not?” Fluttershy quietly said.

Twilight looked at Fire. “Do you have a plan, Prince Fire?”

“Well… no,” Fire admitted grudgingly. “If you do, you lead us then.”

Twilight nodded. “All right girls… Fire… listen up. I'm mapping out the fastest route, but we've all got to keep a good pace if we expect to make it up the mountain by nightfall.

“M-m-mountain?” Fluttershy stuttered.

Twilight pointed to the tall mountain in the distance. “The dragon is in that cave at the very top.”

“Looks pretty cold up there.” Applejack noted.

“You bet it is,” Rainbow said. “The higher you go, the chillier it gets.”

“Good thing I brought my scarf.” Rarity pulled out a pink and white scarf.

“Ooo! Pretty!” Pinkie admired.

“Heh, oh yeah. That'll keep you nice and cozy,” Rainbow said with sarcasm.

Fluttershy looked up at the mountain and gulped before approaching Twilight. “Um, excuse me, Twilight? I know you're busy, but...

“Uh-huh,” Twilight muttered not taking her eyes off the map. “Well, we could go this way.”

“But if I could just have a second,” Fluttershy asked.

“Uh-huh. No, we want to avoid that,” Twilight still didn’t notice.

Fluttershy just continued to speak softly. “So, um, I was thinking that, um, maybe I should just stay here in Ponyville.”

“Uh-huh,” Twilight agreed automatically.

Fire frowned as Fluttershy looked relieved.

“Oh! Good. I'll stay here and-“

Twilight finally realized what she was saying. “Wait! You have to come! Your way with wild animals will surely come in handy.”

Fluttershy wasn’t happy to hear that. “I don't think I-“

“Oh, and don't worry about your little friends in the meadow. Spike's got it covered while you're gone,” Twilight said.

Spike appeared with her critters. “You can count on me!”

Fluttershy’s bunny however, began thumping on his head and the critters then ran away.

“Oooh! Hey! Hey! Wait!” Spike exclaimed as he chased after them.

“I don't really think he's up to the task,” Fluttershy said as Twilight already began to walk. “Maybe... but... but...”

Her words fell on deaf ears. Fire frowned and made to approach Twilight, but Rainbow was quicker.

“Are you sure you want Fluttershy to come along?” the Pegasus asked. “I mean, that pony's afraid of her own shadow. She's just going to slow us down.”

“Oh, she's just a little nervous. Once we get going, I'm sure she'll be fine,” Twilight said optimistically.

They heard a squeal behind them and saw Fluttershy cringing at the sight of her own shadow just as Rainbow said. She hid in the bushes nearby and Rainbow glared at Twilight. Fire then approached her.

“Is it just me, or does Fluttershy seem a little more nervous then usual?” he asked.

“She’ll be alright,” Twilight dismissed. “Alright girls, Fire, move out!”

They then dashed out as Fluttershy gave a weak objection again. They turned into clouds of dust and took her on top. After a while they were at the foot of the mountain. Then a loud sound came from above.

Fluttershy gasped and hid behind Applejack.

“Whoa,” Rainbow exclaimed in midair above them. “What was that?”

“That is what it sounds like when a dragon snores,” Twilight said.

Fluttershy looked up at the top of the mountain. “It-it's so... high!”

“Well, it is a mountain.” Rainbow said. “I'm going to fly up there and check it out! Wah!”

Applejack had grabbed onto her tail to keep her from going up. “Hold on, now. I think we should all go up together. Safety in numbers and all.”

Rainbow Dash folded her forelegs. “Oh, all right.”

They began the long trek up the mountain. Rainbow and Fire flew while the others walked.

“I hear the only thing that sparkles more than a dragon's scales are the jewels they use to build their nests,” Rarity said. “Ooo, if I play my cards right, I might be able to convince him to part with a few!”

Pinkie Pie began imitating the dragon. “Welcome to my cave, Rarity. Care for a diamond? Rarr!”

This caused most of them to laugh.

Except for Twilight, who frowned. “Girls! This is no laughing matter! Fluttershy, you're the expert on wild creatures. What do you think the dragon will be like? Fluttershy?”

They looked and saw Fluttershy still at the bottom, hiding.

“Hey! What are you waiting for? An invitation?” Rainbow called.

“Ooo, I think I have one in my bag!” Pinkie said, another party explosion sounded.

Fluttershy looked up. “I-it's so... so... steep.”

“Well, it is a cliff,” Rainbow reminded her in the same annoyed tone from before. “You could just, oh, I don't know, fly up here like me and Fire?

“Come on, Fluttershy, you can do it!” Pinkie cheered. “Flap those wings!”

“Oh... okay.” Fluttershy spread her wings and got off the ground.

But another loud snore from the dragon caused her to fall. She landed back in the bush.

Rainbow Dash faceplanted. “Ugh.”

Fluttershy tried to get her wings to spread again to no avail.

Twilight was getting frustrated as well. “Uh, we don't have time for this!”

“I’ll handle this,” Fire said.

He flew down and picked up Fluttershy gently as he had done with Rarity when they went on the path to confront Nightmare Moon. She shuddered and shrank into his hooves.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Fire asked as he ascended with her. “I’ve never seen you this shy before. And that’s saying something.”

“Oh, its… nothing,” Fluttershy said.

Fire shook his head. It was clearly something. He held her close and carried her up through the air. She shook for a while but as she felt him, she took a few breaths and managed a smile.

“Oh, you are so warm, I feel so safe,” Fluttershy said as she leaned into him.

Rarity who was walking below, frowned at the sight. “Ughh!”

Fire looked at Fluttershy. “You’re scared, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” she admitted, her smile vanishing.

“Well don’t be,” Fire pressed his head against hers to comfort her. “I’m here to protect you. All of you.”

He looked down at the other girls who smiled up at him, Rarity’s frown turning upside down for a moment.

“Eh, I don’t need your protection,” Rainbow Dash gloated.

“I-I think I can fly now,” Fluttershy said.

Fire loosened his hold on her and she spread her wings but another snore from the dragon caused her to close them and Fire tightened his hold on her.

They came to a break in the mountain where the land bound mares had to jump to the other side. It was no problem for Rainbow and Fire though. The other mares quickly leapt over and joined them. The ground was smoother here so Fire set Fluttershy down and they began to walk. Fluttershy stayed close to him though. They soon came into a rocky area with the smaller hills of the mountain above them.

“Let's keep it down. According to my map, we're entering an avalanche zone,” Twilight said. “The smallest peep could cause a huge rock slide.”

“An... an ava... ava...” Fluttershy stuttered.

“It’s okay, Fluttershy,” Fire whispered. “Just don’t make a sound.”

“Shhh!” Twilight shushed.

They continued forward, keeping quiet. Fluttershy leaned into Fire, who frowned at the invasion of his personal space. But knowing that she was still scared, didn’t object. He sighed with a bit of irritation, then put a foreleg around her, not noticing Rarity frown behind them. Then Rainbow brushed a tree on the way and some of the leaves fell off. They narrowly missed Fluttershy who was moving faster then she would have if not for the feeling of protection she was getting from being close to Fire.

“Hey, um… thanks…” she said to the prince.

“No problem,” Fire said. “But… why are you so on edge?”

“Its just… I’m…”

“We’re here!” Twilight announced.

They had reached the mouth of the cave where the smoke was coming from.

Twilight looked at Fire. “Do you have a plan?”

“Yeah, I thought of one on the way here,” Fire said before looking around at their members. “Rainbow Dash, you use your wings to clear the smoke.”

Rainbow Dash nodded. “Mm-hmm.”

She then flew up into the smoke while he continued, looking at the next set of mares.

“Rarity, you’re a beautiful mare,” Fire said, causing her to blush. “Maybe you could help Twilight and Fluttershy talk to the dragon.”

“I will gladly use my feminine charms to negotiate with him… and hopefully get some diamonds!” Rarity said.

Fire frowned. “Focus Rarity! We’re here to save Equestria, not collect gems!”

Rarity frowned back with a sigh. “I know but leaving with a few beautiful trinkets wouldn’t hurt.”

Fire turned to Pinkie Pie. “Pinkie you’re our comic relief pony. If persuasions not enough maybe you can entertain him and keep him from attacking.”

“I’ll have him laughing in no time!” Pinkie said as she got out a rubber chicken that squeaked.

Finally, there was him and the last mare. “Applejack, you’re with me. We will be the last line of defense in case he attacks.”

He cast his swordhorn spell while Applejack got out her apples to throw.

“Hmm, good plan,” Twilight said. “It could work. I was gonna have it kind of the same, though I would have had Rarity with Pinkie Pie as the distraction. Well hopefully this works. Fluttershy, Rarity, you ready?”

“Yes,” Rarity said.

She and Twilight stepped forward.

“Okay then, we're goin' in,” Twilight said.

Fire, however, noticed that Fluttershy had burrowed her head underground and didn’t follow. He leaned down. “Hey, you need to go in,” he told her pulling her by the tail.

She looked at him.

“I… can’t.”

Twilight and Rarity came back after noticing Fluttershy wasn’t with them. The former got behind Fluttershy and tried to push her.

“Argh! Come on!” Twilight said grunting in effort. “We have to do this! Now! Every… arggh… …second longer that dragon… argh… sleeps is another argh… acre of Equestria that is covered in… argh… smoke. Ooh!”

The other mares tried to help Twilight push Fluttershy to no avail. The yellow Pegasus wouldn’t budge. Pinkie ended up on the end and bumped into them which caused Twilight’s exclaim.

“I- I- I can't go in the cave,” Fluttershy said.

The other five mares sighed and fell over.

“Oh, great. She's scared of caves now, too.” Rainbow complained.

“I'm not scared of caves,” Fluttershy told them. “I'm scared of ...”

They didn’t catch what she said at the end.

Applejack approached her. “What's that, sugarcube?”

“I'm scared of …” the word only ended up being a mumble again.

“What?” Twilight asked.

“You need to speak louder, Fluttershy!” Fire said impatiently.

And she did, just loud of enough for them to her. For her it was a shout, but still quiet by regular standards. “I'm scared of dragons!”

The dragon snored, releasing another large bit of smoke. This caused Fluttershy to squeal and hide behind Fire who coughed with the others as they got a mouthful.

Twilight got around Fire and looked at the yellow mare. “But Fluttershy. You have a wonderful talent dealing with all kinds of animals.”

“Yes,” Fluttershy nodded. “Because they're not dragons.”

Rainbow Dash raised her hooves. “Oh come on! We've seen you walk right up to a horrible manticore like it was nothing.”

“Yes, because he wasn't a dragon,” Fluttershy reaffirmed looking up at her.

“Spike is a dragon,” Pinkie reminded as she walked a few steps to look at Fluttershy. “You're not scared of him.”

“Yes, because he's not a huge, gigantic, terrifying, enormous, teeth-gnashing, sharp-scale having, horn-wearing, smoke-snoring, could eat a pony in one bite, totally all grown-up dragon!” Fluttershy elaborated, terrified.

The dragon snored once again and Fluttershy whimpered and shook on her belly.

Twilight looked at her with dismay. “But, if you're so afraid of dragons, why didn't you say something before we came all the way up here?”

“I was afraid to,” Fluttershy said.

Rainbow Dash hoofplanted again with a sigh.

Applejack tried to console Fluttershy, giving her a nudge from behind. “All of us are scared of that dragon.”

“Yeah, even I’m scared,” Fire admitted.

“You?” Rainbow exclaimed. “But you weren’t fazed at all by those scary trees Nightmare Moon sent at us!”

“What sort of Fire would I be if was scared of wood?” Fire asked with a smirk.

Rainbow chuckled. “Good point! Well I’m not scared of that dragon!”

“Almost all of us are scared of that dragon, then. But we've got a job to do. So, get in there with Twilight and show her what you're made of,” Applejack said.

It was inspiring for Fire but Fluttershy just stuttered and looked down before turning away. “I-I-I just…can't.”

Twilight looked after her sadly. “Oh, Fluttershy.”

“Hey,” Fire walked over to the shy mare. “What if I went in with you?”

He put a hoof on her shoulder. She looked at him uncertainly.

“I… don’t think that will be enough,” Fluttershy said.

Twilight finally had enough and went inside on her own. “I'm goin' in. He... probably just doesn't realize what he's doing...
right?”

She looked back at where the other mares were hiding behind the cave entrance wall off to the side, they all agreed in nervous tones. Fire stood in the direct path, he took a breath and went inside.

“I’m going with you, Twilight,” Fire said.

She waited for him to catch up and smiled, glad to have one of them by her side. Fire saw the tale of the dragon, blood red. It was clearly a big dragon.

Twilight then called out in a nervous tone. “Mr. Dragon.”

She wasn’t watching where she was going and ended up bumping into the dragon’s snout. He snored again, smoking pouring from his nostrils.

“Excuse me,” Twilight said politely.

The dragon only snored again and rolled over on top of the massive pile of gold and jewels he lay on. Fire sighed.

“Hey, wake up!” he said.

The dragon snored again and then opened his eyes.

Twilight took this as meaning he’d awoken. “Oh, good, you're awake. Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Twilight…”

The dragon yawned, giving them more then a faceful of his breath,

“Augh! Puh!” Twilight exclaimed in disgust at the smell before continuing where she left off. “Sparkle, and my friends and I are residents here in Equestria. Ponyville, to be exact. We've come here to ask that you find another spot to take your nap. It's just that you seem to be doing an awful lot of snoring, and every time you do you send out a terrible cloud of smoke.”
As if waiting for that word, the dragon expelled more smoke from his nostrils. Twilight coughed and continued.

“Equestria simply can't survive a hundred years in a dark haze. You understand, don't you?”

“I think he might still be a bit asleep,” Fire said

The dragon got up and stretched his body, then let out inaudible speech they couldn’t understand.

Fire tried his hoof now.

“Uh greetings Dragon, I’m Prince Fire Sword, son of Celestia,” he said. “If you can understand me, please tell me your name.”

The dragon just dropped back down on the treasure and blowing smoke at them, both coughed, and Twilight retreated seeing as she’d failed for the moment. Fire sighed.

“I think we’re gonna have to be a little more forceful,” he said before shouting. “WAKE UP, RIGHT NOW!”

The dragon opened his eyes again and growled. “A pony? You dare wake me?”

“Yeah, I am Prince Fire Sword, son of Celestia!” Fire repeated. “And your snoring is creating smoke all over our land! We need you to find another place to sleep. Now please leave!”

The dragon growled softly and got up, for a moment Fire thought he would agree. But he just swatted him out of the cave, with enough force to send Fire into the mares. The sound of large footsteps sounded as the dragon approached.

“I’ll handle this!” Rainbow said as she flew in.

“Rainbow, wait!” Twilight called to no avail.

Approaching the dragon as he was nearly out, Rainbow yelled, “Come on!” And kicked him on the snout.

He sneezed smoke at her and then growled. She hadn’t expected that.

“Uh… sorry.”

He roared at her and sent her flying back as well. She knocked into the others just as Fire had. The dragon then emerged from the cave, extremely angry as the mares all ran around in a panic (except Fluttershy who was nowhere to be seen). The dragon stomped the ground his front leg and emerged, the mares hugged each other and Fire in front of them battle-ready. The dragon let out a large amount of smoke, where was his fire? Was he clearing out the excess smoke that was blocking it? Fire put up a shield with his horn that blocked the smoke which somehow came with immense force. His shield protecting him and the girls. When the smoke cleared, the dragon looked down at them angrily. He blew a bit of fire out now, apparently he had needed to clear himself out.

Fire was ready, he knew just the spell to deal with a fire breather, as that had been how he-

“Wait!” a familiar voice called.

Fire looked and saw Fluttershy behind the others, and a broken rock that he swore a moment ago had been complete. She must have been hiding behind it? Had the smoke caused it to break?

Fluttershy then suddenly flew up and spoke firmly and assertively. “How dare you... how dare you!” she said to the dragon as she flew on top of his snout. “Listen here, mister. Just because you're big doesn't mean you get to be a bully! You may have huge teeth, and sharp scales, and snore smoke, and breathe fire. But you do not—I repeat—you do not! Hurt! My! Friends! You got that?”

The dragon whimpered.

That wasn’t enough to satisfy Fluttershy, who asked. “Well?”

The dragon looked ashamed, but pointed down. “But that rainbow one kicked me. And the fire one shouted at me.”

Rainbow nodded after a moment, proud of herself, Fire however, felt a little shame. Maybe he shouldn’t have shouted.

Fluttershy gave him an apologetic look now. “And I am very sorry about that. But you're bigger than she is, and soft speaking wasn’t getting you to reply. You should know better, all of you!” she said looking at her friends before turning back to the dragon. “You should also know better than to take a nap where your snoring can become a health hazard to other creatures.”

“But I-“ the dragon tried to say.

“Don't you 'but I' me, mister!” Fluttershy interrupted. Now what do you have to say for yourself?”

The dragon didn’t reply right away.

“I said, what do you have to say for yourself?”

Instead of speaking the dragon cried, raindrop sized tears fell onto the ponies.

Fluttershy then turned from assertive to comforting, patting the dragons snout. “There, there. No need to cry. You're not a bad dragon, you just made a bad decision. Now go pack your things. You just need to find a new place to sleep. That's all.”
The mares cheered as Fluttershy landed back on the ground with them. Fire meanwhile, looked at the dragon before flying up.

“And I’m sorry for shouting at you,” Fire said before levitating a bag of gold toward the dragon. “Here, take this as an added apology. I know its not much compared to all that treasure you have, but take it anyway.”

The dragon smiled at him and quickly packed up his treasure.

“You did it! I knew you could do it,” Twilight said.

The dragon flew off, and soon the Pegasi managed to clear out all the smoke around Equestria. Fire followed Twilight into the library where Spike was still caring for the critters. They saw him holding Fluttershy’s bunny by the leg.

“Spike, take a letter,” Twilight said to him.

Spike sighed in relief up on seeing her. “With pleasure.”

He began writing as Twilight spoke.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I am happy to report that the dragon has departed our fair country, and that it was my good friend, Fluttershy, who convinced him to go. This adventure has taught me to never lose faith in your friends. They can be an amazing source of strength, and can help you overcome even your greatest fears. I also learned that it might not always be easy having two ponies that can assume the role of leader, as your son Fire and I butted heads a couple times on this mission. But once we get used to each other, we can make an excellent team.

Fire smiled at that, and had to agree.

I believe you would be very proud as a mother if you had seen the way Fire Sword defended us from the dragon before Fluttershy intervened.

Always your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle.

Just then they heard a voice. “Twilight! Fire!”

It was Applejack from outside. Twilight ran to the balcony with Fire behind her. They saw their friends outside. Rainbow Dash was back at the ball bouncing.

“You gotta come see this!” Applejack said. “She's just five away from a new pony record!"

Rainbow continued to bounce the ball. “Three hundred forty-seven, three hundred forty-eight...”

“Rarrr!” a roar sounded.

“Dragon!” Rainbow Dash screamed before falling over in fear.

Everyone watching laughed.

Rainbow Dash looked around Why are you laughing? That awful dragon is back!

Pinkie Pie performed the roar again in Rainbow’s face.

“Pinkie Pie, you scared me!” Rainbow exclaimed before realizing what she said. “I mean, uh, you... broke my concentration.”

Fluttershy then flew over her. “It's okay, Rainbow Dash. Not everypony can be as brave as me... or Fire.”

A leaf fell toward Rainbow Dash who blew it away. It landed on Fluttershy’s back, and Fire wasn’t there to ward it off. The mere touch of something unexpected caused Fluttershy to freeze in fear. She fell over like Rainbow had. This caused everypony to laugh. Fire then flew down and looked at Fluttershy, offering a hoof to help her up. She took it with a smile.

“I’m proud of you Fluttershy,” he said. “You really stood up to your fear today.”

“Thanks. But I’m sure even you have something you’re afraid Mr. Element of Balance,” Fluttershy said.

Fire chuckled. “Yeah, I definitely do.”

His smile faded as he thought of it, looking up at the sky which was now clear. He thought back to that day when he’d discovered his destiny. It had been the proudest day of his life, but also the scariest. When he met… him. He still remembered all the fire running wild around Canterlot that day.

Author's Note

Okay, another chapter down. Up next it will be Look Before You Sleep. But there will be a little addition to Twilight’s Slumber Party, and not just Fire. Take a guess who else will be there, someone who has been making regular appearances here. Unfortunately you’re gonna have to live with a delay on that chapter as I have something coming up in two weeks that will force me to put at least one story on hold, and I felt it best this one be the one. So see for the next up date in three weeks, so the 24th of October. Then in just a week afterwards, Happy Halloween! Ahahaha!
Oh and there isn’t going to be a love triangle between Rarity, Fire, and Fluttershy like there was with Alex Wolf in A New Hero. Though there will be between Fire, Rarity, and Moondancer. Fire was just comforting her and nothing beyond that, though the carrying her bridal style like he did with Rarity might have made it look romantic. Ah well.

Chapter 12: Retrieving Stolen Property

Fire made his way to Warm Heart Tower with his friends and saw the guards all assembled.

“We’re terribly sorry, Prince Fire!” one of the guards, a unicorn named Silver Javelin said. “We were caught completely by surprise and they jumped us!”

“Are you all alright?” Fire asked in concern.

“Yes,” Silver said.

Fire breathed in relief then looked around. “What did they take, the tapestries, the artwork?

Many of the things here had been quite expensive, such as the rare painting of the Mare Lisa made by Leonardo Dacolt.

“They took some paintings yes,” Silver said. “Including the Mare Lisa. It would fetch a nice price.”

Fire felt a bit of anger, but sighed. “Well, I suppose it could be worse. Some of the paintings I brought were one of a kind and made by the best artists in Canterlot both from the past and present! But at least nopony got hurt.”

“Yes, nopony got hurt,” Silver said. “But somebird did get taken away.”

“What?” Fire exclaimed.

He rushed to his room and saw to his horror, Aurora’s cage was empty! Also the sword that was Fire’s element was gone!

“We found this note as well,” another guard, an Earth Pony named Mace Splinter with a yellow coat and the cutie mark of a mace splitting wood. He handed Fire a piece of paper.

Fire read the note.

We have your bird, give us a hundred thousand bits and we will release her unharmed. Come to the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres nearby at midnight. If you don’t show or don’t come alone… you probably don’t want to know.

Fire felt a mixture of sadness, concern, fear, and anger at this. His mane didn’t light up as it usually reacted to anger alone.

“They also took the sword of Harmony as well!” Silver said gesturing to the wall where it had been.

“This is bad,” Fire said. “At least my mom has the other six elements in Canterlot. They should be okay.”

“That’s good,” Twilight said. “But we should try and get the sword back. Yours is the element that becomes strongest when ours fail! We can’t leave something like that in the hooves of mere thieves!”

“Oh, those terrible ruffians!” Rarity exclaimed. “Stealing from a prince! And stealing his beloved pet no less!”

“You sure we can pay them one hundred thousand bits?” Vine Archer asked.

Fire shook his head. “I only get half that much from my mom monthly.”

“Only Fifty Thousand Bits a Month?” Applejack said incredulously. “Talk about living large!”

Fire gritted his teeth before remembering Twilight’s special communication system.

“Twilight, can you send a letter to my mom to-“

She shook her head. “Spike’s not here remember?”

“Oh right,” Fire said looking down.

He paced for a moment, trying to think.

“We can’t let this injustice stand!” Applejack put in. “Especially one that's taking place on my land!”

“There has to be something we can do,” Moondancer said. “Wait! What if we have an illusion of bits inside something like a cart or something?”

“That could work,” Twilight said.

“We could also be in the cart as well!” Vine Archer said. “Then we could ambush them when they open it to take the bits.”

“And Moondancer, Rarity, Applejack, Fire, and I can cut off their escape!” Twilight said.

Fire hesitated. “I… don’t want to put you mares in danger.”

“Considerate of you, but we faced Nightmare Moon with you!” Rarity said. “I think we can handle some mere thieves!”

“But what if they spot you?” Fire asked. “The note said to come alone!”

“They obviously have no idea they’re dealing with the elements of harmony, including magic. There are such things as invisibility spells,” Twilight said. “That’s a complicated spell but if I can find one that will allow all us to sneak in without the thieves noticing. “

She turned to her fellow scholarly unicorn. “Up for a little spell research, Moondancer?”

The yellow mare nodded with a smile. “Yes!”

“Well, I think Big Macintsoh and me could just use the environment to our advantage,” Applejack said. “I know those orchards like the back of my hoof!”

“Down to the last overworked chip?” Rarity asked with a smirk.

Applejack smirked back. “You betcha!”

“Girls, this isn’t the time for banter!” Fire said seriously. “My sunbird and an important Equestrian weapon have been stolen!”

He thought over the last few weeks he’d been in Ponyville since he’d bought Aurora. Feeding her seed, fruits, and worms.
Her singing recently as his guards played instruments to pass the time. He also thought of when he used the sword and returned his aunt to normal. Both were very important to him.

“Did you see what kind of pony they were?” Rarity asked.

“I don’t think so,” Silver said. “They were just Earth Ponies in masks from what I could see.”

Rarity sighed in relief. “That’s good. If it were unicorns or Pegasi that could make things challenging.”

“Did you hear any names or anything?” Twilight asked.

“Maybe one, Swipe I think!” Silver said.

“Swipe? Swipe?” Applejack pondered.

“You know him?” Fire asked.

“I know an Earth Pony stallion called Sly Fox,” Applejack said. “He’s a smooth talker and usually just sings in town to entertain ponies every so often, a bit like Pinkie Pie. But I always had a bit of a weird feeling around him!”

Fire put a hoof to his chin. “Well, we can’t accuse this Sly without proper proof. We need more than just a matching name to be concrete.”

“You’re right,” Twilight agreed before turning to Moondancer. “Come on Moondancer, we’ll see if we can find a spell that will help us hide when we back Fire up tonight.”

Two of the three unicorn mares present made their way back out to go to the library, leaving just one other.

“Um, by any chance did you have any of the items linked to a locater spell?” Rarity asked.

Fire shook his head. “That might be a good idea though, and apparently I need to have some extra security around here for when there are few guards present.”

“We’ll come up with something, your highness,” Vine Archer said. “Perhaps we can set up a set of booby traps for when we aren’t expecting visitors.”

Fire wasn’t sure how he felt about that but given the circumstances he might have to.

“We’ll deal with this,” Applejack said. “These thieving varmints aren’t gonna get away with it! Me and Big Mac will watch for anything around Sweet Apple Acres tonight.”

“Okay, but don’t engage,” Fire said. “My bird’s life could be on the line.”

“You got it, partner,” Applejack said.

Fire sighed. “Guess we’ll just have to see what happens tonight.”

“You sure you want to just forget about the lead we have on Swipe though?” Vine Archer asked. “A name isn’t much but it’s the only lead we have. How many Swipe’s are in Ponyville?”

An idea clicked in Fire’s head.

“Mayor Mare would probably keep records of all the residents here in Ponyville,” he said. “She will probably be able to tell us!”

“It’s worth a try at least,” Applejack said. “You go do that! But I need to get back to the farm and start my chores! I’m probably behind already! I’ll tell Big Mac about this!”

“Make sure Granny Smith and Applebloom are locked inside!” Fire called after her.

“Right!” she called back as she made her way off.

He then looked at Rarity.

“You don’t have to get involved if you don’t want to.”

“Oh, it’s kind of you to be concerned your highness. But just because I’m a lady doesn’t mean I don’t want to help,” the fashionista said. “I helped against Nightmare Moon and I’m prepared to help if I can in this as well.”

Fire nodded reluctantly. Some dark thoughts crossed his mind at what these thieves might do to her given the chance. But with him, Moondancer, Twilight, Applejack, her brother, and the guards he didn’t think he’d have a lot to worry about.

…

And so, Fire made his way to Town Hall.

“Ah, good morning, Sheriff Fire!” the town leader said. “I’m pleased to report that our community has received a fine downpour.”

“That’s good, Mayor,” Fire said. “But I’m afraid I have a bit of a problem. My house was broken into last night while I was gone and my guards were out looking for me.”

Her eyes widened. “Oh my!”

“One of my guards said he heard one of the thieves call the other Swipe. Do you have records of ponies living here in Ponyville?” Fire asked.

“Yes,” Mayor Mare said walking to her cabinets and pulling out a folder after a moment. She skimmed through it and soon. “There is… only one Swipe in town!”

That certainly seemed to be incriminating evidence.

“Where does he live?” Fire asked.

They got the address and walked over to the house in Ponyville.

“Doesn’t look like anypony is home. Should we go in now?” Vine Archer asked looking at Fire after they had watched for a while.

The guards had taken off their armor to avoid standing out upon Fire’s order. The prince didn’t want to take the chance of scaring the likely robber. If they captured him and it caused a scene, the other two thieves might take the opportunity to get away and take the things they’d stolen with them. Then Fire might never get them back.

“We’re sure it’s him,” Fire said. “But they could have my things somewhere else, in one of their houses or in a secret stash they have hidden somewhere like the Everfree Forest. But we should see if we can find anything.”

Fire looked around to make sure no one was watching and then cast an unlocking spell. The lock clicked and the two of them stepped inside. They tried to not leave any sign as they looked, but nothing that Fire recognized as his was visible in the house. They looked for an hour and nothing turned up.

“No luck,” he said they closed the door behind them. “I guess I’ll have one of you watch this place tonight and enter when he leaves. If he gets away when we ambush him he’ll probably come back to get supplies before he tries to escape.”

Vine nodded. They went about their day as they usually would, patrolling. This was a patrol full of worry for Fire though as he wondered what could happen to Aurora and the sword of Harmony. The bird was precious to him as his pet, and the sword was an element important to the protection of Equestria. Much would depend on them getting it back tonight.

The hours rolled by slowly, his mother’s son went down and was replaced with his newly returned aunt’s moon. Finally, Fire set out with his friends. Rarity, Twilight, and Moondancer all used invisibility spells, with the latter two able to cast them and include Rarity as well. Applejack and Big Macintosh watched the orchards in bushes they moved along the floor. They had met a couple hours ago and discussed a plan. Fire would send a signal up to the thieves as they had not received specific instructions on where exactly in the orchard to meet the thieves.

He sent up a spark of red magic that exploded in a shower of fireworks. He waited for a while and then sent up another one. Then they came, three Earth Pony stallions all in black outfits that concealed their appearances along with the darkness. Fire had his horn lit up, which didn’t help as the red masked their true features in its hue. They held Aurora in a smaller cage.

“Aurora!” he exclaimed before looking at the perpetrators.

“You have the bits?” the middle stallion, most likely the leader, asked.

Fire gestured to the wagon he’d been pulling through the orchard behind him. If this were any other circumstances, he would have had one of his servants pulling it instead.

Two of the three masked ponies eyed the wagon with suspicion.

“That could be a good way to hide some guards or something,” the leader said.

Damn they’d figured it out.

“I agree,” one of the other said.

“Ah, come on guys you think the prince will actually have some tricks up his hoof?” the last one said.

There was the sound of a branch being stepped on nearby. This drew the attention of everypony around. Had Moodancer or one of the other unicorns stepped on it? Fire gritted his teeth, if they suspected something was up then…

They looked and saw it was just a raccoon.

“Swipe! You go and check the wagon!” the leader ordered.

Swipe, the only member of the trio Fire knew the name of, made his way to the wagon. The leader then took his torch while the other member opened the cage containing Aurora. The leader held the flame in front of the sunbird to prevent her from flying out. He opened the back door and looked inside. To his eyes, it held a large number of chests and gold bit bags. The chests were open to reveal their contents of jewels and gold coins.

“Looks good to me!” he shouted to his fellows looking back at them. “Ah!”

He was suddenly yanked into the wagon by the guards that were invisible thanks to Moondancer and Twilight’s spells. Before the leader and other Earth Pony could react, the two unicorns appeared either side of them and the torch threatening Aurora was pulled from their hoof in one direction while Aurora’s cage was pulled in the other. The sunbird flapped her wings and immediately flew out.

“Aurora!” Fire exclaimed as he held out his hoof. She landed on it and he nuzzled her. “Oh, are you okay?”

She tweeted in confirmation, though she said was a little scared from what he understood. Fire then looked back at the thieves and they made to run, then Applejack and Big Macintosh emerged from their hiding places with yells, Big Mac tackled one of them to the ground while Applejack used her lasso to catch the other. They tied the thieves up to a tree. Now just to find out the answers they needed.

“Where are all my things?” Fire asked seriously.

They didn’t answer. He lit up his horn.

“You know as a prince I’m able to resort to interrogating you with more force if needed right?”

He shot a spell at them and they flinched in fear. But instead of pain, the one that was hit, Swipe Fox, began laughing uncontrollably.

“Ahhahaha! Stop, that tickles!” he said.

“I thought you were gonna torture us!” the leader said.

“Yeah, tickle torture! We’re not savages who cut hooves off like in the olden days,” Fire said.

Swipe laughed for a few more seconds before Fire undid the spell.

“Okay, okay! The things are in Bright Wane’s house in the basement!” He gestured to the leader. “We were planning to sell them off to random ponies in Manehattan where it was unlikely anypony would know.”

Fire smiled. They were soon led to Bright Wane’s house and went into the basement where they found the stolen objects. Fire looked over them and let out a breath of relief.

“Everything is here,” he said.

“Wonderful!” Rarity said. “That was easy compared to Nightmare Moon!”

They all worked together to levitate or carry the objects out and return them to Warm Heart Tower where they belonged. They set them back in their proper places, the tapestries being hung on the wall, Aurora happily returning to her cage and eating her seed and fruit hungrily, while Fire put his sword back above his bed. He then cast a locater and summoning spell on it so that he could bring it to his side whenever the situation might arise and in case it got stolen again. Having the summoning spell on it might render the locater unnecessary but he didn’t want to take a chance. Though if I got stolen again, and he summoned it, he wouldn’t know who stole it.

He turned to the mares.

“Thanks for all your help today girls,” Fire said. “They might have gotten away if not for all of you. I could kiss all of you!”
All of them blushed.

“Ah shucks, that won’t be necessary Fire! I’m just happy to help a friend!” Applejack said.

Moondancer rubbed her foreleg with her hoof.

“Yep!” Big Mac said.

Fire looked at him, realizing he’d forgotten the stallion. “Oh, and thanks to you as well Big Mac.”

Rarity struggled to meet his eyes and said, “Very kind of you.”

Twilight just smiled.

Before Fire could do anything though, they were interrupted by a confetti canon going off.

“Victory party!” Pinkie Pie declared as she appeared out of nowhere. “You got your bird, sword and everything else back safely! Congratulations your royal sheriffness!”

‘How did you know?” Fire asked.

“Oh, I heard what happened from Rarity when she stopped by Sugarcube corner for a little treat,” Pinkie said.

“Even a lady needs to satisfy her cravings every so often,” Rarity said. “I do enjoy a little sweet.”

“Who doesn’t?” Fire said.

“So, I thought I’d bring you a cake!” Pinkie said as she revealed it.

It was a vanilla frosted chocolate cake with red berries on top and bird and sword designs on the frosting.

“Looks good Pinkie!” Fire said.

The party pony began cutting the cake and passed a piece out to everypony including Fire’s guards and servants.

“Feels good to be given a cake,” Vine Archer said. “And to be able to help out.”

“We need to step up our game, the Element Bearers might get all the glory soon!” Silver said. “Can’t have civilians outshine us! Though it was a pretty impressive spell you two could do there.”

He looked at Moondancer and Twilight who smiled at him.

“Well, me and Twilight did focus more on magic then you guards do,” Moondancer said. “But you have all that hoof to hoof training and other stuff, but we focus exclusively on magic at the Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.”

“You know you’re right,” Silver said. “Perhaps you could show me how to do that invisibility spell sometime Miss Moondancer.”

Moondancer blushed. “Perhaps I will good sir!”

She then looked back at Fire and smiled wider. The prince was still a bit uncertain of his feelings for her. He valued her friendship and admired her intelligence just as with Twilight and enjoyed spending time with her. He supposed he’d have to see how it went at the gala.

…

Meanwhile, in a small village, a certain unicorn thief cast a spell on the window a local jewelry store. The window received a circular opening as it was cut with the spell. The jewelry inside levitated out and into the unicorns open bag.

“And Gold Steel strikes again!” the unicorn boasted proudly.

He teleported back to his home in Canterlot. The greatest advantage of learning from the school of magic was the access to the wonderful spells he could use for his nefarious deeds. Also, with how much he managed to steal, his trips only required occasional use. He opened the secret compartment in his house that hidden his stolen goods. He was a white unicorn with a steel gray and gold mane to match his name.

His job in the royal guard offered a comfortable income, but with the treasure he procured from all around Equestria he’d soon have a much nicer home somewhere. And he knew exactly where. His grandfather on his mother’s side had an estate to the south that was rich. She’d left that life behind though to marry his father and denied Gold a chance to live a prosperous life. His mother should have stayed where she was after she got pregnant with him. But Gold would soon put his plan into motion to claim what was his by right.

“Nopony will suspect a thing since I have noble blood,” he said to himself. “What’s a little more treasure to add to the horde?”

He went to bed and received a newspaper the next morning. Earth Pony Thieves captured in Ponyville was the headline. Apparently, they were to be transferred to Canterlot Dungeons.

“Hmm, maybe I can use this to my advantage,” Gold said.

Chapter 13: Bridle Gossip

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 14: Swarm of the Century

Author's Note

Author’s Notes: Okay, we are now going to be back to writing this story with a chapter every two weeks. Then around early or middle of March two of my other stories should be completed and we will be getting a chapter out a week. Hope you guys enjoy.

Chapter 14: Swarm of the Century

Fire was back on business again. A while had passed since he and the mares had met Zecora. He flew through the air and sighed in contentment. It was a beautiful day, and the ponies of Ponyville were walking happily in the sunshine while also getting decorations put up. Fire smiled as he saw them coming along nicely felt the rays on his fur. Summer was approaching its end. Fire loved the warm season, it was when he felt the closest to his name.

…

On the outskirts of the town, Fluttershy was hard at work with her own preparations for the upcoming visit. She was gathering flowers with some of her animal friends. birds and butterflies flew while two rabbits, a mouse, and possum stood near her. She picked up a flower in her mouth and put it in the basket on her back.

She then began walking to another part of the meadow and sang a brief, “La, la la, la la, la la, la la.”

Fire smiled at the tune which was quite pleasing to hear as he flew low upon seeing her. Not wanting to startle the shy pony he made an effort to make his presence known in a soft way.

“Ahem,” he cleared his throat softly.

She didn’t notice him as she walked to a hedge that had a few other flowers next to it.

“Ahem,” he repeated a little louder.

“Oh!” She exclaimed softly as she looked in his direction.

He landed a few feet away and gave her a warm smile. “Good morning Fluttershy. Hope I didn’t scare you! I tried to get your attention as softly as possible.”

“Oh, good morning, Fire Sword,” Fluttershy said giving a smile of her own, he thought she had a light blush on her cheeks. “Thank you for announcing yourself softly.”

“Well, I know how you are,” Fire Sword said. “Shy. But that’s not a bad thing. You’re just as kind as you are shy.”

She giggled slightly. “Thank you.”

“How is the flower collecting going?” Fire asked.

“Very good I think,” Fluttershy before she suddenly felt a light tug on her tail and looked to see her squirrel friend with another flower. It was a white dandelion, not bad looking by any means but-

“Thank you, little squirrel,” she said kindly. “But remember… these flowers are for Princess Celestia. Only the prettiest ones will do.”

At that moment a light gust of wind blew over them and the squirrel’s dandelions petals were blown off. It’s body quickly wilted and the squirrel hid it behind its back and went off to find another one.

Fluttershy turned back to Fire. “Um, I was just about to take a break. Would you care for an apple or two? I have some nearby in case I got hungry. A Sheriff should keep his strength up as well.”

“Sure,” Fire said. “I’m always up for an apple. Thank you, Fluttershy.”

“You’re welcome, Fire. This way,” Fluttershy said before leading him.

She led him to where she had her bucket while singing softly and happily.

“La, la la, la la, la la, la la.”

“Wow, you have a lovely singing voice,” Fire complimented.

She blushed. “Oh, thank you. I usually only do that when I have my animals only nearby.”

She continued singing her soft tune as she went over to a nearby bucket of apples.

Suddenly a sharp chirp sounded nearby from under a nearby rock. This caused Fluttershy to let out a small scream, drop her basket full of flowers and hide behind Fire, knocking out a single apple from the bucket. The prince was also surprised by the unexpected sound, it was sharp and unfamiliar but not hostile. Sounded like a…

A small round blue creature with big green eyes, and a set of four buglike wings climbed on top of the rock where the sound came from. It smiled up at them and chirped again softly.

Fire smiled. “It’s okay Fluttershy, just a little woodland creature. I think? I’ve never seen one like it before.”

Fluttershy she got out from behind him and spoke to the creature. “Hello, little guy. You’re right, Fire! I've never seen anything like it before!”

The small creature jumped off the rock and flew around them. It gazed at the apple that had fallen to the ground and sniffed it.

“Oh, are you hungry?” Fluttershy asked before stepping on the apple and crushing it for the creature to eat, thinking it probably couldn’t eat solid food. “Here you go.”

The creature hovered there for a moment then turned its attention to the bucket load of apples. It opened its mouth wide, reaching a size much larger than they would have expected for an instant. It then ate the entire bucket load of apples.

Fire’s mouth fell open and Fluttershy gasped in surprise.

“I guess you were hungry,” the yellow Pegasus said.

Fire grit his teeth, not in an angry manner, but a nervous one. The creature was small, yet it ate a bucket load of apples in an instant. It then nuzzled against Fluttershy’s mane with affectionate chirps and then went into her mane as though it were a blanket.

“You're the cutest thing ever!” Fluttershy said as she looked at it. “I can't wait to show you to my friends!”

She began walking off. Fire however, couldn’t help but feel worried as he looked at the bucket. Still, this was only one creature. It couldn’t eat anymore, could it? He decided to follow Fluttershy as he continued his patrol. She was good company.

…

In the library Twilight was busy. “Oh! Hurry up, Spike! This place isn't gonna clean itself.”

“It also didn't mess itself up!” Spike objected as he set books on the floor on top of each other.

“Princess Celestia will be here tomorrow!” Twilight reminded him as she used a feather duster to clean.

“I thought this was just an unofficial casual visit?” Spike asked.

“There's nothing casual about a visit from royalty,” Twilight replied. “I want this place to be spotless, and you've barely made a dent in the clutter!”

“Maybe you should, ugh, start reading them one at a time…” Spike struggled up a ladder with the books then fell off. “Whoa ho!”

Twilight walked over and dusted the books that had just fallen. “Everything's got to be perfect. No time for fooling around!”
Spike got himself out from under the books that fell on him. “You know, this would be an awful lot easier if there weren't two of us here getting under each other's feet.”

Twilight beamed and handed him the feather duster. “Great idea. You clean, I'll go see how everyone else's preparations are coming.”

Spike tried to speak as she made her way out. “Or maybe I should...”

He could only groan as she walked out without hearing a word he was saying.

Twilight wandered around Ponyville and soon smiled upon seeing all the many decorations around town. Ribbons and flowers were hung everywhere. Then she saw a pair of ponies getting a banner up. But her mood shifted as she saw the letters on the banner. It was good at first, big pink letters saying Welcome Princess… Celest?

“What happened to the rest of her name?” Twilight asked in apprehension.

A golden pony with a carrot cutie mark nearby answered. “We couldn't fit it all in.”

“You can't hang a banner that says "Welcome Princess Celest". Take it down and try again!” she said before running off.
Twilight then saw Bonbon watering some flowers and praised her efforts. “That looks perfect. Keep up the good work.”

She soon arrived at Sugarcube Corner and stopped at the door which had the top half open.

“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Cake! How's the banquet coming?” Twilight asked as she looked inside.

Mrs. Cake looked up from her dough she was flattening with a rolling pin. “Uh...it would be coming a little better if...”

Twilight looked and saw a large assortment of sweets and pastries… all of which had bite marks in them. There was also a large cake with a crown at the top of it. But that was instantly gobbled up as the source of the bites was revealed to be Pinkie Pie who hummed in delight as she ate the whole thing instantly and the crown somehow appeared on her head, with her having a beard made of frosting.

“Pinkie!” Twilight exclaimed. “What are you doing? Those sweets are supposed to be for the princess!”

“I know!” Pinkie said, not getting the message. “That's why I'm tasting them. Somepony needs to make sure that everything is tasty enough to touch the royal tongue. And I, Pinkie Pie, declare that these treats are fit for a king. Or a queen. Or a princess! Or a prince! Hey Fire!”

Twilight looked behind her as Fire entered the room, his mouth falling open as he looked at all the sweets with bite marks in them.

“What happened to all the sweets?” he asked.

“Her tasting them?” Twilight pointed her hoof at Pinkie.

“Just doing my job,” Pinkie said.

“I don’t think that’s part of your job,” Fire said, his mane lighting up a bit. “Is it Mrs. Cake?”

“No,” Mrs. Cake said.

Fire glared at her and growled, “You need to be honest with her, Mrs. Cake. Pinkie, you need to leave those sweets alone! This is the same as stealing!”

Pinkie who was about to eat another whole cake, looked down. “Oh, alright. Thought I was helping out but… alright. I’m sorry.”

“Try to control yourself Pinkie!” Twilight said. “You don’t eat something meant for another pony!”

“I just can’t help myself when I know it tastes so good!” Pinkie said putting on a smile, her sadness forgotten. But then she looked at the cake she was about to eat and her smile vanished. Fire shot a glare at her and she scurried away from it.

Fluttershy then took the opportunity to speak. “Twilight, Pinkie, you won't believe what Fire and I found at the edge of the Everfree Forest!” she then looked into her mane. “Come on out, little guy. It's okay.”

The creature she found came out. But Fire’s eyes widened as he saw not one, but three come out as well. A yellow and brown pair had suddenly joined the blue one. When did that happen?

Fluttershy gasped, also shocked. “Three?

“They're amazing,” Twilight said as she walked over to Fluttershy. “What are they?”

“I'm not sure,” Fluttershy told her as they all watched the three creatures begin to fly around the sweet shop. “I'm also not sure where these other two came from.”

Fire felt a little worried now. Just one of them ate a whole bucket of apples!

“I'll take one off your hooves,” Twilight outstretched her hoof as the yellow landed on it, and she hugged it softly. “I've never seen anything so... adorable.”

She blushed as she realized she’d never shown this interest before. “Besides, it'll be nice to have a companion for Spike so he won't bother me so much while I'm studying.”

Fluttershy then looked at the pink pony. “Pinkie, do you want the other one?"

Pinkie Pie however, stuck out her tongue in disgust. “Ugh! A parasprite? Are you kidding?”

“Ugh?” Fluttershy repeated in shock.

Fire had been shocked by what he’d seen the first creature do, but they weren’t something gross to look at.

“A para-what?” Twilight asked.

“How could you not like…” Fluttershy tried to say.

Pinkie however interrupted her. “Ugh. Now I gotta go find a trombone!”

“A what?” Twilight asked, still confused.

“A trombone,” Pinkie repeated. “You know!”

She imitated a musical instrument sound then vanished out the door.

Twilight sighed. “Typical Pinkie.”

The yellow creature flew up next to her ear and she smiled.

Fire frowned. “I don’t know. She seemed to know what they are. Parasprite I think she said.”

He looked at the last one, the brown parasprite hovered nearby. “Seeing just one of these things eat a whole bucket of apples and not to mention these other two appearing out of nowhere, they give me the creeps a little bit. Maybe they’re more trouble than they’re worth?”

The brown one flew over to him and cutely rested on his head with a chirp. Fire couldn’t help but smile as his suspicion melted away.

“Okay, they are pretty cute,” he admitted. “And I was thinking of getting more pets for Warm Heart Tower. I guess I’ll take this one.”

“Oh wonderful,” Fluttershy said. “I don’t think they’ll be too much trouble, as long as you feed them properly. The one I found was probably really hungry!”

“Maybe,” Fire admitted. “Well, I guess we all have our things to do. Need any help with the preparations Twilight? It seems pretty quiet out there, so I think we’re good on security.”

Twilight nodded. “Thanks Fire! I could use a little help checking how the others are doing.”

“I’ll continue my work as well,” Fluttershy said. “See you both later.”

With that, Fire and Twilight made their way to Carrusel Boutique. Inside they found Rarity and Rainbow Dash who was wearing a fancy looking wig, and didn’t seem pleased about it by the grimace on her face.

Twilight looked at the outfits on the nearby mannequins and smiled. “Wow. Rarity, those outfits are gorgeous!”

“Indeed,” Fire said. “I believe this could be the right time to talk to my mother about you possibly becoming her personal fashion designer.”

Rarity gave an appreciative nod and smile. “Mmhmm. Thank you, Twilight, Fire. Nice to know someone appreciates my talents. Hopefully soon all of Equestria will see it once I’m the royal tailor!”

“Well, you might become a trainee under the current royal tailor,” Fire said.

“Oh, I’ll take it then!” Rarity said eagerly.

“Ugh, sooo boooring!” Rainbow Dash said pulling her eyelashes.

There were a pair of chirps from Twilight and Fire’s mane.

“Huh?” Rarity asked as she and Rainbow Dash wandered closer.

“What's that sound coming from you two?” Rainbow asked.

Not two, but six more of the creatures flew out of the two manes. They landed on the backs of the two ponies that ferried them here.

“Wow, what are they?” Rainbow asked, boy there were a lot of questions right now.

“Pinkie said they were called parasprites,” Fire Sword said.

“Where did they come from?” Twilight asked looking at the others. “I only had one a minute ago.”

“And Fluttershy only had one as well!” Fire told them. “Its like they just multiply super fast! I didn’t see any fly into her mane!”

“Uh, I'll take one,” Rainbow said taking one off Twilight’s back before doing the same with one on Fire’s back. “Or two if that’s okay.”

“Me too,” Rarity agreed. “Oh, they're perfect.”

They were indeed cute. But Fire couldn’t help but be bothered by all the strange happenings since seeing them. First one ate a whole barrel and then eight more appeared altogether. In just less then an hour.

Suddenly Pinkie Pie appeared in the doorway. “Does anypony know where I can find an accordion?”

Fire heard her but the three mares were busy giving their new pets affection. He was about to go over when the two remaining parasprites he had got in front of him and he couldn’t help but smile at their cuteness.

“Girls! Fire! Hello! This is important!” Pinkie called.

Fire looked back at her and was about to say something before one of the parasprite flew into his mouth curiously and caused him to gag.

“Durgh! Thanks a lot!” Pinkie muttered and ran off to continue her search.

Fire looked after her as his parasprite flew out of his mouth covered in saliva. He looked picked that one up in pity and looked at the others in concern.

“Hey, Twilight?” he asked.

“Yes Fire?” Twilight looked at him.

“Maybe we should research these parasprites,” Fire suggested. “I mean they just keep appearing! We started out with one and then three, and now… seven? More?”

“Oh, don’t worry, they probably just came in while we weren’t looking,” Twilight said.

“But-“

“We need to focus on the preparations for the princess… your mom’s welcome tomorrow!” Twilight reminded him.

“I’m sure these little darlings can wait to be researched until after that,” Rarity said.

“I think we know all we need about them! They are super cute!” Rainbow Dash added. “Even I can’t resist!”

Fire sighed. “Alright.”

He looked at the parasprites flying near him and spoke to them softly. “Can you two please not have any more friends suddenly appear on me at least?”

They only chirped in response.

Fire made his way back to Warm Heart Tower after the final preparations were complete and put his two paraprites in the Aurora’s cage with her. That would have to do for now. Maybe he’d get a separate cage for them later. He filled Aurora’s bird seed holder and then got a set of apples out for the parasprites.

“Just in case you get hungry,” Fire said with a smile at them. “Now behave yourselves please.”

He then climbed into bed. His mother would be here tomorrow. He’d find out more about them later. Fire just hoped it would be okay. At least he hadn’t seen any more randomly appear since this afternoon.

He dreamed a wonderful dream that night as he felt asleep to the soft chirping snores of the parasprites.

But in the morning he woke up to a very loud set of chirping and found Aurora’s entire cage was filled with Parasprites!”

“Aah!” Fire yelled and got of bed. “Where did you all come from?”

He opened the cage and all the creatures flew out, getting on him and the room. He caught a glimpse of Aurora covering herself with her wings.

“Guards!” he called.

His guards were up in a jiffy.

“Round them up!” Fire ordered.

They worked hard and after some time managed to stuff all the creatures into a saddle bags that Fire took on his back and flew off with. He soon found Twilight and Rarity with their own saddle bags on their backs.

He flew down in time to hear Rarity say, “I see we're having the same problem.” She gestured to Twilight’s saddlebag which was filled with the round creatures from all the shape, and the fact it was moving ever so slightly.

“Me too!” Fire said.

“Ditto!” Rainbow Dash said as she flew in with the parasprites attached to her, forming a beard on her face of them. She shook them off and then flew off with them in hot pursuit.

“Fluttershy knows everything about animals,” Twilight said. “I'm sure she can tell us how to stop them from multiplying.”

She and Rarity ran to Fluttershy’s cottage.

“Hold on!” Fire called as he flew above them. “Fluttershy didn’t know what they were!”

Too late, they were already there and opened the door to see a bunch more of the creatures fly out.

“Or not!” Twilight said.

Fire growled. “I told you we should have researched them! Can’t believe I fell for the googly eyes on these things! I should have trusted my instincts!”

They looked inside the cottage and saw Fluttershy surrounded.

“Ugh, do something Fluttershy, can't you control them?” Twilight asked.

“I've tried everything I know. I've tried begging, and pleading, and beseeching, and asking politely, and...” Fluttershy stammered.

Rainbow Dash grunted.

Fire then spoke up. “Okay, I think we’re gonna have to use more force! These things are cute, but they’re clearly more on the lines of pests than pets! I hate to do this but-“

He took all the parasprites in his red magic and drew them. He quickly took them outside and surrounded them in a shield. Taking a sad sigh, he set the inside of the shield on fire. The parasprites screamed as they were burned alive and the mares mouths all fell open.

“Oh! How horrible!” Fluttershy said with tears as she looked away.

“Sorry Fluttershy,” Fire said with genuine remorse as he looked at her. “But desperate times call for desperate measures.”

She sighed sadly as the ashes. “There has to be a better way though.”

“If we can't get them under control before the princess arrives, it'll be a total disaster!” Twilight argued.

A parasprite suddenly coughed out another one. That explained how they multiplied so fast.

“Ew!” Rarity exclaimed. “If you ask me, it's already a total disaster. These certainly are pests! Can’t believe I thought they were perfect! I’m glad Fire has a solution!”

Fluttershy suddenly grabbed hold of Fire’s hooves and looked up at him. “Please don’t do that again!”

Fire sighed. “If we can find another solution, I won’t have to!”

Suddenly Applejack appeared outside on the path leading to the cottage pulling a cart of apples. “Here's all those apples you wanted, Fluttershy, but I still can't figure why y'need so many.”

In answer to her question other parasprites appeared and suddnely gobbled up the enter cartload just like yesterday.

“Hey!” she exclaimed.

“What do we do?” Fluttershy asked.

“We have to think of something quickly,” Fire said. “Or I’ll have no choice but to bring on the burn!”

Twilight gasped. “I got it! Nopony can herd like Applejack!”

“Yeah!” Rainbow agreed. “We can drive 'em back into the forest!”

Applejack scoffed in irritation. “I'll rastle 'em up, but I need everypony's help to do it.” She pointed to them all and they nodded.

The cowgirl pony then began organizing them. “Twilight, you and Rarity wait over there.” She pointed to her left. “I'll herd the little critters straight at ya like a funnel. Fire, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, you three stay on top of 'em, don't let 'em fly away.”

“Aye aye!” Rainbow saluted.

“And I can use my magic as well to keep them in!” Fire lit up his horn as the two Pegasi flew up with him.

Applejack then flailed her hooves. “Yeeeeeee-haw!”

She then charged and began herding them up. With all of them working together both on the ground and the air, they soon had as many as they could find curled up into a ball. Fire then surrounded them in a red aura. Fluttershy cringed nervously at the sight.

“Please don’t burn them Fire!” she begged.

“If this works I won’t have to!” he told her.

“Alright y'all, here goes nothin'!” Applejack said as she, Twilight, and Rarity ran with the fliers following in the air.

Thanks to Fire’s shield they couldn’t get out. But then another pony joined them.

“Pinkie!” Twilight exclaimed.

“Twilight, we don't have much time!” Pinkie told them.

“You're telling me,” Twilight said. “The princess could arrive at any moment.”

“Exactly,” Pinkie replied That's why I need you gals to drop what you're doing and help me find some maracas.”

Twilight frowned. “Maracas? Pinkie, we've got much bigger problems than missing maracas.”

Fire frowned as he remembered yesterday with Pinkie knowing about the parasprites. “Pinkie do you know something about these creatures?”

But Pinkie didn’t hear him and answered Twilight. “You're right! Getting a tuba has to be our number one goal. Follow me. I said, follow me!”

“Pinkie Pie, you are so random.” Rainbow Dash dismissed.

“Girls!” Fire said. “I think she’s…”

“And you are all so stubborn!” Pinkie replied and ran off.

“Forget her ladies,” Applejack said and then looked at Fire. “And gentlecolt. Focus. Head 'em up and move 'em out.”

Fire in his frustration, let his shield down. Fortunately, the parasprite ball was still moving smoothly.

“Girls I really think maybe we should listen to Pinkie Pie!” Fire said. “She seems to know about these creatures!”

“Oh please, Fire! We can’t waste time chasing instruments!” Twilight said.

They soon got the ball of creatures into the forest and it rolled off.

“All right!” Rainbow Dash said giving Fluttershy a high hoof. Hard.

“Ouch,” Fluttershy said as she received it.

“We did it!” Twilight cheered. “Nice work, Applejack. And you Fire!”

“Couldn't a'done it without y'all,” Applejack replied.

“Thanks Twilight,” Fire said. “Even if I did let my shield down!”

“No problem. They didn’t get away,” Twilight said as they began to make their way back to Fluttershy’s cottage. “Now let's get back and clean up the mess they made before the princess… your mother arrives.”

They soon got back and Twilight continued talking. “Okay, everyone knows what to do, right? We gotta work extra hard to make up for lost time.”

Fluttershy landed in front of the door to her cottage and used her mouth to open it. But as soon as she did so, another swarm of parasprites sprang out, shocking all of them as they felt a powerful wind from the critters flying. Rarity knelt down on the ground while Rainbow Dash flew higher to get out of it. The wind blew all their manes.

“Where did they come from?” Twilight asked in surprise.

“Well, I may have kept just one,” Fluttershy said as that one hopped on her back.

She earned mean glares from everypony present and giggled nervously. “Heh. I couldn't help myself. They're just so cute.”

She gave the one hopping on her back a nose kiss.

“We don't have time to keep rounding up these things!” Twilight spoke hysterically. “What do we do now?”

Rainbow Dash suddenly landed back on the ground with a pair of goggles on her head. “We call in the weather patrol.”

She flew back into the air at high speed. Rarity yelped as the parasprites began chasing her. Fire took hold of them in his magic and trapped them in a shield again as Rarity covered her head with her hooves laying on the ground next to him. Twilight chased some others down as Applejack took off her hat, looking ready to swat any that came near.

“Sorry little guys, but I was right when I said you are more trouble than you’re worth!” Fire said before looking up at Rainbow Dash and yelling, “You got a way to get rid of them?”

“You bet! Time to take out the adorable trash. Yaaa!” she pounded her chest and began circling fast in midair creating a tornado.

The parasprites chirped in fright and tried to fly away, but she sucked them all up. The others could feel her wind, which was even stronger than the gust they’d felt before. It almost caused them to be blown away. Twilight hung onto Fluttershy’s fence and Applejack bit on her tail to steady herself. Rarity, meanwhile, was hanging onto a log somehow by her hooves. Fire lit up his horn and pulled her closer to him and put a shield around them both. She smiled at him and gave him a thankful hug which he returned.

“Thank you, Prince Fire Sword,” she said as they waited for the tornado to pass.

“No problem, Rarity,” Fire said.

They watched as Rainbow Dash rounded up all the parasprites in her tornado.

“Way to go, Rainbow Dash!” Twilight shouted through the storm.

“Looks like our problems are solved!” Applejack stated.

“They will be with these cymbals,” a voice said.

They saw Pinkie Pie approaching with a new pair of instruments. But Rainbow Dash’s tornado sucked them in and caused her to lose control. The creatures then poured out of the twister and swarmed into the town.

“Pinkie Pie, what have you done?” Twilight asked as she and the others angrily glared at her.

“I've lost a brand-new pair of cymbals, that's what I've done!” Pinkie said.

“Will you forget about your silly instruments for one second?” Twilight asked furiously. “You're ruining our efforts to save Ponyville!”

“Me? Ruin? I'm not the ruiner, I'm the ruin-ee! Or is it ruiness? Ruinette?” Pinkie tried to find the right word.

Applejack ran past her. “Come on y’all, there's no reasoning with that one. She's a few apples short of a bushel.”

Fire, again wasn’t so sure as he recalled yesterday with Pinkie being the one to identify the creatures in the first place.

“Hold on!” he tried to call, but the mares just ran off.

“Hey!” Pinkie called as well. “I'm trying to tell you all that the ruining is on the other hoof. If you'd just slow down and listen to me!”

Fire looked from her to the other mares. Twilight stopped as she noticed he wasn’t coming.

“Come on Fire!” she shouted. “I hate to ask you to do this, but your flame magic seems to be the only thing that can permanently get rid of them!”

“I hate to kill varmints, especially cute ones but we might not have a choice!” Applejack said.

“Oh,” Fluttershy whimpered.

“Save the day like the noble sherrif and prince you are!” Rarity cheered.

Fire looked ahead, seeing the many sprites in the air still descending into Ponyville. They were probably causing havoc already. But-

“I think we should listen to what Pinkie has to say,” he said.

“We don’t have time to waste on that!” Twilight said.

“But she-

“Come girls!” Twilight told the others as they ran off.

Fire sighed and turned to Pinkie.

“Pinkie did you say those creatures were parasprites?” he asked.

“Yeah, that’s what I said!” she replied.

“So why are you trying to get instruments?” Fire asked. “You’ve been doing that ever since the first one appeared.”

“Yeah, because it’s the only way to repel parasprites and lead them away!” Pinkie told him. “Well, that and you setting them on fire with your… fire spell. Or I guess it could be a you spell since it’s what you’re named after?”

Fire eyes widened. “What? You should have mentioned that earlier!”

“That you’re named after Fire?” Pinkie asked cluelessly.

“No about the music repelling parasprites!”

“I’ve been trying!” Pinkie exclaimed.

“You should try and say ‘I have a way to fix this’ or something like that! Instead of just talking about instruments!” Fire said as he flapped his wings.

He heard a brief “Oh, I guess that would make it clearer. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to listen more!”

She shouted the last part at him and he had to agree. He flew off in the direction of Ponyville. He saw a flash of light and saw Twilight as the source. The parasprites suddenly stopped eating the food, much of which was already gone in town. The ponies stood there watching, expecting something to happen. Fire was also frozen, did they do it?

“Look, tambourines!” Pinkie said as she appeared with another set of instruments. “If you could all just…”

“What did you do Twilight?” Fire asked.

“I cast a spell to stop them from eating the food,” she told him.

A parasprite sniffed a nearby apple in front of a dropped bucket and she gasped nervously. This was a test. The creature looked away from the apple. Twilight sighed in relief. Then the parasprite opened its mouth and swallowed the bucket and apple. It spat out the latter. Then other parasprites began to everything but food. Wooden signs, metal lampposts, roofs of buildings, fabrics, and more.

An apple landed in front of Rainbow Dash who scoffed. “Hey, it worked. They're not eating the food anymore.”

“Oh no,” Rarity’s eyes widened. “If they get inside my store... everypony for herself!” She ran off to her store and Fire followed. He was worried about Warm Heart Tower, but he had to help his friends first, even if it was everypony for herself. Of course, he was a male. And he would not leaving anypony by herself in this situation. But he could only help one pony at a time.

Rarity made it to her store and saw the creatures were already eating up… “My outfits!” she exclaimed as she saw her precious dresses shredded instantly.

She began trying to get one to leave. “Go on, shoo! Get out of here, you naughty! Naughty!”

The parasprite coughed out a new one, causing her to back away as her store was being eaten around her. She jumped on a stool and let out a shriek of dismay.

Fire looked around and saw a flute on a nearby table.

“I'll save you my dear!” he declared as he walked over to the table where the flute lay.

If music could stop them then he could. Except he wasn’t…

“Hey that’s just what I was gonna say!” Pinkie Pie said as she appeared behind him. “Though without the ‘my dear’ part!”

Fire levitated the flute up and brought it to his mouth. He grit his teeth nervously. He wasn’t the musical type, but he had to try. He blew the instrument and used his hoofs to cover the holes. A sound escaped the flute, it wasn’t bad, kind of pleasant. The parasprites began to bounce in midair a little bit, but soon shook their heads and continued.

“Nice try Fire, but you need more then that!” Pinkie said as she took the flute. “You just stay here and protect Rarity if you want. Light em up as they say! I’ll have enough soon!”

Fire sighed as she left. He gathered all the parasprites in the store into a cluster then lit em up.

“Ah!” Rarity exclaimed at the sight.

Fire watched sadly. “Sorry little guys. But can’t let you eat everything in here.”

Rarity smiled at him. “Thank you.”

But her expression turned grim as she noticed many of her creations were destroyed. “Oh, but too late for many of them! Please save what you can!”

And so, Fire put up a shield around the store for her.

“Come on Pinkie!” he said.

“Um, how is she supposed to help us?” Rarity asked. “All she’s doing is collecting instruments!”

“Exactly,” Fire said. “That’s what needs to be done.”

He remained with her, keeping what remained of her home and creations safe. The parasprites were unable to get past his shield. If only he could do this for all of Ponyville. He considered going out there and gathering the rest of them up and was about to when music filled his ears.

“Pinkie!” he smiled and lowered his shield.

The parasprites stopped eating and began to rock their bodies in midair, completely entranced by the music. Twilight and the others were outside as Fire led Rarity out. They all watched in shock as Pinkie Pie led the parasprites down in a straight line. They walked at the back, all in amazement and embarrassment, save for Fire. Though he wished he’d trusted his instincts in the first place.

“Look!” Twilight pointed.

Ahead of them, Fire’s mother landed in her chariot pulled by several Pegaus guards. All the ponies bowed low, but Fire merely inclined his head.

“Fire Sword, my son!” Celestia greeted him first. “And Twilight Sparkle, my prized pupil.”

“Hi Mom,” Fire said as he approached her and hugged her.

“Hello, Princess,” Twilight greeted as she rose.

Celestia returned her son’s embrace then looked at her student. “So lovely to see you again, as well as your friends.”
There was a crash from behind them and Pinkie walked by, playing her instruments louder than ever. They all looked at her. It was certainly weird, but it had gotten the job done.

“So... how was the trip?” Twilight tried to defuse the situation as she approached her mentor with downed ears. “Hit much traffic?”

“Ah, what is this?” Celestia asked as one of the parasprites landed on her wing. “Oh ho ho, these creatures are adorable.

Fire frowned. Could his mother really be unaware of these creatures and the damage they could cause?

“They're not that adorable,” Rainbow Dash muttered.

Fire scoffed. “Right like you didn’t fall for their cuteness too. Um, Mom, we have a bit of a situation.”

She smiled. “So, I see. Well, it appears Fillydelphia was not the only one hit with an infestation. I'm terribly honored that you and the good citizens of Ponyville have organized a parade in honor of my visit.”

“Parade?” Twilight asked nervously before hearing the music which could pass as a parade. “Oh. Yes, the parade.”

“Which is now ruined,” Fire looked down.

Twilight threw him a glare and he returned it.

“We need to be honest, Twilight,” he told her. “Even if the truth isn’t what you want to hear.”

“My son is right,” Celestia said walking over to him and nuzzling him. “He is an honest pony, much like another of you.”

Applejack blushed, knowing the princess was referring to her.

“Unfortunately, that visit is going to have to wait for another time.”

“It’s not cause of the parade being ruined, is it?” Twilight asked.

“No. I have to help Fillydelphia with their infestation. I'm sorry Fire, Twilight, to have to put you all through so much trouble.”

“Oh no trouble at all,” Twilight said.

“These creatures are the ones that caused us trouble,” Fire said taking a parasprite in his magic and glaring at it with near evil intent.

“Before I have to go, would you care to give me your latest report on the magic of friendship in person?” Celestia asked as she put her front hooves on her chariot.

“My... report?” Twilight was confused and looked in Pinkie’s direction.

“Haven't you learned anything about friendship?” Celestia asked.

Twilight came up with something as she watched her pink friend. “Actually, I have. I've learned that sometimes the solution to your problems can come from where you least expect it. It's a good idea to stop and listen to your friends' opinions and perspectives.”

One of Pinkie’s instruments crashed, causing them to jump.

“Even when they don't always seem to make sense.” Twilight finished.

“And you Fire?” Celestia asked her son.

“I’ve learned that one should trust their instincts. And not just fall for cuteness when something is amiss,” Fire told her.

“I'm so proud of you both,” Celestia praised. “And I'm very impressed with your friends as well. It sounds like you're all learning so much from each other. I do hope your little town will be alright. Fillydelphia has suffered quite a bit of damage from what I hear.”

“Guess we’ll have to invite you when our town is repaired,” Fire said. “No hard feelings, I hope? They all did the best they could to make this parade happen. Pinkie even put on a mini parade with the things that ruined it.”

“And I do appreciate that. You all made the best of a bad situation,” Celestia replied regally. “I look forward to when we can all get together for certain.”

“Thank you, Princess,” Twilight said softly as the chariot began to pull away.

They then made their way to Pinkie Pie as the last of the parasprites went into the Everfree Forest.

“Hey, what happened to the princess?” Pinkie asked.

“Emergency in Fillydelphia," Twilight informed her.

“Apparently they got the same kind of infestation we did.” Rainbow Dash said.

“Oh no!” Pinkie exclaimed. “Well, have tuba, will travel.”

She played another tune as Twilight spoke. “I think the princess can handle it.”

“Yeah, my mom can handle anything,” Fire said proudly. “Well, almost anything. Except things are really powerful.”

“So you knew what those critters were all along, huh Pinkie Pie?” Applejack asked.

“Well, duh!” Pinkie shouted. “Why do you think I was so frantic to get my hooves on all these instruments? I tried to tell you. Only Fire paused to give me a listening ear. In fact, he was listening from the start!”

Fire nodded.

“We know, Pinkie Pie, and we're sorry we didn't listen,” Twilight apologized.

The others all apologized as well, their words mixing in with each other and making it hard to understand.

“You're a great friend, even if we don't always understand you,” Twilight said.

“Thanks guys, you're all great friends too, even when I don't understand me,” Pinkie said.

“You and Fire both saved my reputation with his mother! And more importantly, you, Pinkie, you saved Ponyville!

They arrived back in town and found the town… not saved. It was a bunch of damaged buildings now.

“Or not,” Twilight said in dismay.

“We have a lot of cleaning up to do,” Fire sighed as Pinkie played a trumpet. “Maybe I should have just burned em all right away.”

In a dark place somewhere, a shadowy pony opened a pair of bright red eyes.

Chapter 15: Ponyville Relief

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 16: A Day in the Life

Author's Note

Okay so this chapter title shares its name with one of the episodes of G5 Tell Your Tale, the one that inspired me to write a whole little series of my own in fact. What a coincidence. Well, now we’re going to a look at Fire’s guards a bit more, and the servants as well. Still gonna be room for more development but we’ll work on that as we go. Next up we’ll have Fall Weather Friends, might be in three weeks though due to me going on vacation next week so I might skip my Tuesday Star Wars story and delay this one as well cause of that. But we’ll see. Regardless, in about a month or a little more I’ll have finished the two main stories I’m working on and then we’ll get weekly updates. Hope you enjoy and please leave a review/comment. If you have suggestions for past chapters or even future ones you might like to see changed I’m willing to hear it.

Chapter 16: A Day in the Life

It was a busy time around Ponyville for quite a while. They were making good progress on the repairs at least. Hopefully it would be just a few more days before everything was back to the way it was before the parasprites showed up. Vine Archer had to say, he’d expected this job to be dull in the country once he was assigned to be part of the Flame Guard that would be responsible for protecting Prince Fire Sword. But it had been just about anything but ever since he came here.

They’d had a griffon, dragon, boastful magician, a trio of robbers, a zebra thought to be an evil enchantress, and now parasprites. What was next?

Either way, Vine Archer was glad to take a break from all the excitement and now rebuilding. He got up early one morning and stood in front of Warm Heart Tower and faced his foe, an archery target made of hay. Vine readied his bow, it came with a stand at the bottom that allowed it to stay up right while he used his mouth to fire. Vine had heard that some species like griffons actually had to grip their bows with claws to steady them. No matter, Vine’s bow worked fine for him. He grabbed an arrow with his teeth and set it to the bow before taking the string in his teeth as well.

His arrows flew with years of practice. They didn’t set the target on fire or freeze it like some arrows that had been forged with special properties could. But that was probably for the best, didn’t need to burn the target after all. The simple wood shafts ending in steel tips soared and struck the hay in various rings. Vine managed to strike exactly where he aimed at least nine times out of ten. He was good, as archery was his special talent, but even that didn’t gurantee him every time. But with enough practice he could one day get there. Landing ten out of ten every time. Then maybe he could partake in a big archery event sometime.

He went about it for around half an hour, shooting his arrows, retrieving them, and shooting again. They flew, he retrieved, they flew again. One, two, three… he shot four more with perfect precision. Eight, nine, and…

He readied his last shot and focused, this was it. If he could get this last one he’d be satisfied for now. He aimed and was about to

“Hey Lieutenant Archer!” a voice called.

Vine jumped in surprise, his razor-sharp focus that had been the result of his guard training in Canterlot wavering just enough to cause his arrow to slip a hair out of where he intended to hit it. He watched it hit the target on the right just before the outer ring that he’d wanted to hit. He’d managed to three of his arrows on the corners of the target. But now that wouldn’t be a perfectly placed set.

He sighed and looked at the pony that interrupted him. It was Hoofrunner, the other Earth Pony stallion in the Flame Guard besides Vine himself. Hoofrunner was a grayish blue pony with a short brown mane and green eyes. Like Vine, he wore the armor with flame designs that had been made shortly before the squad of six guards arrived in Ponyville.

“Hoof, you broke my concentration!” Vine scolded.

“Sorry sir!” Hoof apologized. “But its time for training!”

“Oh,” Vine realized he’d been so focused on his archery he’d lost track of time. “Thanks.”

They made their way to the other side of the grass lands around Warm Heart Tower. Prince Fire Sword had decided it would serve as their training grounds.

He was there waiting for them, his sword at ready. The other four were present as well, each wielding a training version of their preferred weapon. Fire Sword had a sword of course, and Silver Javelin a staff in the place of his usual javelin. The other three guards were Fast Stab, Feather Falls, and Axe Eagleeye.

Fast was a unicorn who levitated a pair of unsharpened daggers. Feather and Axe were the Pegasus members. Like Silver, Feather carried a staff in the place of a spear.

“Ready boys?” Vine Archer asked.

The guards nodded and Vine turned to the prince. He knew alicorns were stronger then the regular ponies, and thought by many to be immortal. It was the responsibility of the royal guards to make sure they were unharmed in the event that something unexpected might happen. Prince Fire’s special talent was reputedly combat magic, even so he couldn’t handle everything on his own. Vine just hoped he’d be there for his prince when Fire might need him. So far he’d not exactly done a top-notch job. He’d let Fire Sword go off with the mares that wielded the elements of harmony and lost him during the rainstorm. Of those had been when Fire insisted on going on alone or sent his guards ahead to Warm Heart Tower. Vine would have to make sure to accompany Fire the next time something happened.

But for now, they had to train.

“Your highness?” Vine asked.

“Yes,” Fire said raising his sword.

They divided into pairs. Since there were a total of seven of them one had to be the odd one out. That would be Vine for this round. Prince Fire Sword faced Silver Javelin. They would fight up close and personal Vine Archer liked archery of course, but the bravest members of the guard engaged their foes up close and personal. When he’d first joined the recruits, he’d been unable to stand and fight, running away. Boy he was punished harshly for that. But he’d worked past his fear of facing an opponent up close.

They began their morning bouts, with Fire's training sword clashing against Silver's staff that stood in for his spear. The guard's weapon had the advantage of reach, but Prince Fire easily parried it with a maneuver of his blade. He then stepped forward and caught Silver with the weapon.

"Oh!" the unicorn exclaimed. "Nice one your highness!"

"Thanks," Fire said with a smirk.

"But there's more where that came from!" Silver stated.

They resumed their position and came at each other again. Silver thrusted out with his spear, and Fire attempted to block but missed. The thrust this time had been a feint to draw the blade off to the side while Silver thrusted to the other side. His shaft caught Fire in the shoulder.

Fire chuckled it off. "Not bad, you got me."

Silver returned the smirk from earlier. "You're not the only one with talent in combat! Best two out of three?"

"You got it!" Fire agreed to the challenge. "Then we'll switch partners."

And so they took a few steps back and began again. Fire focused, trying not to let himself be caught offguard like he was last time. Silver thrusted out his shaft and Fire parried before trying to move in close.

This time however, Silver was ready, quickly retreating out of range of Fire's training blade. He then let out a flurry thrusts that Fire struggled to dodge. Even though his talent was combat, he didn't put in quite as much time into training it as the royal guards. Still he managed to hold his own and remained focused, spotting the thrust that was the feint and quickly rotating his blade to block the real strike.

Then he took the spear under his armpit and trapped it there while striking with his sword. The unsharpened blade made contact and struck the silver stallion once again.

"Ah! You win!" Silver exclaimed. "Ah well, guess it’s to be expected. A humble unicorn like me can only be so good at physical combat. That's an Earth Pony thing."

"You're pretty good though," Fire complimented.

Silver smirked. "Thanks!"

He then turned to Vine. "Alright Lieutenant! Ready to lose?"

Vine frowned. Even though he was ranked higher, the unicorn often managed to outdo him. "We'll see who wins this one!"
Silver put his spear down and cracked his hooves together, Vine didn’t have a preferred melee weapon apart from his hooves. The two stallions faced each other and... several strikes and grunts later...Vine was knocked down by a sharp kick to the stomach.

He groaned.

Silver laughed. "Guess strength isn't everything huh, Vine?"

Vine frowned before admitting, "No, it’s not."

He pushed himself to his feet. Silver smirked at him. "You're lucky we unicorns don't use our magic in sparring matches, you'd never beat me for real!" he taunted.

Vine glared at him. "Give me a boy and we'll see who beats who."

"Okay that's enough!" Fire put up his hooves. "We don't need to fight amongst ourselves!"

They rotated partners a couple more times and then it was time to go out on patrol. Axe Eagleeye and Feather Falls, the two Pegasus members, flew into the sky while Vine, Prince Fire, and the other ponies trotted the ground, except for Silver who started behind to make sure Warm Heart Tower was secure. Though remembering how those robbers took on just him and Silver when they’d remained behind, Vine worried.

"Perhaps we should expand on the guards, Prince Fire," Vine suggested. "I mean we can only do so much with just six of us."

"Perhaps," Fire agreed. "Or perhaps we can fortify what we have, maybe some security spells put up at night to prevent anyone unauthorized from entering. I believe the captain of the guard in Canterlot has a spell that keep out anyone with hostile intent."

There was a moment of silence as they walked. But it was soon interrupted by -

“Wahoo! Here comes the heavy feather!”

Feather Falls came flying down in a sky dive before pulling up.

“And he pulls up!” Feather shouted for all to hear.

He liked to be dramatic and daring.

"Alright, I think I should check on all my friends," Fire said. "They should be just about fixed up with everything today. You guys head into town and make sure everything is fine."

"Yes sir!" Hoofrunner said with a quick salute.

He then ran off, that pony preferred to run rather than walk. Just like Prince Fire's friend Rainbow Dash preferred to fly everywhere. He was originally from Manehattan and claimed to win several racing prizes there and was a fan of the Earth Speeders, a group of Earth Pony joggers that were renowned for being fast on the ground, similar to the Wonderbolts in the sky.

Vine snapped himself out of his thoughts however and looked at Fire.

"Um, your highness, I think at least one of us should stay with you."

"I can handle myself Lieutenant," Fire said.

"I know but you have been facing quite a few things recently. Not all of them are dangerous I admit but one of them was a dragon and the other an Ursa Minor. We should have gone with you up that hill," Vine said.

"Fair point," Fire acknowledged. "But I had the bearers of the Elements of Harmony with me. Everything was fine. Don't worry. If anything like that comes again I'll make sure to have you guys by my side."

Vine nodded, though hoped that would be the case. Fire then flapped his wings and took off.

…

Fire stopped over at Sweet Apple Acres and saw Rainbow Dash as well Applejack, Big Mac and Granny Smith on the farm. They’d managed to get their house rebuilt at least.

“Hey Applejack!” he called with a wave. “Just about done huh?”

“Yeah, at least the supports were still intact so we just had to build a new outside and put everything back up,” Applejack said. “Cheerilee even had Applebloom’s class pitch in yesterday! And Rainbow flew around and helped too.”

“Good,” Fire said. “Always nice to have a loyal friend.”

“That’s right!” Rainbow put a hoof to her heart. “Sure was hard to do it in this heat but I managed, and summer is just about over! Hello fall soon!”

Fire nodded and went around to check on all of his other friends. First was Twilight.

“Seems the vegetation around your library is grow back,” Fire told her when he stepped in and saw her.

“Yeah, and I’ve replaced most of the books,” she said. “Hey, you up for reading together with me and Moondancer soon?”

He nodded. “Good to exercise my mind as well as body. With the repairs almost done we should be able to go back to normal.”

“Great,” Twilight said with a grin. “I kinda missed having you reading and practicing magic with around here. But I’ve been so busy with ordering these books I’ve barely had time to read them! It will be nice when things are back to the way they were after these past few weeks.”

“Yeah,” Fire agreed. “See you later.”

“Bye Fire,” Twilight said as he walked off.

“See ya,” Spike waved.

Fire headed to Sugarcube Corner which was patched up as well. One could almost never know there was a disaster. Now they just needed to bake new treats to sell. If a certain somepony didn’t eat them all up.

“Ah, all that rebuilding sure makes me hungry!” Pinkie said as she patted her full stomach.

Fire chuckled and looked at Mrs. Cake.

“Can I get a couple boxes of cupcakes?” he asked.

“Yes, of course deary!” the Earth Pony mare said.

She handed him the boxes and he quickly flew them over to Warm Heart Tower before resuming his patrol. Still two more ponies to see. Fluttershy still needed to replace some furniture, and was sad because…

“I wish I could have kept just one of them,” she said when he stopped by.

“They were more trouble than they’re worth Fluttershy.” Fire put a hoof on her shoulder. “Next time we find an animal even you aren’t familiar with let’s research it.”

“Okay,” she said with a small nod. “So um, I recall you wanted to maybe get a new pet in addition to Aurora?”

“I thought about it,” Fire said. “I do love animals.”

She smiled. “They make wonderful friends. I got my cutie mark because of animals you know.”

Fire returned the smile for a moment. “I had a feeling that was the case. You just have it so natural with them.”

“And you a natural fighter,” Fluttershy said. “But you’re still kind. I admit I was… a little scared and sad seeing you burn those parasprites, but you did it to protect us.”

Fire nodded. “But maybe burning them was a bit extreme, I mean they weren’t trying to eat us.”

Fluttershy walked over and hugged him. “Its okay. Your heart was in the right place. Sometimes nature… and even this beautiful world can be cruel. We need strong ponies like you for times of conflict. I really admire your strength of character. You’re brave, strong, honest, funny, loyal, and fierce. But you’re not cruel or mean when you act strong. You’re a perfect balance. I really admire those things about you. You have the best traits from all of our elements. I feel safe when you are around and I know the others feel the same way. You’re a wonderful stallion, truly worthy of being the son of Celestia herself.”

Fire smiled and returned the hug. “Thanks. And I think you’re a wonderful kind mare as well, Fluttershy.”

She blushed. “Thank you.”

Finally, he visited Rarity. “Your store seems all back to normal as well Rare.”

She blushed. “Yes, those bits you got from the nobles of Canterlot certainly helped everypony to be able to purchase repair supplies quicker. I can finally return to making my beloved fashion creations rather than making my home again!”

“Well in that case would you be up for taking a royal order?” Fire asked with a grin.

“Oh no I couldn’t!” Rarity exclaimed. “I’m in no condition to make something so regal after just getting my store back in working condition!”

She giggled. “Of course I can your highness!”

Fire smiled. “Well, I think I would like a new coat. Summer is ending in just a couple days and I’ll need something warm for when the cold weather sets in.”

“It shall be my pleasure!” Rarity agreed. “I shall have to design something warm and regal! You are the son of Celestia after all! Hmm… how does a red fire themed mantle sound? I can make it with the finest material!”

“Guess it would fit royalty,” Fire said. “Thank you my dear.”

She blushed again at that and said, “No don’t get too flirty with little old me, your highness! After all you have another mare waiting for you on the day of the gala.”

“Yeah, and you have another prince you wish to woo,” Fire reminded her.

They looked away from each other with forced smiles. Each of them thinking a similar thing.

I wish she liked me instead of Blueblood. Fire thought. A gorgeous and good mare like her shouldn’t be with a vain stallion like that. But I have Moondancer as a date already. I can’t abandon her.

I wish he had asked me instead of Moondancer. Rarity thought. If he had, I’d gladly go with him. But he’s known her much longer and it is his choice to make. And I have another prince I wish to be with. Still, he is so fine a prince. I only hope Blueblood is as dashing and gracious!

“Good day Rarity,” Fire said as he began to walk out the door.

“Good day Fire Sword,” she replied as she watched him go.

Fire gave the boutique one more look as the door closed behind him. He finished his patrol for the day, enjoying the last traces of summer warmth that would soon turn to a comfortable fall temperature. Then at noon he returned to Warm Heart Tower and donned his armor and crown for when Mayor Mare arrived for a meeting. He got on his throne just in time, the brown Earth Pony entered the door and approached the throne.

“Prince Fire,” the mayor said with a bow. “Our town has just about recovered from the infestation a few weeks ago.”

“Yes, that’s good,” Fire said. “And just in time for fall.”

“Yes, we will soon have our annual fall events including the running of the leaves!” Mayor Mare said. “I don’t expect you will be participating in that though but-“

“I will be actually,” Fire told her. “I maybe a prince but I want to do my part. Besides, running can be fun. I doubt I’ll win first place though.”

“Oh, and here I was thinking you could be our announcer in the sky this year,” the mayor said. “Well, who am I to deny a royal his wish if he wants to run in the running of the leaves? Pinkie Pie has been the announcer for the last couple years. She should do fine.”

Fire smiled. “My mother would probably love to be here. Fall is one of her favorite seasons cause of all the colored trees.”

“Actually, I got a letter from Canterlot and it turns out she’s coming!” Mayor Mare said.

“Oh!” Fire exclaimed. “Guess we’ll get a royal visit finally!”

Mayor Mare grinned. “Yes, and it is an honor to have a royal living with us in our humble town!”

“Your humble town is quite nice,” Fire complimented. “With friendly ponies everywhere. Not so many stuck up nobles like we have in Canterlot.”

He then realized that might not have been an appropriate thing to say. “Um, sorry.”

“It’s alright,” the mayor said. “Every town… or city has some rotten residents. We have a certain Spoiled Rich here.”

Fire didn’t relish the idea of meeting that pony whoever he or she was.

They concluded their meeting soon afterwards and the soon the guards returned.

“Nothing happened out there?” Fire asked once they were all assembled.

“No, your highness,” Vine Archer said and the others shook their heads in agreement.

“Just a few helping hooves here and there,” Axe said. “I chopped down a couple trees for some extra wood to give to some ponies.”

“Good,” Fire praised.

“How was everything here Silver?" Vine asked.

"All quiet," Silver assured him. "Our lovely maids got everything nice and clean.”

He gestured to the two mares in maid outfits, black dresses with white aprons over them and bonnets in their mane. They were Maid Maria and Anya Housetain. Though their dresses that they'd gotten from Rarity after moving in covered their cutie marks, Fire knew that their marks bore a feather duster and a sparkling house respectively.

"Good work you two," Fire said looking at them.

They bowed their heads respectfully and offered smiles at him.

“No robberies or anything." Silver continued.

"Good," Fire said. "Vine made a suggestion earlier that was actually a pretty good one. Maybe we should get more guards. Six might not enough, especially after that robbery when I hurt my wing. But I think we'd be pretty crowded with more. If we can strengthen our current defenses we might be able to turn this tower into a fortress that only requires a few ponies to defend it.

"Maybe, I think I can find a spell," Silver said. “Sure I might not be defense talented like the captain in Canterlot but with practice talents can still be developed. We’ll see what I can do.”

Suddenly the door opened and a large blackish stallion with a similar build to Applejack's brother Big Macintosh but had a gray mane in a ponytail form. He carried a large crate on his back.

Here is the rest of the supplies we need for the cellar!" Strong Stuff, the heavy lifter for the tower said.

"Good work," Fire praised. "That should last us for a good few weeks."

"Happy to help!" Strong said before looking off to the side and growing red in the cheeks.

Fire followed his gaze and noticed Maria smiling at the stallion him with rosy cheeks of her own.

"Hmm," Fire said in a low voice only he could hear. "Looks like someponies here have a crush on each other. Well, my big sister is the princess of love. If she were here, she'd probably want to play match maker. I'll have to add that to the things to do later on."

He chuckled, imagining Cadance smiling at him. He missed her, he’d have to write a letter later. She’d be back from her tour in a little while though, and he’d get the chance to see her. His cousin, first crush, big sister and… more. Everypony heard him chuckle and looked at him.

"Did you say something Prince Fire?" Vine Archer asked.

"No, nothing," Fire lied. "Well, I think its about time for dinner!"

"I'll get started right away." Swift Cuisine said as he flew to the kitchen area.

"Well before dinner, I'm going out for a run!" Hoofrunner said. "Anyone care to join me?"

"Sure!” Strong Stuff said.

"I think I'll go and read," Fire said.

He headed to his study and sat in a chair reading Daring Do for a while. With all the excitement he’d not had much time to read lately. But that would change soon enough and he’d go back to it, along with Twilight and Moondancer. He also found himself thinking of his feelings toward them. Not romantic feelings, at least not for Twilight. Both she and Moondancer were smart and good ponies. Fire knew that his mother was close with Twilight, which was to be expected as the lavender unicorn was Celestia’s personal protégé. Fire hadn’t exactly been close to her until now, they’d both been loners by nature for the most part. Of course, Fire had hung out with Moondancer and the others at Canterlot. Celestia even seemed to value Twilight almost like a daughter. She wouldn’t be bad to have as another possible sister figure alongside Cadance. But Fire wasn’t entirely sure she’d be okay with that. It was just an idea as well. He still needed more time to figure it out, just like he did with Cadance. He’d even wanted to marry her when he was younger. Things could sure change, he’d just have to see.

An hour later, Fire raised his solid gold goblet encrusted with a ruby for a toast.

“To these past few weeks of hard work and prosperity in Ponyville as well as all of Equestria!” he said. “To the upcoming season of fall!”

“Oh, I can’t wait to see all the lovely orange leaves!” Maria said.

“That will mean a lot of raking though,” Grand Garden said.

“I’m gonna be running in the Running of the Leaves when it comes!” Hoofrunner said. “And I’m gonna get first place just like I did last year in Manehattan!”

“Good luck,” Silver Javelin said. “I’ll be entering too.”

“We all will,” Fire said. “I don’t expect to win since running isn’t something I do constantly but should be good for the day. Might help my endurance too.”

And so, he’d go running soon.

Chapter 17: Fall Weather Friends

Fire Sword awoke on one of the last days of summer. Fall was almost here, just a couple days and they’d have the Running of the Leaves according to Mayor Mare. Here in Ponyville the ponies ran to knock the loose leaves off the ground. Not like in Canterlot which being a unicorn focused society used magic to grab multiple leaves off the handful of trees in the city and then create beautiful leaf sculptures around the city as well as piles that were left to decompose.

Fire was served breakfast and then donned his sheriff unicorn as well as putting a book in his saddlebag before flying out. He headed down to Sweet Apple Acres and saw Big Mactintosh.

“Hi Big Mac,” Fire greeted. “Doing good today?”

“Yep!” the red stallion said simply. He rarely said more than yep or nope. Fire could respect that. Someponies just never knew when to shut up.

“Good. Your sister around?”

“She’s over there with Rainbow Dash! We decided to take a couple days off once we finished rebuilding our home,” Big Mac said pointing.

“Thanks!” Fire said before beginning to head that direction.

Sure enough, he found Rainbow Dash and Applejack there. In front of them were a set of gold and silver colored horseshoes and a pair of wooden stakes serving as targets.

“Hi girls!” Fire greeted.

At that moment Rainbow threw her silver horseshoe with a grunt. It landed just a few inches away from the target.

“Whoo-hoo!” Rainbow exclaimed as she did a midair somersault before noticing him. “Oh hey Fire! Just in time to watch us have a little horseshoe throwing!”

“Okay,” Fire said.

“Howdy Fire,” Applejack greeted before turning back to the Pegasus. “Hoo-wee! Not a bad pitch for a pony who works with her head in the clouds.”

“Oh yeah? Think you can do better, cowgirl?” Rainbow asked in a taunting manner.

“I know I can!” Applejack stated.

She took her horseshoe (the golden one, apparently they both had different colors to tell which shoe belonged to who) in her mouth and threw it. But it landed just behind Rainbow Dash’s.

“Oh, for Pete's sake!” Applejack lamented.

Rainbow Dash laughed and put a hoof to her chest before flapping her wings and finally giving Applejack a playful thump on the head. “Heh! Looks like this Pegasus can pitch better than the workhorse. The object of the game is to get the closest to the stake.”

“All right, all right. You got another throw there, pony girl,” Applejack said.

She sent Rainbow Dash’s next piece up into the air and it landed on her nose by some stroke of luck. Rainbow frowned and tossed it with her face. That ended up being a bit too hard, it overshot the stake and crashed ahead. Fire had to suppress a giggle.

“Wow, Rainbow,” Applejack spoke in sarcastic praise. “You couldn't hit a barn door with that kind of a throw!”

“Yeah, yeah. I still have the closest throw, Applesmack,” Rainbow dismissed while passing the last gold painted horseshoe (as Fire doubted it was real gold). “Just try and beat it.”

Applejack took her horse and looked at the stake intensely. She then threw her shoe and it landed.

“Yee-haw!” the cowgirl pony flailed her hooves in triumph. “It's a ringer. That's how you do it down here on the farm!”

Rainbow Dash’s mouth fell open as she saw that and soon looked down. “I lost.”

“Ah, don't feel bad, Rainbow. It's all in good fun.” Applejack encouraged.

It didn’t help as Rainbow Dash said, “I hate losing.”

“Besides, you're a mighty good athlete. I'm just better.” Applejack then began to trot off.

“Gotta get back to work huh?” Fire asked.

“Nah, just enjoy myself,” Applejack said with a smile.

Rainbow Dash, however, flew after the other mare. “All right, Applejack, you think you're the top athlete in all of Ponyville?”

Applejack turned around and looked at Rainbow. “Well, I was gonna say in all of Equestria, but that might be gildin' the lily.”

She then brushed Rainbow with her tail. Fire could understand feeling proud of one’s ability, but literally rubbing it in somepony’s face. No thanks.

Rainbow Dash however, wasn’t done. “And I think I'm the top athlete. So, let's prove it.”

“Prove what?” Applejack asked.

“I challenge you to an Iron Pony competition.” Rainbow declared.

Applejack raised an eyebrow in confusion, so the Pegasus explained. “A series of athletic contests to decide who's the best, once and for all.”

Applejack was now intrigued. “You know what, Rainbow? You’re on.”

They both spit in their hooves and pressed them together.

“Eww,” Fire muttered with a frown.

They looked at him. “What’s the matter Fire? Don’t like a good hoofshake?”

“Oh, I like hoofshakes fine, but I could do without the spit,” he said. “See you guys later!”

He flew off to get his shift started.

“Make sure to watch our competition!” Applejack called after him before turning to Rainbow with a snigger. “He’s almost as neat as Rarity!”

“They are so meant for each other,” Rainbow agreed. “Least he doesn’t mind the occasional workout. Maybe we should include him a little.”

“Maybe. He understands that some things need practicality more than visual appeal!” Applejack said. “Now let’s get this competition underway!”

“You got it!”

They pressed their heads together, ready to see who was the best.
…

The next day, after the two athletes had come up with a plan, Fire was back in the orchards. Rainbow Dash was on the ground stretching. Twilight had come as well.

“So you two are doing what, now?” Twilight asked.

Applejack started to explain. “An Iron-

Rainbow Dash finished for her. “Iron Pony competition.”

“See, we've set up a bunch of events to decide which one of us is—

“The most athletic pony ever!” Rainbow Dash interrupted once again, causing the earth pony to roll her eyes.

It was kind of cute the way Rainbow knew what Applejack was gonna say. But then they had probably gone over this a couple times.

“And Fire and I are here to...?

Rainbow Dash continued stretching… “Eh… I don't know.” She shrugged. “Why are they here?”

Applejack maintained her annoyed expression as she said, “To be our judges and keep score.”

“Right, heh,” Rainbow nodded. “Somepony's gotta record my awesomeness for the history books.”

She then grunted and began doing push-ups.

Applejack then looked at Fire. “Unless you’d like to join us in competing Fire.”

Fire thought for a moment. “Maybe, could be fun.”

“Alright! Of course, I already know I’m faster than you!” Rainbow Dash said flexing her wings.

Fire smirked. “Maybe in the air, but let’s see about on the ground. My stamina might be a bit on the low side but I’m still pretty fast!”

“Bring it on!” Rainbow Dash said.

“Fine, prepare to be burned,” Fire replied.

They laughed and got to work. After a couple hours setting up the game field, Applejack and Rainbow Dash had a variety of challenges ready to test themselves and prove which was better. They put the last of the objects in place as Fire stood with Twilight on a hill.

Spike began speaking loudly from Twilight’s back, holding a stick up to his mouth like it was a microphone. “Hello everypony, and welcome to the first annual Iron Pony competition!”

“Uh, Spike,” Twilight looked at him in confusion. “Who are you talking to?”

Spike looked around, feeling a little embarrassed before pointing. “Um... uh, them!”

They looked and saw Rarity, Pinkie and Fluttershy arriving in their own ways. Rarity walked beautifully, Pinkie bounced, and Fluttershy flew softly.

“Let the games begin!” Spike shouted as he got on top of Twilight’s head.

Everypony then cheered except for Twilight and Fire. The former formed an annoyed expression. Fire took the baby dragon in his magic and lowered him back onto Twilight’s back.

“I don’t think Twilight likes you jumping on her head Spike,” Fire told him.

“Oh, sorry Twi,” Spike said.

Twilight took a breath to calm herself then formed a light smile.

“Well let’s get this underway.”

The first competition was a barrel race where the two mares and Fire had to run a course that was lined with barrels they needed to avoid. Fire, Applejack, and Rainbow walked next to the starting line where Twilight waited.

“Well, mares first,” Fire held out his hoof. “This is your competition after all.”

“Thank you kindly, Fire,” Appeljack said walking forward to the start. “And no need to feel bad if you ain’t as good as us at this.”

Fire nodded. “I’m just gonna have a little fun for a while”

“That’s the spirit! Show your burning passion!” Pinkie cried at the top of her lungs from nearby.

“Good luck Prince Fire!” Rarity called.

“Do your best,” Fluttershy added softly to which they just barely heard.

Spike prepared a timer as Twilight counted down.

“Ready. Set. Go!”

Applejack ran forward with incredible speed, causing Twilight’s tail and mane to blow from a moment of wind. She zigzagged past the barrels smoothly until one of them caught her off-guard, she tried to dodge it but ran just slightly into it.
“Dagnabbit.”

She looked back at the barrel and somehow without looking dodge the few remaining before crossing the finish line and making her way back.

“Time, Spike?” Twilight asked.

Spike looked at his timer. “Seventeen seconds.”

“You're kiddin’!” Applejack exclaimed as she stopped next to Rainbow Dash whose mouth was open in amazement. “That breaks my record from last year's rodeo.”

“But you got a five second penalty for nudging the barrel,” Spike told her.

Applejack sighed and kicked a rock on the ground in front of her. “Nuts and chews! Still, that's twenty-two seconds. Not too shabby.”

She then looked at Rainbow Dash and noticed the Pegasus was sweating. “Hey, don't be nervous. Remember, it's all in good fun.”

She bumped Rainbow with her elbow, and the Pegasus flapped her wings out of reflex.

“Yeah,” Fire said. “Just focus on the fun. Even if you lose no big deal.”

“To you maybe, but I hate losing,” Rainbow Dash said.

“I don’t think any of us love it,” Fire told her. “But we gotta accept when we’re beaten. No matter how good you are there can always be somepony better.”

“That’s right! Now git on up there,” Applejack encouraged.

Rainbow Dash flew a few feet to the starting line.

“Ready. Set. Go!” Twilight said once again.

The Pegasus ran on her hooves. Her rainbow-colored mane left a streak behind her. Unlike Applejack she managed to get through without even nudging a single barrel.

Applejack flailed her hooves. “Woo! That was some fancy hoofwork there, Rainbow!”

Rainbow Dash panted a bit as she flew back to them. “Thanks, but I couldn't have been as fast as you.”

Applejack then turned to their time keeper. “What was the time on that, Spike?

“Eighteen seconds!” Spike exclaimed.

Applejack gasped and looked at her friend. “Eighteen seconds. Rainbow, are you sure you're not secretly a rodeo pony?”

Twilight then looked at Fire. “Well, we still have to let Fire have a turn.”

Fire nodded and got in front of the starting line.

“Ready, set, go!” Twilight said for a third time.

Fire ran through the course, dodging the barrels as he did so, zigzagging back and forth.

“Go Fire!” Rarity cheered out.

Fire looked at her, feeling his cheeks light up as she cheered for him. Then her happy expression turned to one of concern.

“Look out for the-“

Fire turned his attention back in front of him just in time. He saw spotted the same barrel that Applejack had nudged. He jumped, using his wings to provide just a little air to fly over the top and even avoiding the flowers inside.

…

Rarity sighed in relief as she saw him leap over the barrel to make it to the finish.

“Oh, he flies with such grace,” she said putting a hoof to her heart as her cheeks lit up.

“Yes,” Fluttershy agreed. “You like him, don’t you?”

Rarity nodded. “Yes, I do.”

“Then why don’t you ask him to go out with you?”

Rarity sighed. “He’s going to be dating Moondancer at the gala. Besides I have my sights set on another prince!”

“But do you even know Blueblood?” Fluttershy asked. “Fire seems like a great young stallion. He’s strong, brave, protective, kind, caring, and loves animals.”

“You’re right on all accounts my dear,” Rarity agreed. “But Blueblood is the most sophisticated stallion in all of Canterlot! I’m sure I’ll be happy with him.”

“Oh well, if you say so,” Fluttershy said.

“Just don’t tell Fire!” Rarity requested. “I wouldn’t want him to leave Moondancer cause of me.”

Though that might have been a lie. If he asked her, she’d be his. She just wanted him to be happy.

…

“How was my time?” Fire asked as he rejoined the others that were competing or tracking.

"Twenty seconds!” Spike said.

“Not bad for someone who claims not to be an athlete,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Well, I am a warrior,” Fire grinned. “And a spellcaster. Guess I’m a balance of both you two and Twilight.”

Twilight smiled. “Yeah, and Rainbow Dash wins the barrel lead!”

She raised Rainbow’s hoof.

Fluttershy flew over from where she stood with Rarity and added a point to the board, they were using to keep score. Pictures of an Earth Pony, Pegasus, and Alicorn were drawn on for each of the competitors.

Rainbow Dash put her hooves to her face. “Oh, I can't believe I won!”

“Yeah, well, don't you go gettin' used to it,” Applejack said as she pushed the constantly flying Pegasus on to the ground.

They moved onto other competitions. Next was a bell hitting competition where they had to hit a dong for a bell. As they did so however, a few other ponies began to arrive and watch the competition. Fire recognized one of them.

“Oh, hey Lyra,” he greeted. “What are you doing here?”

“We heard there was a big competition going on here and wanted to check it out,” the green unicorn said.

They’d arrived just in time. First up was Rainbow Dash. She kicked the dong with her hind legs, causing the weight to go up and hit the bell at the top. It rung and the spectators cheered and threw flowers or horseshoes.

“Mighty respectable,” Applejack said before spitting and getting up from where she was sitting. “But let me show ya how it's really done.”

She then hit the target with all her might and it moved with such force that it absolutely destroyed the top and went flying into the sky with a loud ring.

That caused Rainbow Dash’s mouth to fall open while the ponies cheered.

“Years of applebuckin,” said Applejack as she bucked a tree and made a cluster of apples fall down and hit Rainbow who didn’t respond.

“Guess that keeps me from competing,” Fire said with a slight frown.

“Oh, whoops,” Applejack said. “Sorry Fire. How about an applebuck instead? If you can get more apples out then I did you get this one.”

“Okay,” Fire accepted.

He went to a nearby tree and hit it with all his might. Apples fell and Twilight levitated both piles and counted them up.

“Okay, Appejack has seven apples and Fire has… eight!”

Fire grinned as Fluttershy added a point to the alicorn slot.

“Aww dangnabit!” Appeljack exclaimed.

“Hey, you still did better than Rainbow Dash,” Fire encouraged.

Applejack smiled. “Yeah, guess that is the whole point of this competition. You might be the golden pony being a prince but I’ll still make iron!”

Applejack’s family soon joined the audience in the stands nearby. The next event was a bronco-buck where the two mares would try and throw somepony (or in this case, somedragon) off their backs.

“Why me?” Spike asked as he sat on Applejack’s back wearing a white hat.

“Poor Spike,” Fire said next to Rarity.

“Oh, he’ll be fine,” she said. “He’s tough for a baby dragon. Just like you’re a tough prince. Perhaps that should be your title, Prince of Toughness.”

Fire chuckled. “Not bad but I think that needs a little work.”

“Go!” Twilight announced.

Applejack began to jump as Spike hung on to her tail.

“Whoa! Whoa! Whoa-hoa! Whoa!” Spike exclaimed as he was thrown back and forth.

Finally, Applejack managed to throw him off and he went flying upwards. “Whoaaa!” Fortunately, he landed in a pile of hay.

“Ouch.” He said as he emerged.

Rainbow Dash suddenly appeared from the hay with Spike already on her back. Had she been in there expecting him to land on her? “Ready for another pony ride?”

“No!” Spike said nervously.

“Go!” Twilight said once again, paying poor Spike no mind.

Fire scoffed as he saw Rainbow jump up and down rapidly while Spike once again struggled to hang on.

“I really think we need to find somepony else to throw around. Spike doesn’t need to-“

Spike suddenly went flying with a shout. Fire flapped his wings and took off after the baby dragon. He made it just in time to catch Spike before he could hit the score board.

“Phew, thanks Fire!” Spike said gratefully.

“Well, you’re gonna have to take one more,” Fire told him as he put the dragon on his back.

“Oh great,” Spike lamented.

Fire landed on the ground and began jumping as well, eventually managing to throw him off. Spike yelled in fright as he went straight up, only to stop as Fire wrapped him in a red aura.

“Thanks… again,” Spike said.

“Good one Fire, but I’m afraid Rainbow Dash wins the bronco-buck!” Twilight announced.

“Next, lasso contest!” Twilight said. “Spike, if you wouldn’t mind letting them use lassos on you?”

Spike clenched his teeth while Fire sighed and looked at Twilight. “Hey, I know he’s your assistant but isn’t having him be a practice dummy for these two a bit much? He could have been thrown much farther and gotten hurt!”

Twilight looked at him. “Hmm, you might be right, Fire.”

She then turned the audience. “Any volunteers to be used as our guinea pony in the next event?”

“Oh, heavens no!” Rarity said. “I don’t wish to be lassoed up and fall down in the mud!”

“I’ll go,” a voice said.

Grand Garden stepped forward, giving a smile to Applejack.

“Well howdy! You’re Fire’s gardener if I recall!” the Earth Pony said.

“Yeah,” Grand said.

They began the lasso contest. Applejack performed several impressive maneuvers with her lasso while Rainbow Dash clumsily spun it over her head. The pegasus obviously had no experience in using a lasso, Fire knew how it could be difficult to get used to something new. He didn’t fare much better himself and overshot Grand. Applejack, however, got her lasso around the stallion’s neck and brought him closer to her. His green cheeks turned red.

“Thank you kindly Grand,” Applejack said as her face was mere inches from his.

“You’re welcome, Applejack,” he said.

“Glad I’m not being roped into that,” Spike said next to Fluttershy and Rarity.
Rainbow Dash meanwhile, only managed to tie herself to a tree.

“Does this count?” she asked to which they obviously told her no.

That one went to Applejack. More games went by, a ball toss contest to see who could bounce their ball the longest (Rainbow won that one), hay throwing (which Applejack won), hoof wrestling (Fire managed to just barely overcome Rainbow Dash), and more. For the first few matches it looked like the mares were evenly matched as first Rainbow Dash won the ball tossing, then Applejack claimed a win in hay throwing, and so on. Fluttershy kept the score on the board, and the amount of cheering spectators grew even more.

“Fillies and gentlecolts!” Spike announced after the first ten contests. “At the halfway point, the one in the lead is Applejack!”

Twilight looked at him. “Who are you talking to?”

“Them!” Spike pointed.

Twilight was surprised as she suddenly noticed just how many ponies had started watching the competition.

Next came a push up contest. Fire’s forelegs soon got sore, but he managed to push himself to do almost seventy before he collapsed. Fire got up and looked at the two mares who were still doing their push-ups. Rarity then approached him.

“I thought you did wonderful Fire,” she said with a smile. “I’d give you a hug to congratulate you for doing your best but… you're kind of… uh…”

She gestured to his body which was covered in sweat.

“That’s okay,” Fire said. “It’s the thought that counts.”

They watched as the mares continued.

“Ninety-five, ninety-six,” Twilight continued counting. “Ninety-seven, ninety-eight, ninety-nine...

Applejack stalled while Rainbow Dash gave a flap of her wings and propelled her upper body up.

“A hundred!” Twilight concluded gesturing to Rainbow Dash.

“Yes!” the Pegasus exclaimed.

Applejack sighed and muttered to herself. “Be a good sport, Applejack.”

Fire smiled as he approached her. “Well this was fun, but Rainbow Dash challenged you to an Iron Pony Competition not me.”

Applejack grinned. “Yeah I thought maybe it could liven things up to have you along. Its fine, Fire. I had fun too. Now to settle this with Rainbow!”

The competition began to turn from there. Rainbow Dash’s wings came in handy for the next ten events and she won each of the following contests. First, she gave a little flap to jump farther then Applejack could on a leaping contest. Then she used them to shield some chicks she was carrying over mud from getting dirty. Fire frowned as he saw this.

“Hey, Twilight?” Fire asked.

“Yes?” she asked looking at him.

“Isn’t it kind of unfair for Rainbow Dash to use her wings?”

Twilight looked. “Well, they didn’t say anything about not using wings. And Rainbow Dash is primarily a flying athlete while Applejack is ground bound. Plus, Applejack has greater strength as an Earth Pony so they both have their perks.

Fire nodded, recalling how Applejack’s strength had been a key factor in the earlier rounds. But as the contests continued, Rainbow kept using her wings in various ways and kept getting victory after victory. The games had gone from evenly matched to one sided. Rainbow won the next ten rounds in a row.

“Whoo-hoo!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed as she put the number on the board instead of Fluttershy. “I win by a landslide!”

She then looked at Applejack who was covered in mud after letting go of the rope they’d been tugging back and forth. “Or mudslide in your case.”

She then flew up high and two Pegasi held a rainbow banner against the sun. “I am the Iron Pony!” Rainbow Dash shouted.
However, Applejack didn’t’ accept it. “Only 'cause you cheated!”

“What?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed before flying back down to her opponent.

“You used your wingpower to help you win over half those contests!” Applejack accused.

“Sounds like sour apples to me,” Rainbow dismissed.

“Are you sayin' you didn't use your wings?” Applejack asked.

“Well... no.” Rainbow stammered. “But you never said I couldn't use my wings.

“I didn't think I needed to tell you to play fair.”

“Hey, girls!” Fire stepped forward. “You didn’t set any rules for there being no wings allowed or not. Besides, Applejack has greater strength then you do Rainbow Dash!”

“Uh, not true! I beat her at hoof wrestling!” Rainbow reminded him. “Then you beat me!”

“Oh yeah. Guess she’s got you beat when it comes to hind legs though,” Fire said as he recalled most of Applejack’s strength triumphs had been with her back legs.

“I still would have won even without my wings,” Rainbow challenged.

“Hah! Prove it.” Applejack challenged.

“Gladly. How?” Rainbow accepted.

“Tomorrow is the annual Runnin' of the Leaves. I challenge you to race me in it,” Applejack said.

“Heh! Easy shmeasy,” Rainbow accepted as she slowly flew away.

Applejack however, pulled her down to the ground and pinned her by her tail. “Hold on! There is one condition. The point is to run, so no wings allowed.”

“No wings?” Rainbow bucked Applejack off her tail. “No problem.”

They both spat into their hooves and shook on it.

“Eww!” Fire said while also hearing another the same word come from next to him.

He looked and saw Rarity forming a disgusted face. She must have noticed he said the same word next to her as well because she looked in his direction. They giggled and looked away from each other back at the two competitors as the two chuckled.

“Tomorrow then!” Applejack said.

“See ya!” Rainbow Dash flew off.

It was getting close to sunset.

Fire then looked at Rarity. “Shall I walk you home, Rarity?”

She smiled and nodded. “Thank you, Fire. But I don’t think we should forget the others.”

She was right. They gathered most of the others, namely Twilight, Spike, Pinkie, and Fluttershy. Even though Fire’s home was nearby he wanted to make sure everypony got home safely. Chances of anything happening in peaceful little Ponyville were slim but best to be sure.

“So, are you girls going to the race tomorrow?” Fire asked as he led them.

“Certainly not!” Rarity said. “I don’t care to get myself sweaty! But I will be handing out the medals so I’ll be able to see you! Besides, fall is simply lovely with all the brightly colored leaves.”

“I don’t much like the idea of being in front of everypony,” Fluttershy said. “I’m sure they’ll judge me for being slow or weak. I probably wouldn’t help get any leaves off with my light running. But I will be there to help Rarity pass out the rewards.”

Fire put a hoof on her. “That’s okay. If you two don’t want to its fine.”

“I’ll be entering,” Twilight said.

“Really?” Fire asked, surprised.

“Yeah, just thought I’d have a little fun and see if I can replicate something about running I read,” Twilight said. “I probably won’t win but it never hurts to try new things. I thought friendship was a waste of time after all and ended up being wrong about that.”

“Well good luck,” Fire said. “See you tomorrow.”

He headed to Warm Heart Tower and retired for the night after a fine meal.

…

The next day Fire and his guards headed into town with Hoofrunner being particularly eager. All of the guards had forgone their armor for today.

“I’m so ready to win this!” Hoofrunner said before looking at Fire. “Hope you don’t expect me to let you win?”

“Not at all,” Fire replied. “I mean I have skill, speed, and strength but not the best endurance. I’ll probably be panting pretty soon.”

“See you at the finish line then,” Hoof said with a smirk.

They soon arrived and Fire saw Twilight in town with Spike on her back as usual.

“Twilight, hurry up, we're gonna be late for the race,” the baby dragon said.

“Why are you so excited about the race?” Twilight asked looking at him. “It's only for ponies.”

“Yeah, but-

“Hey Twilight!” Fire greeted as he approached.

“Ah!” she exclaimed as she heard him. “Oh, you surprised me there, Fire! Morning. Now you were saying Spike?”

She turned back to the baby dragon on her back who resumed where he’d left off. “I’m hoping I can be the announcer again. Just listen!” He held a stick up to his mouth as though it were a microphone. “Fillies and gentlecolts, welcome to the annual Running of the-“

But suddenly he was interrupted again by a loud and familiar voice from above.

“Welcome to the annual Running of the Leaves!”

They looked up to see Pinkie Pie in a hot air balloon with a microphone attached to it.

“This is Pinkie Pie, your official p-eye-in-the-sky announcer!” she announced.

Spike frowned and threw away the stick he’d been speaking into away.

“Sorry, Spike. I guess that job's already taken,” Twilight said looking at him before turning to Fire. “I’m surprised Mayor Mare didn’t ask you to be the announcer.”

Fire shrugged. “Pinkie’s probably done it before. I’m not complaining. Wanted to run anyway.”

“As everypony knows, the Running is a very important tradition,” Pinkie continued speaking on her microphone as she flew over the trees surrounding Ponyville. “For without it, the autumn leaves of Equestria would never fall. So get ready, ponies. The Running of the Leaves will begin in five minutes.”

Fire made his way to the starting line with his guards. As he did so, he spotted Rarity on the sidelines with Fluttershy.

“Good luck Prince Fire!” she called with a wave.

“Thanks Rarity!” Fire waved back.

Fluttershy also waved and spoke something softly that Fire didn’t hear. He soon stood at the starting line with his guards, Applejack, and the other participants. Among them he spotted Bon-Bon (or as he knew her real name, Sweetie Drops).

“Hey Bon-Bon!” Fire waved, remembering to keep the former agent’s identity a secret.

She stretched and looked at him before bowing with a smile. “Greetings your highness.”

“Decided to get back into the game, eh?” he asked playfully with a wink.

“I guess,” she nodded. “Always like to keep myself in shape even if I’m not in the same occupation as I used to be.”

Fire nodded. “Good luck.”

He looked around and saw Applejack stretching nearby. Seemed Rainbow Dash hadn’t arrived ye-

“Pardon me, excuse me!”

Think of the pony and there she was coming through past a couple other ponies. One of which was a familiar gray mare with crossed eyes. “Make way for the Iron Pony!”

“The Iron Phony, you mean,” Applejack said as her friend and main rival lately stood beside her.

Rainbow immediately began to taunt her and flapped her wings. “So, Applejack, you ready to win second place?”

“I'm ready to run a good, clean race.” The cowpony stated.

“Yeah, yeah.” Rainbow Dash landed on the ground.

“You are not allowed to use your wings!” Applejack reminded her pointing to them.

Rainbow Dash merely scoffed. “I could win this race with both wings tied behind my back.”

Applejack smirked and took her up on that, tying her wings to her back, literally.

“Trussed up like a turkey. Well, a turkey who can't fly, that is.” She said when she was done.

“Very funny,” Rainbow said, her pride a little wounded.

“'Least now we know we're racin' fair and square,” Applejack said before looking at Fire. “You don’t plan on using your wings do ya?”

Fire shook his head. “Rainbow Dash is the one that’s always flying.

A trumpet sounded and Pinkie began announcing again.

“Racers! Please take your positions!”

Fire saw Spike go over (or under) her balloon and soon he was climbing up in with her. The gears clicked in Fire’s head. Spike had been hoping to be the announcer and he must have asked to do it with Pinkie. Applejack, Rainbow, and Fire all prepared themselves before they were joined by somepony else.

“Twilight?” Applejack spoke in surprise as they saw their studious unicorn friend stand beside them. “What in tarnation are you doin' up here?”

“I'm racing,” Twilight told them.

Rainbow Dash laughed. “Good one, Twilight!”

“I'm not joking,” Twilight told them.

Rainbow Dash was bewildered. “What? You're not an athlete, you're a... well... you're an egghead.”

Twilight frowned. “I am not an egghead, I am well-read.

“Egghead,” Rainbow whispered looking behind her at Applejack who snickered in amusement.

“But have you ever run a race?” the cowpony asked.

“Well, no, but I do know a lot about running,” Twilight said.

“And you know this from?” Rainbow asked.

“Let me guess, books?” Fire wondered aloud.

“Yeah! I've read several on the subject,” Twilight confirmed.

“What'd you read, "The Egghead's Guide to Running?” Rainbow continued taunting.

“Hey, leave her alone!” Fire scolded. “I’m probably not gonna do the best here either. But I’m willing to put myself out here! You two will probably beat me for sure with my lack of stamina! But I’m not gonna let that stop me! You just do your best Twilight. I know I said once that books can only take you so far, but let’s see how far they take you this time!”

“Thank you, Fire,” Twilight said gratefully. “You know, I’m sure there’s a spell that could help with your stamina if you ever need it.”

“Maybe, but we don’t have time for that now,” Fire said.

Though now that he thought of it, there was a spell he might like to use.

“You’re right. The Running of the Leaves is a Ponyville tradition, and since I'm here to learn, I've decided I should experience it myself,” Twilight said.

“Well, I think that's just dandy, Twilight,” Applejack replied. “Good luck.”

From her following snigger, however, she felt that Twilight would need it.

“Yeah. See you at the finish line... tomorrow.” Rainbow Dash continued to taunt.

“Okay you guys asking for a little trouble?” Fire asked in irritation, his mane flickering. “Cause one more taunt against Twilight and I’ll cast a spell to freeze you both in place!”

“Geez Fire cool down!” Rainbow Dash said, though not without sweating a bit in fear. “We’re just having fun.”

“I don’t think Twilight appreciates that,” Fire said.

Before they could argue further, Pinkie announced the beginning of the race.

“All right, ponies, are you ready?”

Spike joined as well. “Get set.”

The bell rang… signaling go without the word being spoken.

“And they're off!” Pinkie announced as everypony began to run while still hearing the announcements above them as Pinkie’s balloon followed. “Welcome to the official coverage of the Running of the Leaves! You know, Spike, despite its name, the leaves don't do any of the actual running. No, that's left to my little ponies.”

“Why, yes, Pinkie, it's the running of the ponies that causes the leaves to fall,” Spike said in his microphone above them.

“Ugh. Those lazy, lazy leaves,” Pinkie said as the running began to shake the trees and the orange leaves on them fell. “But this year, the run is about more than the weather. It's about the race to the finish and the two runners who want to win it. Applejack and Rainbow Dash.”

Those two were currently in the lead, with Fire close behind. He breathed in and out to try and replenish his energy, for now he was okay, but much longer and he would have to slow down. Ah well.

“We are also honored to have a royal running as well this year, and he’s starting out pretty hot! Fitting since his name is hot too!”

“And don’t forget sharp!” Spike added.

Fire continued through the woods filled with orange leaves that were a similar shade to part of his mane. He managed to get ahead of a fair number of the ponies, but soon Hoofrunner ran past him.

“See you at the finishing line your highness!” the athletic guard said.

Fire sighed. Even as fast as he was, there could still ponies that were faster. He continued however, but soon began to feel winded and had to slow down. This in turn caused many slower, but more energetic ponies to bypass him.

“I need to really work on this endurance issue,” Fire lamented as he slowed to his preferred pace of a walk.

If he flew, he could easily overcome them, that was his preferred method of speed, but he couldn’t do that right now. Applejack had made it clear there wasn’t to be any flying. Looking ahead though, he was soon met with a large path of orange leaves covering the road.

“Ooh, pretty,” Fire said. “I bet Rarity would like to see these at a nice calm walk. She loves pretty things after all.”

Maybe he could ask her to walk with him after this was done. That wouldn’t be too sweat producing after all. Fire continued through, letting himself recharge before he began again. Then he suddenly spotted something. Applejack up ahead. She’d apparently fallen and all the ponies passed her. Fire spotted a rock nearby and guess that was the cause.

“Whoa! I don't believe it,” Applejack said.

“I know, it's beautiful, isn't it?” Twilight asked, suddenly appearing next to Fire. She must have just caught up with a light trot.

“Not the scenery, Twilight. Rainbow Dash just tripped me!” Applejack told her.

“She did not!” Twilight said.

“She did too!” pressed Applejack.

“She did not,” Fire said. “You probably tripped over that rock there!”

He pointed.

“Yeah, you should really slow down and watch where you’re going like me!” Twilight said.

“Sometimes slow and steady wins the race!” Fire agreed.

“Well not this time!” Applejack said. “I got a lot of ground to make up to catch Rainbow. And I need to be quick!”

She galloped off to catch up with all the other racers and Rainbow.

“Just be careful!” Twilight called.

Fire trotted with her. “Well, glad to have somepony to talk to while I recover my stamina.”

“Yeah, so have you read any good books lately?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah, a book on advanced sword techniques!” Fire said. “I always had a fascination with blades ever since I was a colt.”

“Hmm, I never really had an interest in that but maybe I should give it a try,” Twilight said. “Magic has always been my primary focus.”

“I know,” Fire said. “But reading is one thing, applying it is another.”

“Maybe so,” Twilight admitted. “But books can help. They do take us so far after all.”

Fire chuckled. “Yep, and we got go the rest of the way with action.”

They continued forward, admiring the scenery and talking.

“You know, you’re great to have around Twilight,” Fire said. “We have a lot in common you know.”

“Yeah, we both like books, are smart, and talented in magic,” Twilight agreed. “We even spent most of our time alone. Though you made more effort into friendship then I did.”

Fire nodded then asked, “You miss your family back in Canterlot?”

She nodded back. “My brother especially. And my parents too.”

“I feel that,” Fire said. “I miss my mom, and my sister.”

“Sister?” Twilight questioned. “I didn’t know you had a sister!”

“Well, she’s technically my cousin,” Fire said. “But I grew to see her as a sister. Princess Cadance.”

“Oh yeah! I remember her!” Twilight beamed. “She was my foalsitter when I was young.”

“I know,” Fire said. “We both got foalsat together once by her remember? You both did that weird nursery rhyme thing!”

“Hey it wasn’t weird!” Twilight frowned. “It was our routine and secret hoofshake so to speak. We did it every time we saw each other.”

“Uh, sorry,” Fire said. There was a moment of silence and he blushed. “You know, me and her used to have our own little way of greeting each other.”

“What was that?” Twilight questioned.

Fire turned a bit redder. “We kissed each other on the cheek and called each other our perfect prince or princess sibling.”

“Aww!” Twilight awed. “That’s so sweet.”

Fire chuckled. “Yeah, with a mare like Cadance as a sister figure I had no complaints.”

He again thought back to how similar they were and his feelings toward Twilight. Not the romantic kind of course, like with Rarity. But whenever he sometimes wished he had Cadance with him, she seemed to be able to fill in the void somehow.
Before either of them could saw something else they stumbled upon Rainbow Dash who appeared to have tripped just like Applejack earlier.

“I don't believe it, Applejack tripped me,” the Pegasus exclaimed.

Twilight frowned. “Don't you ponies ever look where you're going? You tripped on a stump. See?”

Unlike Applejack however, Rainbow Dash didn’t believe them. “Oh, I see. A big cheater is what I see.

Twilight walked up to her. “Rainbow, Applejack would never cheat. It was just an accident.”

“Sure it was,” Rainbow Dash said in disbelief.

Twilight glared at her and Fire gave a similar expression that actually scared the Pegasus a little. “I mean, yeah, I'm sure it was.” Rainbow spoke in a more submissive tone with her ears falling.

Twilight then continued forward. “Remember, Rainbow, this is just a game.”

Fire followed her. She and him had had the same reactions back there and glared at Rainbow simultaneously.

“We’re kind of like two peas in a pod here,” Fire said aloud.

“What do you mean?” Twilight asked.

“Well, we both gave her the same stare down just now,” Fire elaborated.

“Huh, I guess we did,” Twilight said with a giggle. “You know that’s funny. I sometimes felt that way about my brother and I!”

Fire chuckled. “Oh really?”

Suddenly Rainbow Dash ran past them. But Fire didn’t care, he was having a good time talking with Twilight.

“Yeah, we’d do everything together!” she continued. “Before I saw how important friendship was, he and Spike were the only ones I really considered friends. Cadance too but I hadn’t seen her in years.”

Fire nodded then looked down sadly. “I may have made an effort to make friends, but there were times when I just felt so different. Because I was one of only three alicorns in Equestria since Aunt Luna was trapped in the moon. It just felt like I was… alone at times. I was the only alicorn colt… or stallion now… in all Equestria.”

“You’re not alone Fire,” Twilight assured him. “None of us maybe alicorns, or stallions but we are your friends.”

“Thanks Twilight,” Fire said.

“Any time,” Twilight said as she gave him a one-legged hug.

Fire grinned. “You’ve certainly come a long way from the asocial mare I knew up to the recent Summer Sun Celebration.”

“I had you and the others to open up my eyes,” Twilight said. “Now I feel like I’m learning so much. I’m doing things I never thought I would before, like this race!”

“Yeah, and… Wait! This race! Aah! I’ve been so busy talking to you I forgot to start running!” Fire exclaimed.

He took off at top speed, his stamina having returned to full.

“Hey wait!” Twilight called.

“Sorry, can’t!” Fire yelled over his shoulder. “I may not expect to win this race, but I’m not gonna come in last place! You better pick up the pace if you don’t to be that!”

He soon managed to catch up with the other racers and caught a glimpse of what looked Rainbow Dash on the side. But it couldn’t be. She should be up in the lead with Applejack and maybe Hoofrunner. Fire spotted his guards among them with Hoofrunner at the front of the group. They continued forward, and Fire managed to keep his pace steady. But then he was surprised when Rainbow suddenly came running past him from behind at top speed.

She dashed ahead and Fire asked, “Hey! How’d you get behind me? You should be in the lead runners!”

“Yeah, I should!” was all she said.

Fire continued on with most of the others. Soon the other ponies noticed him.

“Oh wow! We’re actually running with royalty!” a mare exclaimed.

“Maybe we can impress him if we win!” another suggested.

Fire blocked them out. Then after a while he was out of breath once again and slowed down in time to see Rainbow Dash… stuck. Her hooves had been caught in a stick brown substance.

“Hey what happened?” Fire asked as he stopped.

“Applejack!” she told him. “She cheated!”

“She wouldn’t…”

“I saw her buck a beehive down already with my own eyes! She’ll do anything to win and so will I!” Rainbow declared as she struggled to walk forward.

The substance pulled her back far, then sudden it propelled her forward like a sling shot by some stroke of luck in her favor. She flew ahead, the substance connecting her legs to the ground breaking from the force and she vanished.

Seemed they had both lost their fairness in this race. Fire sighed and continued forward. He probably wouldn’t make to first place unless…

“Hmm, that could help,” Fire muttered to himself as the idea occurred. “I’m already pretty fast. This might earn me third or fourth place by now. Better wait till I’m back at full energy again.”

He did so, trotting lightly at first and then when his fatigue was just about gone, he lit up his horn. Applejack had said no wings, but she didn’t say anything about horns!

Fire’s red magic spread over his body, filling his hooves with energy and his speed increased by twice as much. He grinned as he almost flew forward on land. He almost felt like he left a brief fire trail behind him. He passed the other racers, and soon saw the finish line after that. Hoof Runner was almost there! But strangely, no sign of Applejack and Rainbow Dash.
Hoof passed the line as Fire with his magic enhanced speed came in as well.

“First and Second!” Mayor Mare exclaimed as she approached with Rarity and Fluttershy at her side.

The two mares grabbed a pair of medals each bearing a number and color. Fire’s was silver with a number two while Hoofrunner’s was gold with a one. Fluttershy made to grab Number Two but Rarity took it with her magic first. She then walked over to Fire.

“Congratulations your highness!” Rarity said with a smile as she put the medal around his neck. “I knew you’d do wonderful! And you actually thought you wouldn’t!”

“Well, guess I’m fast enough to make up for it, with a little magic,” Fire said. “I still ran all the way so it doesn’t really count as cheating, right?”

Hoofrunner frowned. “Hey! I came in first! Shouldn’t I get my first-place medal first?”

“Right here!” Fluttershy said as she used her hooves to put it around his neck.

They waited, Fire was sure that Rainbow and Applejack would be there soon. But they weren’t, several other ponies came and got the next few medals including…

“Twilight?” Fire said in astonishment as she came sprinting to the finish line.

“Seventh Place!” Mayor Mare announced for Twilight.

“Wow!” Twilight said as Rarity gave her her seventh-place medal. “Not bad for a first-time runner!”

Fire watched as the remaining three medals were claimed. But still no sign of the main competitors.

“Where are those two?” he asked.

“I saw them just before I started sprinting,” Twilight said. “They’ve really been horsing around this whole time trying to outdo each other.”

Recalling seeing Rainbow trapped, Fire had to agree. They must have gotten caught up in that. Finally, the last two ponies came, and it was them. They were horsing around alright, knocking into each other, biting each other’s tails and pulling the other back, Applejack even bit into the rope around Rainbow’s wings, freeing them. Rainbow seized on the opportunity to try and fly but Applejack leapt onto her and they both rolled over the finish line together. All the while Pinkie Pie announced their scuffle from above.

“I won!” Rainbow Dash said as she got up, now looking very scruffy from the rolling on the ground.

“No, I won!” Applejack objected.

“I won!” Rainbow shouted.

“You tied!” Spike said from above.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked at him in shock “Tied?!”

“For first?” Applejack asked.

“For last!” Pinkie told them.

“Last?!” Applejack exclaimed.

“Then who won?” Rainbow asked.

“Hoofrunner!” Fire said. “My fastest guard. I meanwhile got lucky enough to second place with a little magic speed boosting. You only said no wings Applejack, you didn’t say magic.”

“And I got seventh place!” Twilight said joining his side and showing them her own medal. “Which is rather good considering I've never run a race before.”

That shocked Appejack even more. “What? How's that even possible?”

“You ran so slow,” Rainbow Dash said. “And looked at the scenery.”

“Exactly,” Twilight said. “I paced myself, just like my book said. Then at the end, when all the other ponies were worn out…

She looked over to where a group of them were panting. “I sprinted to the finish.”

Twilight then looked at Fire. “Hey, would you mind showing me that speed boosting spell? I don’t think I’ve learned that one yet!”

“Sure Twilight,” Fire said with a smile as he put a wing around her. “You and me my fellow magic specialist!”

She returned the gesture by pressing her neck against his. He was a bit taller than her and the others, he could definitely look the part of her big brother. Though he probably wasn’t as big as her real brother. Last he’d seen Cadance, he was still a couple inches shorter than her.

Neither of them noticed Rarity frown behind them.

“Oh, get ahold of yourself Rarity,” she told herself. “It's probably just a friendly gesture.”
Rainbow Dash, however was in disbelief as she turned to Applejack. “I don’t believe it! Fire is one thing since he’s a bit athletic, but Twilight beat us!”

“Well, with all your horsing around, it was quite easy,” Twilight told them.

“Yeah, seems your reading on running actually worked,” Fire said. “Sometimes books can take you all the way I guess!”

“And you're right, Twilight,” Applejack said. “Our behavior was just terrible.”

Rainbow Dash looked down. “We weren't very good sports.”

“Sounds to me that an important lesson was learned,” a familiar regal voice said and the ponies behind them bowed low as she approached.

They all looked and saw her in surprise. The tall white alicorn that towered over all but a select few ponies in size. She spread her wings wide, making herself look all the more impressive.

“Princess Celestia?!” Applejack and Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

“Mom!” Fire said in surprise before flying over and hugging her while the mares bowed as well.

“Well done my son,” Celestia congratulated him as she returned the hug before turning to her student. “And you Twilight.”

“Thank you, Princess,” Twilight said.

“W-What are you doin' here?” Applejack stammered.

“Let me guess,” Fire said. “You wanted to see the Running of the Leaves since fall is one of your favorite seasons.”

“You know me well Fire,” Celestia said.

“I'm sorry you had to see us being such poor sports, Princess.” Applejack apologized.

“That's all right, Applejack,” Celestia said. “Anypony can get swept up in the excitement of competition.”

“Even you Mom?” Fire asked.

“I’ve… been there once or twice,” Celestia said.

“It's important to remember that the friendship is always more important than the competition.” Twilight added.

“Exactly, Twilight,” Celestia agreed before pointing back behind them. “Now, unfortunately, because the two of you were busy tricking each other instead of shaking down leaves, many of the lovely trees of Equestria are still covered.”

Applejack knew what to do immediately. “Why, Princess, I bet we can knock those leaves down for you lickety-split.”

She then turned to Rainbow Dash. “Whaddya say, friend? Wanna go for another run?”

Rainbow Dash was thrilled. “I'd love to stretch my legs!”

She flapped her wings as well and then the two of them were off running as the others watched. Celestia then turned back to her son and Twilight. “So how are the two of you getting along? I last heard that there was conflict between you when you went to deal with that dragon a while back.”

“Yeah, it's hard having two ponies that can be leaders at times,” Fire said. “But we make a pretty good team and have each other’s backs.”

“We sure do,” Twilight said.

“That’s good to hear,” Celestia said looking between them with a fond smile. “You two are quite similar after all. By the way Fire have you found a mare that you are going to take to the gala in a few months?”

“Yeah,” Fire said, forcing a smile.

“Wonderful, I look forward to seeing the two of you together there,” Celestia said looking between him and Twilight.

Fire looked at his mother and followed her eyes to Twilight. “Huh? No, not her! I’m taking my friend Moondancer to the Gala!”

“Oh!” Celestia was surprised. “I just assumed you might have chosen Twilight.”

Both of the magically talent ponies blushed.

“No! I mean… Twilight’s great and all. But I don’t think I have those kinds of feelings for her,” Fire said.

“Yeah,” Twilight agreed.

“I… understand,” Celestia said with the slightest hesitation.

Fire frowned in suspicion. He’d have to have a talk with her later.

“Well, since you’re here would you like to see my home?” Fire asked.

“Certainly!” Celestia said. “But I’d like to wander the road a bit and enjoy the lovely leaves!”

“Oh yeah, why don’t we all go together?” Fire suggested looking at Twilight.

“I’m up for another stroll and maybe a little run as well!” Twilight agreed.

Fire nodded and looked over his shoulder at Rarity and Fluttershy. “How about you two?”

“I think I would enjoy a nice walk through a beautiful place,” Rarity said. “Though the trees aren’t so pretty anymore without their leaves, but the ground is certainly wonderous now.”

“I’ll come,” Fluttershy agreed shyly.

“Don’t forget about me!” Pinkie announced as she suddenly bounced over, no longer in the balloon.

“I’m here too!” Spike said glumly. “Mr. Second Best Announcer.”

“Come on Spike, cheer up!” Pinkie said. “I’m sure you’ll be as good an announcer as I am in no time. You just need more experience!”

“You really think so? Great!” Spike said.

“Let’s go,” Fire said.

He, his mother, Twilight, and all their friends headed down for a stroll in the woods that were now mostly barren up above.

Chapter 18: Visits and Break Outs

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 19: Call of the Cutie

Author's Note

Authors Notes: Okay, so this one is going to be an alternate version of the canon episode in which the CMC’s already know each other and not contradicting the fact that they were shown together when Nightmare Moon appeared.

Chapter 19: Call of the Cutie

Fire walked through Ponyville with a frown. He’d just gotten some bad news this morning. Those thieves that had broken into his tower had escaped the Canterlot dungeons somehow. He heard a bell nearby and looked to see the Ponyville School, a red building with a sign featuring a book and a playground in back. He smiled as he recalled his own days at school not long ago. It felt strange, he’d just seemed to have graduated upon helping the mares defeat Nightmare Moon.

Of course, he had been transferred here on a special assignment with Twilight to learn about the magic of friendship. He was to protect Equestria with her and the others when the time came. But he was certainly enjoying everything that happened in the meantime with their other friends and occassionally family. Fire then recalled Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle as well as the orange filly he’d seen on a scooter. They were all here at the school no doubt, learning as they readied themselves for their own lives that lay ahead. Who knew what they would do when they discovered their role with their cutie marks? Fire just hoped theirs would be a little less… dangerous then his for their sake.
…

In the schoolhouse, Apple Bloom sat at her desk, looking around her she saw many young foals with her that had cutie marks, unlike her. Her yellow furred flank was still blank. She saw a variety of different marks, like a flower, silver jewel encrusted spoon, and a bow and arrow. But she also saw there were a few others in her class that hadn’t acquired their marks yet, like her two best friends, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, along with her other friend Twist.

The foals were muttering among themselves for a while until the teacher, a mare with a cerise coat, green eyes and a mane of pink and white as well as a cutie mark of three smiling flowers.

“Let's quiet down please,” the teacher, Cheerilee, told them in a soft voice as she made her way to the front of the classroom where a book of drawing paper stood on a stand. “We have a very important lesson to get to.”

The class stopped talking and gave her their full attention.

“Thank you,” Cheerilee said. “Today we are going to be talking about cutie marks.”

She flipped the blank paper on the front to reveal the next one which showed a variety of marks.

“Boring,” one of the fillies nearby said rudely.

Apple Bloom glared at her, and out of the corner of her eye saw Sweetie Belle who was directly in front of the rude filly do the same. The rude one, Diamond Tiara was the daughter of Filthy Rich, the richest stallion in all of Ponyville. Though that title could now be debated since there was actual royal living here now. Diamond Tiara was a light pink filly with a head bearing a white and purple mane as well as a tiara on it, befitting her name. Even her cutie mark looked like a tiara. That was the case with a lot of ponies, their cutie marks often reflected their name.

“You can all see my cutie mark, can't you?” Cheerilee asked showing it to her class. “Like all ponies, I wasn't born with a cutie mark.”

She turned to the next page and showed a picture of her younger self sitting on a mattress. That younger self lacked the mark the current Cheerilee possessed.

“My flank was blank.”

“Aww!” Twist exclaimed as she looked at the picture, speaking a bit unclearly due to a speech defect she possessed. “She so precious!”

“Yeah!” Sweetie Belle agreed. “You were so cute Miss Cheerilee!”

“Thank you, Sweetie Belle,” Cheerilee said before continuing. “Then one day, when I was about your age, I woke up to find that a cutie mark had appeared.”

She showed the next photo that showed her with a cutie mark and crazy hair as she seemed to be dancing.

Another filly sniggered. “Look at her hair!”

This caused many of the foals to laugh. But Cheerilee didn’t become angry and simply smiled.

“Yes, I know! But honestly, that's how everypony was wearing their mane back then.” She then pointed to the three smiling flowers on her younger self’s flank. “I had decided to become a teacher, and the flowers symbolized my hope that I could help my future students bloom if I nurture them with knowledge. The smiles represented the cheer I hoped to bring to my little ponies while they were learning. Now, can anyone tell me when a pony gets his or her cutie mark?”

Twist raised her hoof, managing to speak more clearly this time. “Oh! Oh! Oh! When she discovers that certain something that makes her special!”

Cheerilee nodded. “That's right, Twist. A cutie mark appears on a pony's flank when he or she finds that certain something that makes them different from every other pony. Discovering what makes you unique isn't something-

“Pssst!”

Apple Bloom heard something in the background but was focused on taking notes with a pencil in her mouth as Cheerilee continued.

“-that happens overnight, and no amount of hoping, wishing-“

“Pssst!”

Apple Bloom ignored the second sound.

“-or begging, would make a cutie mark appear before its time.”

“Pssst!” The third finally got Apple Bloom’s attention as well as Sweetie Belle who looked over her shoulder.

“What?!” Apple Bloom asked impatiently looking to her left at Diamond Tiara who had a piece of paper in her mouth. A note.

Applebloom looked from Diamond Tiara to Silver Spoon, Diamond’s best friend who was on Apple Bloom’s right. Silver held out her hoof to receive the note. Apple Bloom took it in her teeth and-

“Apple Bloom! Are you passing a note?” Cheerilee exclaimed as she saw it.

Apple Bloom stammered and dropped the note. “Uh, I... Um…”

Cheerilee walked over to where the note had fallen with a serious expression. “What could be so important that it couldn't wait until after class?”

She looked at it however and gasped as she saw. “It's blank!”

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon began laughing on either side of Apple Bloom. “Remind you of anypony?”

“Don’t blame Apple Bloom, Miss Cheerilee!” Sweetie Belle suddenly spoke up. “I saw Diamond Tiara give her that!”

Cheerilee looked at the rich filly whose mouth fell open. “Are you trying to get Apple Bloom in trouble, Diamond Tiara? Or were you simply lending her paper?”

“Uh- I was…”

“She did it to get me in trouble!” Apple Bloom said. “Right after you said its blank, she said ‘remind you of anypony!”

Cheerilee frowned deeper now. “Bullying is not tolerated in my school! Diamond Tiara you are staying in class during recess!”

“WHAT?” the spoiled filly exclaimed in outrage that her plan had backfired.

Apple Bloom smiled at Sweetie Belle. “Thanks.”

“No problem,” Sweetie said. “Anything for a friend.”

Diamond Tiara glared at them and muttered to herself, “I’ll get you blank flanks for this!”

…

Recess soon came passed by and Apple Bloom happily left with Sweetie Belle, Twist, and Scootalloo at her side.

“Want some sweets? I've got some peppermint sticks. I made them myself,” Twist said with a wide grin as they walked.

Apple Bloom nodded. “Thanks Twist! Nothing like some sweets after a good day!”

“Yeah!” Scootaloo agreed.

“Best ever! I really liked that lesson today!” Sweetie Belle said.

Suddenly Diamond Tiara appeared behind them with Silver Spoon at her side. “I don't know why we had to sit through a lecture about getting a cutie mark. I mean, waiting for your cutie mark is sooo last week.” She looked at Silver Spoon. “You got yours, I just got mine. We all have them already.”

She then looked at the four in front of her as she walked around them, showing off the diamond encrusted tiara on her flank. “I mean, almost all of us have them already.”

The group of four blank flanks frowned.

“Oh, don’t give me those looks,” Diamond said giving a false smile. “Look I’m sorry about earlier. How would you like to come to my cute-ceañera this weekend?”

“Really?” Apple Bloom asked with a smile.

“It's going to be amazing,” Silver Spoon said.

“It's a party celebrating me and my fantastic cutie mark. How could it not be?

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon then did a dance. Starting with their hooves and ending with their rumps meeting together so their cutie marks were on full display. “Bump! Bump! Sugar-lump, rump!”

Apple Bloom frowned, knowing the invite was just a ploy. “Gimme a break!”

“No kidding!” Twist said. “They act like they’re all high and mighty just cause they got their cutie marks first!”

“Yeah, but they have what makes them special!” Scootaloo said. “That makes them more important than us cause they know their purpose!”

The four of them looked down as they realized the bullies were in fact better then them.

Silver Spoon grinned. “See you this weekend!”

“Blank flanks!” Both she and Diamond said with laughs.

The four of them felt their spirits drop.

…

The weekend was on them before they knew it. Apple Bloom was at Sweet Apple Acres where Applejack was hard at work in the orchard. “It's not fair! It's just not fair!”

Applejack looked at her younger sister as she gathered fallen apples into a bucket. “Don't get your mane in a tangle. You'll get your cutie mark. Everypony gets one eventually.”

“But I don't want one eventually!” Apple Bloom objected. “I want one right now! I can't go to Diamond Tiara's cute-ceañera without one, I just can't!”

“Course you can,” Applejack encouraged. “Remember you’re not the only one in your class to be a blankflank! All yer best friends are too!”

“I guess,” Apple Bloom looked down. “At least I know I’m not alone. But I still want my cutie mark!”

Applejack walked toward her sister. “Y'know, I was the last pony in my class to get my cutie mark, and I couldn't be prouder of it. I knew my future was to run Sweet Apple Acres, and these bright shiny apples sealed the deal.” She rubbed the trio of red apples on her flank.

The elder sister then gasped as she remembered something. “Come to think of it, Granny Smith was the last one in her class, too. Huh, same as Big McIntosh.”

Apple Bloom walked away, kicking an apple near her sister's bucket. “I really don't see how that's supposed to make me feel better. It probably means that being the last one in your class to get a cutie mark runs in the family!”

But in a few seconds an idea ran through her head. “Runs in the family.”

That caused her to smile. “Runs in the family! Runs in the family!”

She ran to her sister who was happy to see her younger sibling happy. Apple Bloom looked at Applejack’s flank where she had her mark. “You've got apples for your cutie mark, Granny Smith has an apple pie, Big McIntosh has an apple half, my unique talent must have som’n to do with apples!”

“Apples apples apples!” she bounced around in joy.

There was a crash as she knocked over the apples her sister had gathered.

“Oops... apples,” she finished.

A shadow passed over them and they looked up to see him looking down on them.

“Howdy Applejack!” Fire Sword greeted them in a country way and landing in front of them.

“Howdy Fire!” Applejack said waving up at him. “I got your order of apples ready! You sure like em huh?”

“Favorite fruit right after grapes!” he declared before winking at her. “But you are probably my favorite cowgirl pony!”

She chuckled and blushed. “Are you flirting with me?”

He sniggered and teased, not in mean way, just a fun way. “Not on your life! I’d burn you down in nothing flat! Apples shouldn’t play with fire, remember?”

“Yeah, you need somepony who can take the heat!” Applejack teased back. “We apples burn pretty easy if we aren’t wet!”

They laughed.

“But… I think one of my retainers has a little thing for you!” Fire whispered.

“Really?” Applejack asked. “Now who would that be?”

“I probably shouldn’t say. Just keep an eye out next time you’re around shall we say… the garden?” Fire said as he handed her some bits. “Now, where are my apples?”

“Ah yes right this way!”

She led him to the barn where she had a wagon load of apples ready.

“I’m surprised you didn’t send your servants to come get it,” Applejack said.

Fire shrugged. “Work makes you strong. I won’t improve my strength if I don’t use my muscles.”

“Smart thinking,” Applejack praised. “And you’re mighty strong too.”

She then looked at the amount of bits he’d given her. “And generous too!”

“Bit of everything remember?” Fire said. “Balance of all of you!”

“Right! Well, my sister and I are gonna head into town to sell our apples!” Applejack said. “She figures her special talent has to do with apples, so maybe we can try selling them!”

“Okay, maybe I’ll see you there!” Fire said looking at Apple Bloom. “You know, having a cute little filly to try and persuade ponies to buy your apples could work.”

Apple Bloom blushed. “Thanks Prince Fire!”

He took his wagon and began the walk to Warm Heart Tower nearby.

…

Fire heaved the heavy cart home and levitated the dozens of apples into the cellar. He then flew out to town, his shift was over but he might as well enjoy the rest of the day. He soon found Applejack in front of her stand in town. She was looking at something ahead of her and Fire smirked. He gave a light flap of his wings and was by her side as she was completely unaware.

“Boo!”

“Waah!” Applejack jumped. “Ah man I thought have the occasional pranks from Rainbow and Pinkie were enough! But now the prince of pranks joins!”

Fire laughed. “Prince of pranks is probably a bit too much! I’m just a prince that likes a prank now and then!’”

She didn’t respond, instead looking at her younger sister who was standing with Bon Bon who had a cluster of apples nearby.

“That'll be four bits!” Apple Bloom said.

Bon Bon frowned. “I didn't put those in my bag.

Apple Bloom however pressed on. “Likely story. Four bits, lady!”

Applejack pulled her sister back. “Apple Bloom!”

She then turned to Bon Bon. “I am really really sorry about that. She's new. Here, take these. No charge.”

She gave Bon Bon a bag of apples on her back. Then she emptied out their entire cart onto the poor mare. “And these. And these.”

She gave the rest up as Bon Bon groaned. Fire shook his head and walked over.

“Now now Applejack I don’t think that’s helping,” he said as he got the weight off of the former special agent whom he leaned in close to and whispered. “I’d get out of here quick, Sweetie Drops.”

She nodded with an appreciative smile. “Thanks, your highness.”

She walked away quickly. Fire then turned to the two apple siblings.

“That's not the way to go about it!” he asked. "No need to just dump everything on her!"

Applejack looked down. "You're right. I just wanted to stop Apple Bloom from getting all up in ponies faces.”

“Sorry Applejack,” Apple Bloom apologized. “I just want my cutie mark so bad! Then Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon will stop teasing me!”

Applejack sighed. “Ugh. Listen, sugarcube, I know it's hard to wait for your very own cutie mark. But you just can't force it. Besides, you're not that grown-up just yet. And like I said you got a whole group of best friends that don’t have theirs.”

Apple Bloom managed a smile. “You’re right. Well as long as I have them I guess I’ll be okay. Sweetie Bell did get me out of trouble when I was about to be in it.”

Fire smiled. “A true friend has your back no matter what. Of course, even then they might not be perfect.”

“Fire’s right!” Applejack said. “He’s been a true friend ever since he moved to Ponyville, protecting me and the others from Nightmare Moon, offering to help us out with some money, getting all of us tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala!”
Fire blushed. “Yeah, though I did get mad at you and Rarity during that sleepover.”

“That’s okay,” Applejack assured him. “All in the past now.”

She then turned to her sister. “Point is, a true friend doesn’t carry if you’re a blank flank or not. Or if you come from a completely different caste.”

Fire nodded. “Don’t let anypony get you down!”

“Thanks,” Apple Bloom said. “I’ll go find my friends.”

Fire watched her run off as Applejack sighed next to him.

“The young’uns, just want to grow up so fast,” Applejack said.

“And I bet when they do, they wish they’re young again,” Fire said.

“Darn tootin!” Applejack agreed. “If I could do one thing over it would be something that made sure my parents were still alive!”

Fire looked at her with pity. “I’m sorry about that Applejack.”

“It's alright Fire,” the cowpony said.

She was smiling but he could see the look in her eyes. He walked over and put his foreleg around her. She smiled and leaned into his embrace.

“Thanks Fire,” she said. “Wow you are warm!”

“Runs in my blood I guess,” he said. “I can’t imagine what’s like to lose somepony you care about. But not having them around is probably just as bad or pretty close. I don’t who my father is. My mom won’t tell me.”

“Guess Celestia is pretty secretive huh?” Applejack said. “Well I’m sure royals have lots of things they need to keep from us common ponies!”

“True,” Fire admitted as he recalled having to keep Bon Bon’s secret, among other things he was aware of.

“Still, glad to have you as a friend,” Applejack said. “And I hope you have a good day! I think I should stop by the cute-ceañera to make sure Applejack’s okay.”

Fire smiled. “Sounds like a good idea.”

“Knowing Pinkie Pie she’ll probably…

“Hey!” the pink pony seemed to appear out of nowhere. “You’re invited to a cute cenara party for one Diamond Tiara!”

She handed him an invitation then ran off with more invitations in her mouth.

Fire looked at the invitation which read Dear Random Pony, you are hereby invited to the cute-ceañera party of another random pony.

“Well… that’s random,” Fire said before chuckling softly.

“Eh, we’re all friends in Ponyville. Besides, Rarity will probably be there with Sweetie Belle since this is a party for one of her classmates!”

“So… this Diamond Tiara… do you know her?” Fire asked.

“Not first hoof. Just that she’s Filthy Rich’s daughter,” Applejack said. “He does a lot of business in Ponyville.”

“This Filthy Rich… what’s he like?” Fire asked.

“Oh, he’s nice,” Applejack said. “Never been anything but decent to me and my family. Buys lots of apples so we’re grateful to him as business partners. Though his wife Spoiled is a mite rude.”

Fire nodded. He tended to dislike ponies of upper class, at least ones that looked down on other ponies. Not all of them were like that though he knew. He was royalty and he wasn’t, nor was his own mother and she was the ruler. If they were kind to other ponies he could be kind to them as well. But if he found them abusing their wealth or not caring, that made him mad.

Suddenly his vision flashed red and his eyes stung. He winced and rubbed them with a small groan.
Applejack noticed. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Fire said. “My eyes just stung for a moment there. Must be the season!”

“That’s only in spring when there’s pollen,” she corrected.

He shrugged. “Well, who knows then?”

But deep down he knew what this was. Or rather, who it was.

“I’ll see you at the party,” Fire said.

“Alright,” Applejack said.

Fire flew back to Warm Heart Tower for lunch. He sat his desk and wrote a letter.

Dear Princess Cadance,

My beloved sister figure. I hope you are enjoying your tour around Equestria and that I will see you on Hearth’s Warming. Things are going well here in Ponyville though I hope those thieves don’t get any ideas of coming back here. Also you’ll be pleased to know I might be able to spread some love here in your name, since you are the Princess of Love. One of my servants has an interest in the Element of Honesty so I’ll see about having them get together. Wish you could be here to see it!

Lots of Love,

Prince Fire Sword.

Fire finished his letter and then put it in the envelope to be mailed later. He then changed into an orange suite for the party. It had a white collar and a red tie. To top it off he got out his prince crown as well. Even though this was more of a casual party most likely, he had to look his best as a prince. Diamond Tiara didn’t seem nice from how she apparently caused Apple Bloom to worry about her missing her special talent, but he wanted to be there for the younger sister of his friend more than some random possibly mean filly. Some of his other friends were likely going as well since two of their sisters were classmates of the pony who it was all about. He walked out into Ponyville and arrived at Sugarcube Corner in a while with two of his guards.

“Presenting his royal highness! The Warm Hearted Son of Celestia! Prince Fire Sword!”

Fire walked inside and many of the ponies awed at him and bowed. He smiled at them. Then a pair of young Earth Pony fillies in formal dresses approached him.

“Prince Fire Sword!” the pink filly with the tiara who must have been Diamond Tiara greeted him. “Its an honor to have Canterlot Royalty at my cute-cenara!”

Suck ups. Fire thought, but put on a fake smile. He’d tolerate them. They were just fillies after all. Still time for them to maybe grow into better ponies.

“Nice to meet you lovely little fillies,” he greeted in as courteous a tone as he could manage. “Congratulations on getting your new cutie mark!”

“Thank you!” Diamond said. “Please, enjoy the party! We have ponies of all ages! Though not the really old and boring ones!”
Fire frowned. His mother was older then all the old and boring ones here. Yep, Diamond Tiara was a snob. He took a breath to try and calm himself. Fire looked around and saw Rarity as well as Twilight and Applejack. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom were there as well as the orange Pegasus filly he’d scolded a while back for recklessness.

He walked over to the beautiful unicorn with a smile. She didn’t wear an outfit but a blue flower in her mane.

“Hello Rarity,” he greeted.

“My prince,” she said with a bow. “Your suit is quite handsome.”

“You should know. It was made by the finest seamstress and most beautiful unicorn in all of Ponyville,” he said.

Her cheeks gained some red and she giggled. “Oh, you flatterer! Just don’t let Moondancer catch you flirting!”

“We’re not really a couple yet,” he reminded her. “If we become one at all that is.”

“Well I do hope it works out between you both,” she said smiling with what he thought was sincerity.

“And I hope you are happy with my cousin Blueblood,” Fire said with false sincerity.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want her to be happy in her love life. Just that he wished she could be his date instead. But it was clear she didn’t have the same feelings for him. Even though she considered him brave and handsome… apparently she was just interested in the more eligible bachelor. Ah well, he still valued her as a friend and a very creative fashion pony with lovely tastes.

“So did you design Diamond Tiara’s outfit?” he asked looking at the little filly.

“Yes,” she said. “And her friends as well since her cutie mark came last week! Normally I’d wear my own outfit at a party but I’m not the star today so I mustn’t draw attention away!”

Fire nodded. He walked over to the food and helped himself to some grapes as well as cupcakes.

Then suddenly he heard Diamond Tiara call out. “There’s the remaining blank flanks! You’re down to just three now since Twist got her cutie mark!”

She pointed at Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootalloo who were sitting at their own table.

“Yeah you guys are lame! You’re like the last ones in our class that don’t have their cutie marks! Blank Flanks!” Diamond’s
friend, the silver filly taunted.

Fire frowned. He wouldn’t stand by while those bullies mocked the sisters of two of his friends.

“Blank flanks! Blank flanks! Blank flanks!” many of the attending ponies called in mockery.

Geez what a bunch of simpletons and suck ups! Fire thought. Partaking in bullying just cause somepony important does it. Well a lot of ponies do the same with my mom.

Rarity and Applejack as well as Twilight frowned as well. Fire took a step forward to try and help the younger ones out.
Scootalloo narrowed her eyes. “Yeah well at least we aren’t stuck up like you two!”

“Yeah, we may not have our cutie marks yet but we still have a destiny to discover! We could be scientists or dancers! Or anything that could be really amazing!” Sweetie Belle said.

Fire smiled. “That’s right!”

He flapped his wings and landed behind the three of them. “You three are full of potential! Not having a cutie mark doesn’t make you less important at all! You still have a journey to go on to find what makes you special!”

“That’s right!” Twilight said. “I remember when I was in Canterlot, I was deeply fascinated with magic! But I didn’t get my cutie mark right away! It took lots of effort and studying!”

“And I had to find the right inspiration to make my outfits the most fabulous of all!” Rarity said.

“I needed to realize I missed my own home before I got my mark!” Applejack said. “We all have journies to undertake and something tells me these three will have an interesting one!”

“Yeah! The journey to getting a cutie mark is incredible!” one of the attending foals said.

“Maybe I got mine too soon!” another said.

“They are so lucky to still be able to search!”

“Hey! This party is about me!” Diamond Tiara shouted angrily.

All the ponies ignored her. Fire hung out with his friends and so did the young ones.

“Well, we may be the only blank flanks in this party,” Apple Bloom said looking around.

“And in our class! But at least we’re blank flanks together,” Sweetie Belle said.

“Not for long!” Scootaloo declared. “We all want our cutie marks right?”

“Right,” Apple Bloom confirmed with a puzzled expression. “So do you propose we do? Start a secret society for getting cutie marks?”

“That might not be a bad idea!” Sweetie Belle said. “I’d do whatever it took to get my cutie mark! And who better to do it with then my best friends?”

Fire heard them and walked over. “I think that’s a great idea!

“Well I’d like to help ya but I already got mine,” Twist said.

“That’s okay, we’re still friends Twist!” Apple Bloom promised. “You got your cutie mark though and we still have to find ours! It will be lots of fun!”

“We’ll be like crusaders on a quest!” Scootaloo said. “A quest to get our cutie marks!”

“We’ll be the Cutie Mark Crusaders!” Sweetie Belle said.

“That sounds like a good name,” Fire said. “But don’t forget it will take time.”

“Well no matter how long it takes, we’re gonna get them!” Apple Bloom declared.

“You do what you want little sis!” Applejack said.

“I’m sure you’ll all find something lovely on this journey,” Rarity agreed as she looked at her own little sister.

“I think you’ll find lots of magic of your own,” Twilight said.

Apple Bloom stood with her fellow crusaders. An Earth Pony, Pegasi, and Unicorn. They looked at their older sisters (at least in two cases). Scootaloo idolized Rainbow Dash even though they weren’t related. This was the start of their journey to achieve their goal, just as their sisters had a mission of their own. Who knew what the future would bring for them?
Fire didn’t know. But he looked forward to it as he returned home. The holidays would come up in a few months, and hopefully he or somepony else would catch those escaped thieves as well as the unicorn mastermind.

Chapter 20: Sparring a Prince

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 21: The Nightmare Night Heist

Fire levitated each part of his costume for the special spooky holiday out. The breastplate, feathered helmet, and hoof boots. It was white stage armor made of plastic. He could have gotten metal if he wanted but decided to go with something simple. It still looked good though and could pass for armor at a distance. Tonight, he would be a knight, like his royal guards. Knights were pretty much just a wealthier and higher-class soldier really.

Fire made his way down and saw Vine Archer at the bottom of the steps.

“You’re sure you don’t want an escort, your highness?” Vine asked. “Nightmare Night can sometimes have some shady characters.”

“Which is why I want all of you to remain here,” Fire told them. “We had one break-in already. I will be with all my friends.”

“Mares untrained in the ways of combat,” Silver Javelin stated.

“They are formidable in their own ways,” Fire reminded him. “And wield the Elements of Harmony.”

“Except those have been taken to Canterlot,” Silver countered.

“They are still strong mares,” Fire insisted. “Fast, graceful, magical, and perhaps more.”

He spoke for Rainbow, Rarity, Twilight, and Applejack. As for Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, he wasn’t sure how they could help in a fight. Then he recalled Fluttershy telling off that big dragon. She could win a battle with words maybe!

“I’ll be back in a few hours,” Fire promised.

He walked out of Warm Heart Tower and soon found Applejack, Apple Bloom and Big Macintosh in their own costumes. Applejack was dressed in a black robe of some kind with a wig on, Big Mac had a blue police uniform on, similar to Fire’s own with a fake badge on the chest, and Apple Bloom had a cowgirl dress with hat and boots on.

“Howdy Fire!” Applejack greeted in her country accent.

“Hi!” Apple Bloom joined as well.

“Hope you’re all ready to have fun!” Fire said.

“Yep!” Big Mac agreed.

“So, what are you Applejack?” he asked looking at the elder sister.

“I’m a Judge! And this here’s little my jury cowpony member!” Applejack said gesturing to Apple Bloom.

“Ah!” Fire spoke in realization. “Well, you look good.”

“Thanks Fire,” Applejack said.

They soon found the others in Ponyville. Twilight had dressed in a lab coat which clearly marked her as a scientist.

“Nice choice, Twilight,” Fire told the mare. “You did always do well in science class. That was a little struggle for me! I barely managed to get a B sometimes!”

“That’s still a good grade,” Twilight said. “But not a perfect A!”

Fire scoffed. “You’re just a perfectionist!”

“You have no idea!” Spike said before exclaiming. “Whoa!”

Fire’s eyes widened at him as well. Spike was clad in a blue and red tunic with a small wooden dagger at his side. The dagger was obviously meant to be a sword for his small stature.

“Squire, huh?” Fire asked.

“Yeah, and you’re a knight,” Spike lamented. “Don’t expect me to enter your service, Sir!”

“Oh, but you two would make a perfect duo I say!” a familiar beautiful voice sang nearby.

Both males turned and saw to their delight that Rarity was coming toward them along with Sweetie Belle. Both were dressed in lovely dresses, purple for Rarity and blue for Sweetie Belle. Rarity had a tiara on while Sweetie had a pointed hat.

“Wow, nice princess costume Rarity!” Fire said blushing.

“Why thank you Prince Fire!” Rarity replied with her own blush. “Or perhaps I should say Sir Fire since you are a knight rather than a prince or a sheriff tonight!”

She laughed at the unintentional joke and so did he.

“You look great Rarity!” Spike agreed as he too showed rosy cheeks. “Perfect in fact!”

Sweetie Belle, meanwhile frowned at them. “Hey! Don’t I look nice too?”

“Of course you do my little mare in waiting!” Rarity put a hoof around her sister.

“Very pretty Sweetie Belle,” Fire added.

“Thanks Fire,” Sweetie Belle replied smiling at him before looking at Spike with a blush of her own. “What do you think Spike?”

The little dragon was focusing on Rarity with hearts flowing in the air around him. He snapped out of it as he heard Sweetie Belle’s voice. “Uh, sorry did you say something?”

She growled at that and stuck her nose in the air. “Hmph!”

Twilight then spoke again. “I love all your costumes! They suit you!”

“Yeah!” Apple Bloom said.

“They sure as hay do!” Applejack said.

“Who’s ready to have fun?” A hyper active voice spoke up.

Pinkie Pie appeared dressed in a clown costume. Her face was painted white and her mane had blue in it now as well as pink. Rainbow came as well, dressed as a Wendigo, a silver horse spirit that was said to thrive when ponies fought and didn’t get along. Scootaloo walked at her side, dressed in a black cloak like the grim reaper.

“That’s everypony here then!” Twilight said. “Except for Fluttershy.”

The shy Pegasus was too scared of all the costumes to come to come on Nightmare Night.

“Eh, let her hide at home she hates all the scary stuff,” Rainbow Dash said. “We should totally go and scare her!”

Fire was usually all for a little prank, but with Fluttershy…

“No way!” he said.

“Yeah, she’s too sensitive!” Pinkie agreed. “Let’s just have fun! Won’t be as fun without her but still fun!”

They divided into groups before walking around the houses of Ponyville, receiving a candy in their buckets. Fire went with Rarity, Spike and Sweetie Belle as their costumes went well together. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo joined them as well. Twilight meanwhile went with Pinkie, Rainbow and the two remaining apples. Soon they had a lot of candy in their bags.

“Ah this is the best night ever!” Spike said.

“Yes indeed. Nothing better than to be able to satisfy your sugar cravings. Though I worry about cavities!” Rarity said.

“My friend Minuette just got a job as a dentist in Canterlot, visit her if you come down with one! Or have her look when she’s visiting!” Fire told her.

They all laughed.

They walked from house to house until somepony approached them.

“Excuse me, Prince Fire?” the stallion said. He was an old purple pony with graying hair dressed in a butler outfit, though it didn’t seem to be a costume.

“Yes, who are you?” Fire asked.

“Randolph, butler to the Rich family here in Ponyville. Apologies if this is last minute, but you see, Master Rich wishes to invite you to his Nightmare Night Party as you are certainly a pony of influence.”

Fire had to resist the urge to frown. Though as he recalled Filthy Rich might indeed be filthy stinking rich but he wasn’t spoiled, unlike his wife and daughter. Fire had seen Diamond Tiara bullying Apple Bloom and the others at the party for being blank flanks.

“Oh, I would simply love to go!” Rarity said. “I’m sure Mr. and Mrs. Rich will adore my company! They always love the clothes I make for them!”

Well, at least one pony there would be friendly.

“Can I bring my friends along?” Fire asked.

“Of course,” Randolph said politely.

Fire smiled. As long as he had those close to him he’d be okay with it. He soon regrouped with the others after going to a couple more houses.

“A party huh in the Rich family mansion? Sounds awesome!” Rainbow declared.

Fire looked at the Cutie Mark Crusaders. “Are you three okay going to Diamond Tiara’s house? I know she’s not exactly a friend of yours.”

“As long as we have all of you with us, we’ll be fine!” Apple Bloom assured them.

With that, they headed to the Rich family mansion. Fire knocked on the door and soon Randolph answered.

“Welcome your highness!” the butler said.

They entered and found the inside to be quite refined with many expensive looking items all around. A suit of armor, a portrait of the rich family framed in solid gold, and more. Nightmare Night decorations were put up as well. Pumpkins with carved scary faces, bat wings, and food and drinks on a table in the side.

“Ah, Prince Fire Sword!” a stallion that must have been Filthy Rich greeted them. He was dressed in a green suit and carried a pot of gold on his back, a leprechaun.

“Prince Fire! Prince Fire!” Diamond Tiara exclaimed. She was dressed in a frilly ballerina like costume.

“Hello Prince Fire Sword,” a mare in a black which costume greeted in a cold tone. She must have been Spoiled Rich. “Good to finally welcome you into the luxuriousness of our home.”

“Thank you,” Fire greeted as politely as he could to her condescending remark.

Spoiled then eyed the others behind him. “And who are these mares with you?”

“My friends,” Fire told her with a frown he couldn’t suppress.

“Ah! Wonderful! The more the merrier!” Filthy said enthusiastically. “I recognize each of them I daresay, except for perhaps you!”

He gestured at Twilight.

“Twilight Sparkle, sir,” Twilight said shaking his hand. “I work at the Golden Oaks Library.”

“Ah yes, I heard something about a new librarian there. Sadly I don’t have much time for reading, aside from business letters,” Filthy Rich said. “I should probably see if there’s anything I can read though. It’s been such a long time!”

“Um, can we talk for a moment husband?” Spoiled asked.

“Certainly dear,” Filthy followed his wife upstairs.

Fire had a feeling it was about the guests and Spoiled’s tastes. But he shrugged. “Rich Ponies! At least not all of them are rotten apples!”

“But a fair number are,” Applejack said.

With that he and his friends joined in the festivities.

…

Outside the mansion, in Ponyville, there was a flash of light as Gold Steel teleported into town with his minions. They were dressed in their costumes as well. Steel had a quiver full of arrows on his back as well as a green tunic with a pouch that had a couple secret weapons inside. He’d decided to come as Robin Hoof. To avoid being recognized as well he’d added a green face mask to his costume as well. Behind him, his underlings were dressed in matching unforms with fake rapiers, the three Ponyteers.

“Alright, we’re here. Now we just need to get inside. Should be easy,” Steel said confidently.

Turned out it had a little difficulty.

“I’m sorry but I don’t have a Gold Steel on the list,” Randolph said.

“Oh, I’m sure that must be a mistake,” Gold said light up his horn and casting a quick spell. “I’m sure Mr. and Mrs. Rich would like to meet me!”

“Oh, I’m sure they would. Go right in Sir!” Randolph said as the brainwashing spell took affect.

“Thank you,” Gold said with a fake smile before casting another quick spell to make the butler forget him.

Looking around he was relieved to see the other guests were too focused on their activities to notice the magic. Steel spotted Fire Sword among them speaking with a lavender unicorn and others. He turned to his minions and smirked at them.

“Well, no sense being all work and no play. Let’s have a little fun before the main event begins!”

They grinned.

“Yeah!” they agreed.

The four of them walked off in various directions and enjoyed themselves... for a time.

…

Fire cast a glance at the new arrivals. He frowned as he realized something was familiar about them. Though he couldn’t place it as they were all wearing costumes that resembled the three Ponyteers.

He considered going over to see if he knew them but then Pinkie Pie yelled out.

“Come on everypony! It's time to get this Nightmare Night Party in full swing. Lets dance!”

The ponies began dancing as the party pony put on music. Fire joined the dance as well, bouncing his head up and down before looking around at the Mane 5, and Rarity in particular. With a quick flap of his wings, he flew over to her.

“Would you care to dance, Princess Rarity?” Fire asked extending his hoof.

“Why, I’d love to Sir Fire!” Rarity said bowing before taking it in her own.

They smiled at each other and slowly spun around while keeping hold of each other’s hoofs. They weren’t a couple, but they could at least enjoy a friendly dance. Fire was content with that. He’d always preferred the partner dancing rather then solo of group ones.

...

Spike watched them with a frown.

Then suddenly he was approached by Sweetie Belle who smiled.

“Hey Spike,” she greeted him.

“Uh, hi Sweetie Belle,” he greeted before looking away at her.

She pouted.

“So, everypony is dancing,” she said.

“Yeah,” he agreed.

“Don’t you have a partner?” she asked, knowing the answer.

“No,” he replied glumly.

“Well, I could change that,” she said putting on a smile.

He looked at her and… unable to resist her cute expression, agreed.

“Alright. I guess that would be fun.”

She isn’t as beautiful as her sister, but she is pretty cute, he thought to himself.

He thought back to Twilight telling him Rarity was too old for him and that he should try ponies his own age. But he pushed that out of his mind… for now. His heart was pretty much set on Rarity for the moment, even if it was not meant to be.
Spike shook his arms and Sweetie did the same with her hooves. They alternated between dancing next to each other and Sweetie Belle putting her hooves on his shoulders as he led her in a circle with his claws on her waist.

...

For a final move, Fire picked up Rarity and spun her bridle style, her dress flowing as he did so.

“Oh! That was a wonderful dance,” the unicorn said once he put her down. “Thank you, Prince Fire!”

She hugged him and whispered. “I’m sure Moondancer will love that at the Grand Galloping Gala.”

“Right, Moondancer,” Fire said with a forced smile.

She and her friends were probably having their own party in Canterlot. Rarity too forced a smile, wishing yet again somewhat that she was Fire’s date instead of Moondancer.

Fire looked around and saw Rainbow Dash up in the air dancing with a few other Pegasi including Derpy Hooves. Twilight and Applejack were dancing next to each other as well along with Big Macintosh and several others. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon sat at a table eating cupcakes and other sweets. Pinkie Pie was still doing the music and putting on Nightmare Music.

It’s a fright tonight!

The night when all the spooks come out to play.

Look out! They’ll try to scare ya!

But remember they’re just ponies in costumes!

No harm meant! Its all the fun of the fright tonight!

So get ready to scream!

For the terrors are coming out tonight!

And they’ll go

Boo!

She pointed to the crowd who went “Aah!!

“When I say Boo! You say…”

“Aah!”

“Boo!”

“Aah!”

“And that’s the fun of the fright tonight!

Scary very scary!

But lots of fun!”

Once the song was done Fire felt a little thirsty. He turned to Rarity.

“I’m a bit parched. You wanna grab a drink?”

“Indeed. The sugar and dancing tends to make on thirsty after all,” she agreed.

…

Nearby, Gold Steel overheard. He smirked and teleported ahead of them as he knew the time was perfect.

…

They walked to the refreshment table in the manor. Fire spotted a variety of juices and punch. He would go for the fruit punch, his favorite drink, and was about to grab that with his magic but then looked at Rarity.

“What would you like Rarity?” he asked.

“Oh um, lemonade,” she said.

Fire quickly spotted the yellowish green drink and levitated it and a cup then poured it for her. She took it her own magic and smiled at him.

“Thank you, your highness,” she said. “You know you can be a true gentle colt at times. I’d expect no less from the son of Celestia herself. A little rough at other times but then you are a combative pony. I only hope Prince Blueblood is as gracious as you.”

Fire’s eyes widened as he poured himself a glass of punch and took a sip. If she was hoping for Blueblood to be a gentlecolt with her she would probably have another thing coming. Maybe if he were to tell her-

“Well, to be honest I-

Suddenly he felt drowsy and stumbled.

“Prince Fire?” Rarity asked in concern.

He collapsed, dropping his cup onto the fine carpet below their hooves which spilled its contents, and Rarity screamed.

“Help! The Prince is down! Help! He collapsed after drinking from the punch! Oh no! Poison! It must be poison!”

…

Gold Steel heard the dramatic scream from under the refreshment table and chuckled as he put the vial back in his pouch.

“Not poison, just a little sleeping potion. Can’t have that prince getting the way of my plans.”

He teleported into another room and watched as many of the ponies ran over to the direction of the screams. His minions meanwhile soon found him, knowing this had to be the que to meet back up again.

“Alright, the dangerous Prince is out of the way,” Steel told them. “But we still got most of the Elements of Harmony wielders here.”

“Yeah, I remember last time,” Gray said.

“What do we do then?” Sly asked.

“We need to make sure they don’t attack us,” Bright Wane said.

“That’s why we’ll take a hostage,” Steel told them as he passed a hoof knife to Gray. “Get her.”

They made their way down to where the crowd of guests had gathered around Fire.

“Is he breathing? Please tell me he’s breathing!” Rarity exclaimed dramatically.

“He’s breathing,” Twilight assured as she listened to Fire’s heartbeat. “But he’s in a deep sleep. You said he fell right after drinking from the punch?”

“Yes, he poured me a glass of lemonade and then got himself a drink and fell asleep right after taking a sip!” Rarity
exclaimed.

“And he got a stain all over my carpet!” Spoiled Rich remarked looking at the cup that Fire had dropped when he fell asleep.

“That’s not important dear!” Filthy Rich told his wife calmly.

“Let me try the punch!” Pinkie said as she poured the contents of the pitcher down her throat.

“Pinkie I don’t think that’s a good-

Twilight was interrupted as Pinkie Pie fell to the floor asleep.

“Idea,” the unicorn finished.

Gold Steel soon spotted Diamond Tiara among the guests. He turned to his minions who would now play their part… and then be discarded.

“Get her and maybe some others as well!” he told them. “I’ll cover you.”

And then betray you! He thought.

He cast a spell to make himself invisible as the three Earth Ponies dashed at the young rich filly and grabbed her as well as her friend Silver Spoon and Apple Bloom as a random pair of other hostages before anypony could react. A blade was held to her little throat and she froze along with many other ponies.

“Alright! Give us all your bits if you want these little fillies to remain unharmed tonight!” Bright Wane ordered.

The ponies murmured in fright before Twilight recognized the ponies in the uniforms. “Hey, you’re the thieves that robbed Fire!”

“You let those fillies go right now or we’ll…”

Rainbow Dash was cut off as Applejack bit her tail and pulled her back.

“Don’t do it Rainbow! We can’t take a chance with their safety!”

Seeing that they didn’t have the element of surprise like last time, the ponies had no choice but to comply. The two grown members of the Rich family escorted their three intruders that they could see (with the hostage fillies in tow) to the basement where the patriarch himself kept a giant safe full of bits. He opened it and revealed a large vault full of bits, at least a million, or tens of millions.

“Take as much as you want just don’t hurt our daughter!” Filthy begged before adding. “Or the others.”

“You won’t get away with this!” Spoiled said through gritted teeth.

“Oh, they won’t!” A new voice said. “But I will!”

Gold Steel suddenly became visible, having followed behind them. He shot three golden beams from his horn. The two rich ponies screamed and fell on their stomachs, but they weren’t the targets of the attacks. His own minions were. He shot them one at a time in the space of only a couple seconds. All three Earth Ponies lay on the ground, badly injured or worse. The three hostage fillies and the owners of the home looked at the new attacker in fear.

“Go on! Move!” Gold shouted.

The five ponies ran back the other way and Steel meanwhile stepped into the vault. He stretched his magic far and gathered as much in it as he could before teleporting nearly all the contents of the Rich family vault and himself back home to Canterlot. It almost smothered him in his own theft when he ended up back in his secret room in his house.

“At last! I’ll have enough and still be one of the richest ponies in Equestria!” Steel stated.

…

When Fire woke up, he was in bed back at Warm Heart Tower with the mares all around him.

“Uh what happened?”

“You drank a sleeping potion that was put in the punch,” Twilight explained. “There was a robbery at the Rich family house!”

“What?” Fire exclaimed getting up.

“It was those thieves that stole from here a while back,” Twilight went on.

“Yes, and they were with that awful teleporting unicorn thief apparently!” Rarity exclaimed before hugging him. “Oh, I’m so glad you’re alright! I was afraid you might have been poisoned when you collapsed.”

“Lucky that wasn’t poison in the punch!” Rainbow Dash told him. “Then you’d be the same as those Earth Pony thieves!”

“What?” Fire exclaimed again.

“They’re dead, the unicorn thief killed them. He was invisible and had those three Earth Ponies take Apple Bloom and two others hostage,” Applejack explained. “Then he robbed the rich family of all their riches!”

“Now they’ll have to call themselves the poor family!” Pinkie said.

“Poor ponies!” Fluttershy said sadly. “The Rich’s were robbed and the thieves killed!”

“Great,” Fire lamented. “Now what?”

Twilight suddenly smiled. “Well thankfully that defense we put in place a while back worked. My teleportation spell detector let me know somepony teleported and I could find out who it was. Gold Steel from Canterlot!”

Fire’s eyes widened. The same guard he’d seen a couple times and even worked with when bringing the relief money here to Ponyville! He’d thought a royal guard was trustworthy! It took him a moment to recover from his shock.

Fire then narrowed his eyes in determination. “Then I guess we’ll have to arrest him. Send word to Canterlot! I’m going to catch him.”

“Then count us in!” Rainbow Dash said.

Fire nodded and looked at the others. He knew Rainbow Dash would be eager for action at least.

“I’ll welcome it. If the rest of you want to come you can. But this could be dangerous. I won’t force you.”

“I’m in!” Twilight said. “Maybe I can use my magic to help you catch him.”

“It will be fun!” Pinkie agreed.

“I won’t leave to handle this on your own!” Applejack vowed.

“I’m sure you can handle it yourself but am happy to lend a hoof however I can,” Rarity said.

“Um, I don’t really want to go into danger…” Fluttershy said. “But I feel worse not helping you all.”

“Then we’re going!” Fire said. “Look out Gold Steel! We’re coming for you!”

Author's Note

Alright, another chapter done. I’ve started developing a little bit of Spike and Sweetie Belle now as well. Hope you are enjoying it. We’ll see the defeat of Gold Steel next week. Please review/comment.

Chapter 22: Catching the Gold Stealer

Fire, the mares, Vine Archer, and Silver Javelin all sat on the train going to Canterlot. Spike had remained behind as someone needed to watch Twilight’s library. The same went for the rest of Fire’s guards.

"We're going to need a plan for this," Twilight said. "If anything goes wrong and Gold Steel realizes what we're doing he'll teleport away and we'll never be able to find him.”

Fire nodded. "You're right."

"Eh, let’s just break his horn and he'll be able to use magic," Rainbow said. "Right?"

"Umm... that seems a bit extreme," Fluttershy said.

"Yes, Steel maybe a thieving and killing ruffian but we shouldn't maim him in such a horrendous way!" Rarity agreed.

"Then what should we do?" Applejack asked.

"Why are they even here?" Vine Archer asked from the guard’s corner of the train. "This is a job for us royal guards!"

"They may wield the Elements of Harmony but that doesn't give them law enforcement badges," Silver Javelin muttered in agreement. "They should only be used against VERY serious threats!"

Fire heard them mutter something and looked over. "You guys have something you want to add?"

"Oh um, we were just thinking it might be better if these mares were to stay out of this. No need for them to recklessly endanger themselves," Vine said.

"Thank for your concern good sirs, but each of us are capable of defending ourselves," Rarity said with a charming smile.

"I'm not!" Fluttershy said timidly.

"Most of us are anyway," Applejack replied.

Fire put a hoof on Fluttershy. "Don't worry, Flutters. I'm to protect you."

She smiled at him. "Thanks Fire."

"If you would prefer to sit this one out it's okay. I know you're not a fighter."

"I still want to help," she insisted. "But I don't know how."

"Well, you know how to care for ponies right?" Fire asked.

"I've treated animals," she said. "And ponies aren't too different."

"Okay, if anypony is injured you can hopefully patch them up. Until we get them to the infirmary."

She smiled and nodded. “Thank you, Fire.”

The yellow Pegasus pressed her head against the neck of the white alicorn with a blush. Fire smiled and returned the nuzzle. All their friends smiled, except for Rarity who frowned.

They soon arrived in Canterlot and made their way up to the castle where they found Celestia on her throne.

"You are sure this is one of the royal guards?" the ruler asked seriously.

"Yes Mother," Fire said. "Twilight's spell detected him!”

Twilight lit up her horn and showed an image of the pony that her spell detected.

"He teleported right at the same time. There are few ponies in Equestria that are capable of doing that spell."

Celestia nodded. "And Gold Steel is one of them. He's probably one of the most skilled magic user, in the royal guard Twilight. I suppose even my royal guard isn't perfect. If Steel is indeed this thief, then we will need to detain him. That will prove difficult since he can teleport."

"We need to find some way to disable his magic!" Rainbow Dash said.

"There are magical dampening rings that can prevent that when put on a unicorn's horn,” Celestia said. “I keep them in the armory for when we have to deal with unicorns like this.”

She led them into the Royal Guard Armory.

“Wow! So Awesome!” Rainbow Dash said as she admired the many pieces of armor and weapons on the walls.

“A bit of a ruffian room, but still sophisticated,” Rarity said as she too admired the golden armor while narrowing her eyes at most of the weapons. “Spears and axes are just so primitive. A truly elegant weapon… now that’s a sword!”

Fire Sword chuckled at the indirect praise. “Swords are the most versatile they say, but others have their purpose. Axes chop wood much better than swords.”

“I suppose,” Rarity acknowledging while rolling her eyes. “Still not as graceful though.”

Celestia then stopped at a case containing a number of rings. She opened and levitated several rings out that she gave to each of them.

“I’ll check the guard records find out where Steel is stationed. Then you can all approach him. You have the tracking spell ready?”

Twilight spoke now. “Uh… I don’t I actually know the spell yet!”

Celestia smiled. “Well, you should have no problem finding it in the library or the castle archives. Though I might recommend you visit the former!”

Fire looked at her in surprise. They headed to the Canterlot library and asked for a tracking spell that would allow them to follow their target no matter where they went. As they climbed a bookcase with the librarian. As they walked to the spell book section though, Fire noticed a yellow unicorn with a red and purple mane.

“Moondancer?” he asked.

The unicorn looked up. “Oh! Fire! Twilight!”

She bowed her head and got up from her seat to give her two Canterlot friends hugs.

“So good to see you! What brings you to Canterlot?” she asked them.

Fire hesitated. “Uh, law enforcement business. We found out who the unicorn thief who can teleport is.”

They quickly told her.

“Oh my! A traitor to the royal guard?” Moondancer repeated in surprise. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“No! That won’t be necessary miss,” Vine Archer said. “I’m sure the prince, element bearers, and we the prince’s guards can handle this.”

“Hold on,” Fire put up his hoof. “Moondancer you’re pretty skilled with magic. Maybe you can help. It will be dangerous though.”

She smiled. “Danger, ha! I laugh in the face of danger! Ha ha ha!”

“You’re quoting the Cat King!” Fire said with a grin.

“Yeah,” Moondancer returned the grin. “Of course that’s not really me! I’m sure you’d laugh in the face of danger though.”

“Maybe a little on the inside,” he admitted.

"So do I!" Rainbow Dash said.

“But I don’t want you to get hurt.”

She hesitated then spoke with determination. “If I can use my magic for the good of Equestria like you and Twilight, I want to. If there’s a problem I can teleport, at least a short distance.”

“Okay,” Fire reluctantly agreed.

He knew that Twilight was skilled with magic, she’d given him a challenge during some of their magic practice. Moondancer had been present at a few of those sessions, but she had gone down rather quickly when it turned to combat. Rainbow Dash and Applejack, even Rarity were all capable in their own ways. He couldn’t speak for Pinkie Pie as she was so silly, she’d probably do something comedic in an attempt to fight. Might be amusing, but he couldn’t guarantee it would be effective.

“How can I help?” Moondancer said.

“We need a spell,” Twilight said. “With many of us casting, I’m sure at least will be able to get him!”

They soon found the spell and after a brief session, all the magic users were able to cast it. Fire, Twilight, Rarity and Moondancer all lit up their horns. Red, lavender, blue, and white all shined and soon. Fire’s spell hit Twilight at the same time Rarity’s hit Moondancer. Twilight and Moondancer returned the favor, hitting the ones who’d caught them with the spells. It did no harm as these were merely tracking spells.

“Uh, my horn feels like it’s on fire!” Rarity exclaimed before giggling at the pony with that name. “Uh, no pun intended!”

Fire chuckled. “Our horns will get hotter the closer we are to the object… or creature we’re tracking. This was used to tag criminals in case they got away. It can also be shared with other ponies. If just one of us can hit Steel with it, we can share this spell with Pegasi, they’ll get a warm head instead of a horn. Not the quickest option but it can work in the long run if Steel is tagged.”

“But isn’t there a way to break this spell?” Twilight asked.

“Not without my mother’s permission. That’s a carefully guarded spell that only she and hoof picked ponies access to from the archives. Good thing, cause if Steel knew how to get rid of it, we’d be wasting time,” Fire said.

“Well let’s go and get him!” Rainbow Dash said loudly as she had sat around bored at a nearby table.

“Shh!” a pony reading nearby said.

“Let’s,” Fire agreed.

They made their way back to the throne room where Princess Celestia still sat.

“We have the spell, Mom!”

“We have the spell, Princess!”

Fire and Twilight looked at each other in surprise. Then they chuckled.

“That’s good,” Celestia said. “But I’m afraid I have some slightly bad news.”

“What’s that?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Has Gold Steel left the city?”

“No, but he’s preparing to,” Celestia said. “He says he’s moving to a place in the countryside. Not too Ponyville but a similar area.”

Fire frowned. “He must be using the money he stole to buy a new place.”

“So, this is all just about getting himself a fancy smancy home!” Applejack said. “That greedy pony! He threatens little fillies and murders his own friends for that!”

“They obviously weren’t his friends,” Twilight said. “He must have just been using them to get what he wanted.”

“Well, we better get him before he leaves!” Rainbow Dash said.

“I think I have an idea!” Rarity said.

They heard her out and Fire didn’t like it. Not that it was a bad plan, but he didn’t it. Mainly because it involved her… flirting with Steel.

“It could work,” he admitted through gritted teeth.

“I do have a gift for possessing a certain feminine charm,” Rarity said batting her eyelashes and throwing her head back so her mane flew for an instant.

Fire had to agree. He felt his cheeks flush as she displayed her beauty. What a mare. But he frowned as he thought of her showing it to that no-good stallion.

He approached her and put a hoof on her shoulder. “I want you to be careful. That pony has already killed three others! I don’t want anything to happen to you!”

“Fear not good prince!” Rarity assured him. “I’m sure with you… and all our other dear friends of course… we will be fine.”

Fire looked at the others. Rainbow, Applejack, and Twilight all wore confident smiles. Pinkie grinned happily. Fluttershy was nervous, and the two guards stood stoic and calm.

“Nothing to worry about!” the party pony said. “We’ve got a plan to seduce and then reduce this thief to a pony behind bars!”

“Better have a back-up plan just in case,” Fire said. “Can’t take any chances with this teleporter. If only there were a spell, we could use to prevent him from doing that.”

“Maybe I can invent one!” Twilight said. “There might be a stone or artifact or something!”

“We’ll worry about that later,” Celestia said. “For now, catch the magical thief my little ponies!”

“Right away mother!” Fire Sword said.

A moment later, he led the mares and his guards out of the throne room. They headed to where Celestia said Gold Steel was stationed for today. An area on the outside of the castle across from the gardens. Fire flew around from above and looked down, seeing the unicorn was indeed there. He returned and looked at Vine Archer.

“He’s there, get into position.”

Vine saluted his prince and headed up the stairs of the battlements above. Fire then led the rest of them to the pathway going to the gardens. Soon their traitor came into view.

“Go, Rarity,” Fire said reluctantly as he and the others stayed out of sight behind the nearby wall.

The white unicorn made her way over to the thief as he stood there in the armor that he had no right to wear proudly, a spear in his hoof. Fire only hoped he would not turn that weapon on Rarity or anypony else. But that was a long shot, he’d already killed his own allies… or pawns… whatever they were to him. Obviously, they hadn’t been much to him, if anything at all.

“Hello,” Rarity greeted as she came up to Gold Steel and smiled sweetly.

Gold Steel looked at her and couldn’t help but smile even with his dark heart.

“Hello,” he greeted. “Can I help you with something Miss?”

“Yes, you see I am just hopelessly lost!” Rarity lied dramatically. “Can a good guard such as you help a mare in distress?”

“Certainly,” Steel said. “How can I resist a pretty face?”

Fire frowned.

“Oh, why thank you!” Rarity played along. "Though you are quiet handsome yourself… Mr…”

“Gold Steel,” Gold replied.

“I’m Rarity!” Rarity introduced herself with a bow.

Gold smirked. “You seem quite a mare. Right beauty you are. If you are looking for a stallion of refined taste you won’t find a better one, or a luckier one. You see I’m going to be leaving Canterlot.”

“Oh?” Rarity questioned.

“Yes, I’ve acquired quite a bit of money recently for my… heroic deeds,” Steel lied. “And I’m able to buy my grandparent’s house. A large mansion that is! They disowned my mother and tried to kick her out. But I vowed I’d get what was rightfully mine! A mare like you, you could live a life of luxury if you were to become mine.”

Rarity narrowed her eyes. “How very… intriguing.”

Her sarcasm in response to the rude remark was not missed.

“Come on Fire!” Moondancer said suddenly as she moved forward.

Both Twilight and Fire followed, having been distracted by their own thoughts and feelings. Twilight confusion for the mention of her brother and Fire anger and jealousy.

Gold thankfully didn’t notice them approaching.

“Well, if you find me uninteresting you obviously don’t know what the right stallions are.”

“A true gentle colt always treats a lady like an equal!” Rarity scolded. “And does courteous things! Not simply claiming a mare as his own! Nor does he steal from others!”

That set of words caused Gold Steel to look up as three sets of spells came at him from Fire, Twilight and Moondancer. They hit him, tagging him, no they would be able to track him no matter where he went.

“It’s over Gold Steel!” Fire shouted. “You’re under arrest for theft, unlawful use of magic, threatening the lives of ponies including fillies, and murder!”

"Yeah! We know you're the unicorn thief!" Rainbow Dash shouted.

"And we just got you with two tracking spell!" Applejack said. "We can find you no matter where you go! It’s over!"

Silver Javelin raised his spear at Steel who gritted his teeth. He immediately realized his cover was blown.

"You're going down thief!" Rainbow Dash yelled as she flew in with her magic dampening ring in her mouth.

Gold's eyes widened as the fast Pegasus came toward him, but he managed to recover and put up a golden shield, befitting his name. Rainbow Dash rammed into it and Steel quickly thrusted out with his spear. She dodged and grabbed hold of it before wrestling it out of his grasp. He lit his horn and took her in his aura before throwing her against the nearby wall and knocking her out.

"I'm not going down without a fight!" Gold snarled before looking at them with his horn lighting up.

"Ha! We got you outnumbered!" Applejack scoffed as she spun her lasso and flung it at her.

Gold Steel teleported, fortunately... or unfortunately... he didn't go too far. He appeared right next to Appleajck and landed a smack to her side that sent her to the ground before following up with a gold beam.

Applejack screamed as she received a small third-degree burn to her leg. Silver Javelin threw his spear but Steel teleported again and appeared behind him, shooting him as well.

"Applejack!" Twilight yelled in concern.

“Silver!” Fire said in a similar tone before rounding on Steel. "You'll pay for this!"

"Yes! Take this you ruffian!" Rarity called as she and Twilight shot beams at their adversary.

Fire looked at Moondancer who was debating whether to attack or do something about their wounded comrades. Somepony had to help them, and he had assigned a certain pony to that task.

"Moondancer! Pinkie! Get Applejack, Silver and Rainbow Dash out of the way!" Fire ordered. "Get them to Fluttershy!"

"But we wanna help!" Pinkie objected.

“You can by doing it!" Fire ordered.

The shy Pegasus looked out from the corner that she'd stayed behind while the others charged forward to meet the enemy. Pinkie hesitated then heard a cry from ahead. Gold Steel had put up a shield and charged at Twilight and Rarity as they shot their beams. Twilight had been caught off guard and was hit in the face by a hoof strike. Rarity managed to block the attack aimed at her and retreat.

Fire lit up his horn, drawing Gold Steel's attention. But the villainous unicorn wasn't his target. Rarity and Twilight were both forced further away from the traitor unicorn.

"You mares stay back!" Fire ordered. "He's mine!" He didn't want them to get hurt... anymore than they already had. A part of him was also intrigued by the challenge of a one-on-one fight.

"I can still get up!" Applejack tried to put weight on her wounded leg to no avail. "Ah!"

"Come on Applejack!" Pinkie said as she got her fellow Earth Pony on her back. Moondancer likewise took the knocked-out Rainbow Dash and Silver in her magic.

Gold looked at Fire who prepared himself. But Gold Steel instead grabbed hold of Moondancer in his magic. She screamed and dropped Rainbow Dash softly on the ground. Moondancer was levitated in between Gold and Fire whose mouth fell open.

"Oh no!" he exclaimed.

Gold grabbed hold of Moondancer with his hooves. She cringed in fear and lit up her horn, perhaps to teleport away... but before she could, a ring fell on her horn and prevented the flow of her magic. That was either one Gold had for himself or the one Rainbow Dash dropped when she was knocked out. Gold then looked at Fire.

"You and the other who got me remove your tracking spells from me! Now!" he demanded.

He wanted the immediate threat removed. If he could get the spells off he could teleport away and start anew. But there was one problem.

"I can't!" Fire answered honestly. "Only those hoofpicked by my mother know how to remove these!"

Gold snarled. "Then I guess this is the last straw!"

He aimed his horn which charged brightly at the back of Moondancer's head. Fire gritted his teeth helplessly. His friend whom he was going to take to the Grand Galloping Gala was gonna have a hole blown through her mind which was oh so bright.

Then a faint sound came from above and before Gold could release the attack at Moondancer to finish her, an arrow hit him in the shoulder. Gold screamed and lost his concentration, his magic fading and he released Moondancer who quickly backed away. Fire flapped his wings and ascended into the air a short distance. He caught a glimpse of Vine Archer who looked down at the area from the battlements around the castle holding his bow. Fire felt a surge of pride in the leader of his personal guard as he aimed his horn, firing a moderately powered beam at Steel. It knocked the thief and murderer back. Gold grunted and Fire landed.

"You're under arrest!" he repeated as he walked forward.

...

Gold was soon put in Canterlot Dungeon with a magic-suppressing ring on his horn. Fire watched with satisfaction as the bars closed behind the disgraced guard.

"You disappoint me Gold Steel," Celestia said next to her son. "You will be in here for a long long time when we are done gathering all the evidence."

Gold's only reply was a silent glare.

She and Fire then made their way to the infirmary where the others were being treated.

"Everypony okay?" Fire asked.

"They will be." the castle nurse, Royal Tender assured him. Just a few minor injuries for the most part, the worst one was this pony’s burn.

"Name's Applejack," Applejack said.

"Well Applejack you'll be fine after a few days," Royal Tender promised as she motioned to the bandage on the Earth Ponies leg. "Just keep putting the magical healing ointment on that. Same goes for you Silver!"

The unicorn that often used a spear lay on his stomach, showing the bandage on his back.

"Yes ma'am!" Applejack said.

Rainbow and Twilight meanwhile had simpler treatments with just a bandage to Twilight's nose and some ice on Rainbow Dash's head.

"Well, we did it! We caught that thief!" Pinkie Pie said as she got out her confetti canon from out of nowhere. "Victory party!"

The canon shot its contents and soon all of them helped themselves to some cupcakes.

"I think we did well," Rarity said.

"Yeah," Fire said before looking at Vine Archer. "Especially you Lieutenant, you really saved Moondancer."

"Yes, thank you," Moondancer said gratefully.

Vine blushed. "You're welcome, Miss. Just doing my duty."

"We may have the Elements of Harmony, but even they will need help it seems," Silver said. "That means we'll have chances to shine as well! I ain't gonna be outdone by you here ladies!"

"Ha! Good luck!" Rainbow scoffed at him.

They all laughed. Another major enemy had been taken down. Who knew how many more would come?

Author's Note

Ha not even I know that answer! No way to know for sure how many extra villains I'll add in. Well, Gold Steel down. Now we will be doing a few more filler chapters until Winter Wrap Up. Enjoy and I'll see you next week.

Chapter 23: Gossip, Sights, and Starts

Author's Note

Okay I decided to take last week off to do some editing. You may have noticed an inconsistency in regards to Gold Steel/Steel Gold. I kinda inadvertently jumped between the two. After the last chapter though I felt like sticking with Steel Gold since that was the name I'd been using most of the chapters. But as I thought about it Gold Steel sounded better in my opinion. So I went back over almost all the chapters and edited that as well as some other stuff.
Also, I’m considering splitting this story up with the different seasons being different books. What do you guys think? Another series that was obviously inspired by AlexLonewolf’s story did that and I kinda like the idea. But we’ll see, we still got a while before the Season 1 finale of Grand Galloping Gala and (Spoiler Alert) Fire and Rarity get together.

Chapter 23: Gossip, Sights, and Starts

Fire and the mares sat in a high-class restaurant in Canterlot.

"Wow, this place is great!" Pinkie Pie said as their starters of bread and butter arrived.

"Being friends with a prince certainly has great benefits," Rarity said.

"I'll say! I may not be into fancy-smancy but I won't say no to the best food this place has to offer," Applejack said.

"I agree that it is quite nice," Fluttershy said.

Twilight smiled at her. "Thank you. Feels good to know my friends approve of my home. Though I've only been here a couple times with my parents."

Fire scoffed. "I used to come here once or twice a month when I lived in Canterlot."

"Lucky you!" Twilight replied in a teasing manner. “Having a practically endless supply of bits.”

“Yeah, I’m a lucky young stallion to be the son of Celestia,” Fire agreed. “Though there are times when I wish I knew my father. My mom doesn’t like to talk about him. But hey, you didn’t do so bad on the luck yourself becoming my mother’s star pupil! Literally!” he gestured toward her flank where the bright red star cutie mark was.

“We got quite the various designs of cutie marks here!” Pinkie Pie said as she ate her grilled asparagus. “Swords, rainbows, diamonds, butterflies, stars, apples and balloons!”

“We all have our different talents, but together we’re quite a team,” Applejack said. “And having a little extra help never hurts like when we had Moondancer there.”

“Yeah,” Fire agreed.

His future date to the gala wasn’t with them right now as she was on a lunch date with her sister.

They all laughed. Soon their meal arrived and they dug in. As they did, somepony approached them. A gray coated blacked maned mare with a cutie mark of two pony heads facing each other with speech bubbles above them. Fire’s heart sunk as
he saw her holding a microphone with a brown camera stallion by her side.

"Prince Fire Sword! I'm Gossip Guesser!” the mare said.

“Hello,” Fire greeted as politely as he could.

He’d never liked the publicity aspect of being a prince. Plus this mare was largely responsible for presenting Blueblood as such as an esteemed bachelor in her Canterlot News and Speculation. Gossip Guesser only took what was on the surface and didn’t always bother to get the real facts. It was much more open to interpretation in many cases.

“We heard about your arrest of a member of the Royal Guard yesterday!" the reporter said. "Tell me is it true? Is this guard the unicorn thief who's been involved in over two dozen
heists?"

"Yes," Fire replied.

"Excellent! Tell me how did you learn of the identity of the traitor?" Gossip asked

"Uh, thanks to Twilight Sparkle," he said gesturing to the mare sitting next to him. "She's my mother's prized student.”

"Ah yes! We’ve heard of Celestia having a top student! Though she hasn’t done anything newsworthy that we know of now has she?” Gossip said.

Fire noticed Twilight frown at that and he did the same.

“Twilight is a very skilled magic user! She is smart and gifted in all of its aspects! The only thing I can do better than her is fight! She was with me when I confronted not only Gold Steel but Nightmare Moon as well!” Fire said defensively. “As were all these mares!”

Gossip looked at Fire’s female company. “Hmm, I see you are following in your cousin Blueblood’s hoofsteps as well, surrounded by mares!”

“What? No! Eww!” Fire exclaimed.

“Oh no need to be shy about it! All the mares love Blueblood!” Gossip said. “And they might actually love you more before long with you doing such worthy acts!”

Fire might not mind that actually. Gossip then looked closer at the girls.

“Lovely mares, I must say. Though some of them could likely use some work on their manes.” Gossip said as she eyed Rainbow Dash and Applejack.

The camera stallion took a few pictures.

“Okay, I think that’s enough,” Fire said.

Gossip merely smirked. “Well, we got what we needed. You’ll see a little entry on you soon your highness I can say for certain in our Canterlot Collection of Rumors!”

Fire growled. “You’re lucky that you say those things aren’t always true cause if not for that we would probably shut you down!”

“Everypony loves it when circumstances are a little more free to interpretation,” Gossip smirked again. “Who knows, we might make you more famous then Blueblood!”

“Oh I doubt that!” Rarity said. “Prince Fire is probably more famous already!”

Fire smirked at that now.

“Even so Blueblood is so very handsome!” Rarity said.

And Fire frowned.

The two unwelcome additions made their way out and Fire ate the rest of his food in a less pleasant mood.

“Well those two weren’t very nice,” Applejack said.

“Yeah, telling us to work on our manes!” Rainbow agreed.

“I feel they are right about you two!” Rarity spoke up.

Applejack winced as she walked on her leg which was still suffering from the burn made by Gold Steel. Fire noticed this.

“You okay Applejack?” he asked the Earth Pony.

“Yeah, just hurts a bit,” Applejack said.

“Maybe we can find you a cart to ride on!” Rainbow Dash said.

Applejack frowned, her pride forbidding such an act. “I can manage just fine as long as keep putting the medicine on! I’ll be healed in no time! In fact I’m ready to return to Ponyville!”

“Oh but we only just came to Canterlot yesterday!” Rarity objected. “I’ve always wanted to live here! This is my first time visiting!”

“Well, allow me to book a tour for you!” Fire said.

“Really, you’d take us on tour?” Rarity asked.

“Well, I can see about the tour guides. We do have them here for visitors across Equestria,” Fire said. “But I suppose I can at least show you around the castle.”

He did so, showing them the various wings of the massive place he called home.

“We have hundreds of rooms in the castle, like the kitchen, barracks, and you’ve already seen the armory,” Fire said as he led them through each of the rooms. “And here’s my room.”

Rarity looked around, seeing a picture of him with his mother and Princess Cadance. “Who’s this?”

“That’s Princess Cadance!” Twilight said. “She’s my former foalsitter and Celestia’s adoptive niece!”

“Yeah, my cousin,” Fire said. “Though I consider her more of a sister.”

He blushed as he thought back to his former feelings on her before that. Among other things.

“That’s sweet,” Applejack said.

They made their way outside to the sculpture garden where many statues were kept. Including-

“And this here is Discord,” Fire said as they approached a large dragon like creature with a variety of body parts from different animals.”

“That’s a weird creature,” Pinkie remarked.

“He should be weird, he is the Spirit of Chaos after all,” Fire said. “My mom and Aunt Luna encased him in stone over a thousand years ago when he tried to take over Equestria. He caused a bunch of weird stuff to happen like cotton candy clouds, corn turning into popcorn and chocolate rain.”

“WHAT?” Pinkie exclaimed. “That sounds like fun! Why would you ever want to stop something like that?”

“Cause it was disruptive and ponies couldn’t go about their lives. He even brainwashed several ponies into thinking they were having fun,” Fire said.

“Oh, well forced fun is no fun at all,” Pinkie said before looking at the statue. “I’d like a little bit of something like that though!”

“Let’s just pray to my mother it doesn’t come to that,” Fire said.

He showed them the rest of the castle and finally.

“And here is the school for Gifted Unicorns!” he said as they were in front of the school. “This is where I went to school.”

“Me too,” Twilight said. “We had such good times, all the learning, homework, science experiments, spell casting.”

“Yeah,” Fire agreed somewhat. “I could do without so much homework though.”

Twilight gasped as though Fire said something offensive. She looked ready to faint.

“Well, I don’t think I could ever get tired of living in a place like this,” Rarity said as she marveled at the castle.

They looked through the rest of the city for the rest of the day then retired for the night.

…

The next morning before noon, they returned to Ponyville along with Vine and Silver who stood silently. When they arrived, they found a fair-sized crowd waiting for them.

"You're back Applejack!" Apple Bloom exclaimed as she ran and hugged her

big sister.

"Hey Rarity great going!" Sweetie Belle said as she did the same with her sister.

"Uh, what's going on here?" Applejack asked.

"You've made the news!" Spike said as he emerged from the crowd holding a paper.

Twilight levitated it over and read the headline. "Prince and his Marefriends Stop Traitor to the Royal Guard. Wait, Marefriends?"

They all looked at Fire whose eyes widened. Twilight then continued reading.

"As Celestia’s sun began to set two days ago, it was discovered that the Unicorn thief who has been able to teleport and steal things from all across Equestria is a member of the Princess's own Royal Guard. Prince Fire Sword apparently found out about this somehow. From what we do know it began just when the Rich family of the small town of Ponyville were robbed and their young filly threatened in their own home. Along with the Prince were a group of at least six mares and a few members of his personal guard. What is the nature of Fire's relationship with these mares? Could one of them be his girlfriend? Is he going to be taking her to the Grand Galloping Gala?"

Fire's face went bright red at that. But Rarity put a hoof on his shoulder.

"Now now Prince Fire, it’s just a little gossip!" she said. "They don't know the whole story so they have to make assumptions. Besides it could be bit fun to guess first?"

"I suppose," Fire said. "But I don't like my personal life being pried into!"

"You are a prince! Everypony's gonna wanna know what's going on with you!" Pinkie exclaimed. "Now since we're gaining a little fame ponies will want to know about us as well most likely!"

"Yeah! We'll be famous!" Rainbow Dash said.

"Well I'm content with my life now," Applejack said. "But this can't hurt can it?"

"Certainly not!" Rarity waved her hoof.

"I've always wanted to help protect Equestria," Twilight said. "It seemed like the best way to make a name for myself with my magic. Of course back then I thought I could do it alone."

"Well you're on a roll so far," Fire said.

“Excuse me!” A voice called.

Fire looked and saw the speaker was Spoiled Rich.

"I want my bits back!" Spoiled demanded.

Fire frowned. "Take it up with my mother in Canterlot! She is handling the return of the stolen objects with her royal guards! She should send letters across Equestria soon to any areas that have been robbed by Gold Steel."

"Very well!" Spoiled hissed as she looked at the train which at that moment sped off. "Arrgh!"

Fire smirked at that. Now she’d have to wait for the next train to Canterlot which would be in three hours time. Fire and the mares then continued on and soon parted ways to return to their respective homes. Fire walked over to Warm Heart Tower with Vine Archer and Silver Javelin at his side. Grand Garden was in the front yard tending to the sprouted apple tree.

“Ah! Welcome home Prince Fire!” Grand Garden greeted.

“Grand,” Fire greeted as well. “How’s everything here?”

“All quiet,” the gardener said. “Though we are getting a little low on some of the supplies. Down to just a dozen apples in the cellar.”

Fire smirked. “Well, that won’t do. I go through those apples pretty quick by myself and with everypony else here they’ll be gone in a day or two. I’m sure you know where to get them.”

“Yes,” Grand said. “Sweet Applej- I mean Sweet Apple Acres.”

Fire had to restrain himself from laughing when Grand almost said Sweet Applejack. Not sure sweet was a way to describe Applejack, but dependable certainly was.

“I’ll take an inventory and make a list of everything we need then head out with some of the others,” Grand said.

Fire nodded. “Very good.”

What would he do in the meantime? It occurred to him to read, but another thing occurred as well. Watching what happened between Applejack and Grand Garden. That could interesting, though it wouldn’t be nice to spy. Of course they didn’t have to catch him. He was trying to set them up, at least a little bit. Might as well see if it went through.

Fire made his way to his study and looked through his spellbook collection. He found one and pulled it off the shelf with his magic. Checking the index he found the spell that came to mind. The camouflage spell.

He lit up his horn, it took him once or twice to get the spell right but when he looked at his white hoof, he saw that it was blended in with the room around him. He smirked and looked out the nearby window to see Grand Garden making his way down to Sweet Apple Acres nearby. Fire opened the window and flew out, blending into the blue sky above Ponyville.
He watched as Grand made his way to the barn. Grand Garden found Applejack outside tending to her family pigs.

“Well Howdy Garden!” Applejack greeted in a friendly manner.

“Hello Applejack,” Grand Garden greeted. “I’m gonna need a few barrels of apples.”

“Fire sure goes through those,” Applejack remarked.

“Like they say, an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” Grand grinned.

Applejack chuckled. “Yeah, it should anyway. I’m surprised Pinkie doesn’t have to see a doctor more often with how much sugar she eats.”

Fire landed on the roof, causing a small thud that caused him to grit his teeth. Applejack and Garden heard the sound and looked up. But they saw nothing.

Applejack then turned back to Garden. “Well, I’ll have those apples brought up in a jiffy. I’m getting kinda low on room in my storage so it will be good to send some out. I’ve considered making myself an apple cellar so I can have extra space to put the apples.”

“You sure have a lot of them,” Garden remarked. “No surprise I guess since growing apples seems to be a family talent.”

“Yeah, runs in the family. But my other talent being honest,” Applejack said. “And hard working.”

She headed into one of the apple sheds and began loading up a wagon with buckets full of apples.

“Let me help!” Grand Garden offered as he went inside with her.

The two of them pulled the bucketloads onto the cart. After a few minutes the cart was full. Grand Garden then handed Applejack the bits for the exchange.

“Thank you Applejack,” Grand Garden said.

“You’re welcome,” Applejack said politely. “Hope everypony at Warm Heart Tower likes the apples.”

“Oh they do, especially Prince Fire,” Grand assured her. “And me of course.”

“That’s nice. Glad we can satisfy y’all,” Applejack said.

Fire curled his lip. If Cadance were here she could just jumpstart their romance with a flick of her horn. But Grand seemed to be just sticking with being professional right now.

Come on ask her out! He thought.

Grand smiled at her. “You certainly… do.”

He tied the cart to himself and Fire thought for sure he was just gonna go without trying. The prince sighed.

Then…

“Say uh, would you like to maybe… go out sometime?” Grand asked.

“Go out? You mean on a date?” Applejack asked.

“Yeah,” Grand said shyly.

Applejack was silent for a moment. “Well, I’m pretty busy. But maybe! You seem like a nice stallion! We can at least get to know each other a bit more.”

Grand Garden smiled. “I’d like that. I really admire you for your hard work.”

“Thank you,” Applejack said.

From his hiding place, Fire smiled. They weren’t together yet but it was a step in the right direction. He flew off, looking at his body which was still camouflaged. This could be a good chance to prank somepony. He had just the pony in mind as well. He soon spotted Rainbow Dash laying on a cloud above Ponyville. He chuckled and flew over to her.

“Boo!”

“Ah!” Rainbow Dash yelled looking around. “Alright who’s there! I’ll teach you to sneak up on me when I’m napping!”

She looked and saw… nothing. At least nothing at first glance.

“Huh? Could have sworn I heard somepony say boo! Rainbow exclaimed. “Maybe I dreamed it!”

Fire grinned and undid his spell. “Nope!”

“Wah!” Rainbow said. “Fire! How did you…”

“Magic and wings!” Fire lit up his horn and lifted his wings as he continued flapping them.

“Oh right,” Rainbow Dash said. “Extra perks since you’re an alicorn! But that doesn’t save you from my wrath! Just wait! You’ll get yours someday.”

Fire grinned at her. “Bring it on!”

“Okay, I will!” Rainbow Dash said.

Well, things had taken a few turns. Applejack and Grand Garden would be seeing each other, and Rainbow had pretty much declared a prank war on Fire. But that’s what made life in Ponyville interesting. Who knew what would happen in the coming months?

Chapter 24: Apples and Pranks in the Garden

Applejack awoke the morning of the day that she and Grand Garden had agreed to meet. She wasn't sure what she thought of him yet but he seemed nice and hard-working, he also liked working with plants like her. She went about the farm and did her morning chores, feeding the animals, bucking the morning round of apples, hauling them into one of the storage sheds, and starting some digging to make the new apple cellar. That would take some time, maybe even months of work. She finished what she could just in time to give herself a bath. While she didn't prioritize appearances like Rarity, even she knew they had a time and a place. A date was one of those times. As for the place, well, that would start around here when Grand Garden came.

Soon he did. He carried some fresh flowers, small sunflowers, in his mouth.

"Um, hi," he said with a shy blush and a mouthful.

"Howdy," she greeted. "Those for me?"

"Yeah," he said.

"Mighty kinda ya," Applejack said politely. "Sunflowers are actually my favorite kinda flowers."

"Really?" Grand asked, sincerely surprised. "I had no idea!"

"Eh, lucky then," Applejack said. "They're nice and simple and can grow tall with the proper care."

Again she wasn't the type to care for beautifying herself but she wouldn't refuse the flowers. It was a kind gesture and she could put them on the table inside till they wilted. She took them in her own mouth, blushing as it came close to Grand's. Their cheeks touched and their blushes deepened. She put them in an old brown and tan vase that Granny Smith had. She then turned to her guest and date.

"So, what do we do first?" Applejack asked.

"Uh, well... have you ever been a date before?" Grand Garden asked, still nervous.

"Not really," Applejack confessed.

"Me neither," Grand said, feeling a little better at that. "Well, guess we should just get to know each other like you said. You want to take a walk through the orchards while we do that?”

She nodded, sounds good.

They walked among the many trees in her home.

Finally Grand spoke. “So, what do you want to know about me?"

She smiled. "Well, how did you get to become Fire Sword's gardener?"

She looked at his flank which showed a cutie mark of set of three flowers, colored blue, red, and yellow with a gold star above them.

"My family is from Canterlot, we're one of the few Earth Pony families there," Grand told her. "Most of us work the gardens and landscape in the few areas that need it around there. I got my cutie mark when was working at a garden one day and the client wanted us to surprise them with whatever we could throw together. I put a lot of things in there, but I ended with a set of three flowers in a pot. For a long time, I worked around the city."

"Well that's dandy," Applejack said.

"It was okay, many ponies were happy to have their places spruced up," Grand said. "But there were some that weren't so pleasant."

He recalled a certain stallion named Jet who had been engaged at the time to his current wife Upper Crust. He'd criticized Grand's choices even though they had looked good in the florist's eyes.

"They called me a lame Earth shifter!" Grand said.

"Well, those stuck ups are certainly not nice!" Applejack exclaimed.

"For so long part of me wanted to get out of the city and into some place quieter," Grand said.

"I can relate," Applejack said. "I once left home myself thinking I may prefer the city life. But when I got there I realized this was where I belong. How do you like Ponyville?"

"I love it!" Grand said. "Nice and quiet, less crowded, friendly ponies just about everywhere. Well, except for maybe the Rich family, or at least Spoiled Rich."

"Yeah, even here has the occasional rotten apple," Applejack admitted.

"But Ponyville is great overall,” Grand said. “I could definitely think of this place as a home I could stay in.”

Applejack smiled. “I feel the same way. I’m probably never gonna leave. My family found this place actually.”

“Really?” Grand said surprised.

“Yeah,” Applejack said. “It’s one of the main Earth Pony towns, with more on the Wild West. I’ve got kin over there, well… I got kin all over Equestria.”

Grand smiled. “That’s nice. Vine Archer is my cousin. Though he’s much braver than I am being the soldier. He tried to get me to join the royal guard but I was too much of a chicken to enter the life of combat.”

“Eh we can’t all be brave or fighters,” Applejack said. “No shame in living a nice peaceful life with your family and friends.”

Grand nodded. “I hope to make a home with a lovely garden someday, and a great family too. Yours seems pretty great.”

“The best ever,” Applejack said. “Of course, even we have our scuffles now and then. I missed Sweet Apple Acres so much when I left, I don’t think I’ll ever leave again. But maybe I could build another place of my own in these orchards.”

She looked at Warm Heart Tower as they were passing it. “There is still a bit of room here.”

Grand smiled. “I’d probably like that.”

Applejack smiled back. "You know, I think I like you!"

He chuckled and blushed while rubbing one of his forelegs against the other. They continued their walk through the orchard and Grand admired many of the trees.

“You certainly take good care of your apples,” he said. “Wish I could make a garden as big as this.”

Applejack sniggered. “I think only Celestia would have a garden that big.”

Grand sniggered back. “And I worked for her!”

They both laughed.

“Guess I am too now! As an Element of Harmony whenever its needed,” Applejack said.

“We all serve her and her country however great or small,” Grand replied. “I’m sure you’ll be a great Element with Prince Fire and the others. What Element do you use again?”

“The Element of Honesty,” Applejack said. “I always prided myself on being truthful. I learned that a little lie can only grow bigger when I was a filly and have disastrous consequences.”

“Good lesson,” Grand said.

Suddenly Applejack’s stomach rumbled. She blushed. “Guess I’m getting hungry.”

“I wouldn’t mind lunch myself,” Grand said.

“Well fancy that!” Applejack remarked and thought, Its almost like we’re made for each other.

They headed to Ponyville for a bite, not noticing that behind them a dark set of clouds were being gathering around Warm Heart Tower.

…

Fire was in his study reading a book, The Sleeping Mare. He was getting the part where the Prince was fighting the dragon to get to the tower where the cursed unicorn princess who had been put into eternal slumber was being held. There was suddenly a sound, or many sounds at once. The sounds of raindrops coming down outside.

Fire frowned. “I don’t recall there being a rainstorm being scheduled today!”

As soon as he said that, thunder sounded and a lightning bolt flashed. Fire looked and saw a black cloud over Warm Heart Tower. It wasn’t a big one though, it was only big enough to cover this area specifically.

“What the?” Fire asked.

Before he could ponder further, however, he was grabbed from behind and flown outside of the open window. Fire had let the windows remain open as it was still fall and moderately pleasant. Winter wasn’t for another couple weeks. That had changed today though with this sudden downpour specifically around Fire’s house, which he was now flown into!

“Ah!” he exclaimed as the rapidly descending drops touched his mane and coating, soaking them.

“Guess someone had to put out the fire!” Fire’s captor said in a voice that he recognized.

“Rainbow Dash!” he yelled.

She laughed and let go of him, Fire yelled in surprise and just barely managed to flap his wings in time to prevent a fall that would have hurt.

“I told you this meant war Fire!” Rainbow Dash said from above him.

“Alright! If it’s a Pranking War you want! Here’s my counterattack!” Fire lighting his horn.

He shot a spell at her and she suddenly found her wings attached to her body as if by magnets. She flailed her hooves as she fell toward the ground with a shout. Fire stopped her just before she could hit and possibly break a bone or two. But then he flung her in the mud of part of the garden that had just been planted and was still growing, the apple trees and grape vines merely sprouting.

“Guess we’ll have to call you Mud Dash now!” Fire said with a smirk.

Rainbow Dash rose to her hooves and shook the mud off while the rain washed her.

“You!” she exclaimed pointing a hoof.

Fire lit up his horn and she yelled in fright, but the next spell wasn’t met for her. He aimed for the storm cloud above which dispelled and vanished, revealing the blue sky above Warm Heart Tower.

“Your air power is formidable, but with a bit of the right magic you are helpless,” Fire stated.

Rainbow Dash growled. “Alright, you like to play combat, Sword? Let’s play! I’ve been meaning to pay you back for calling me a damsel in distress when you cast that binding spell on me and Pinkie!”

She charged, fast even without the use of her wings. No surprise there given how athletic she was. Fire almost didn’t block her hook strike in time. There wasn’t enough power behind it to severely injure him, but it was a good sport and he was more than open to a challenge.

He stopped the hoof strike then pushed it down while using his other hoof to grab her by the back. She was pinned to the ground. Rainbow tried to get up and Fire just barely managed to hold her down.

“You may be strong, but I’ve still got the strength of an Earth Pony,” Fire stated. “And a bit of training in the physical plain! Unlike unicorns who aren’t always athletic!”

“I get it, you’re awesome,” Rainbow Dash admitted grudgingly.

“Almost had me there though,” Fire admitted back. “You definitely got more speed than I do.”

He let her go and she got up.

“Okay, undo the spell keeping my wings attached to my back!” Rainbow Dash said.

“Okay,” Fire said before shooting another spell at her.

Rainbow Dash smiled and tried to spread her wings but they only rose halfway.

“Hey they won’t come up all the way!” she said.

Fire grinned. “Didn’t think I’d return them to you just lickety-split, did you?”

“Oh, come on!” Rainbow exclaimed.

“That will wear off in about twenty minutes or so! Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a date with a certain fashionista,” he said. “Or at least trying a new coat she has for me for the winter.”

He flapped his wings, secretly wishing he was getting together with Rarity for a date right now.

Rainbow Dash snarled and punched her hoofs together. “Alright, time to bring out the big guns! Or maybe… the paint guns!”

She chuckled mischievously.

Fire, meanwhile, flew to the boutique and found the unicorn he was coming for ironing another outfit. She looked up from her work as he entered.

“Ah Prince Fire Sword!” she said with a bow. “Just in time, though I wish I could say the same as this ironing needs another… Ah, there!”

She got the last wrinkle out of the dress then put the iron down and hung the dress up. Then she led him to the stallion section and stopped at a draped mannequin.

“Presenting… your warm raiment!” she said.

The fashion loving unicorn unveiled the result. A read jacket with orange flame patterns and a matching hat as well as yellow boots with red heels.

“Wow Rarity! They look great,” Fire said impressed. “Really fits me I think.”

“I full heartedly agree,” Rarity said.

Fire pulled out his bits but she shook her head and put up a hoof.

“On the boutique my prince,” she said.

“Rarity, you already gave me another free outfit,” he countered. “I insist on paying for this one! I never saved your life this time to warrant a free one.”

She sighed. “I suppose that’s fair. But you will be getting something from me for Hearth’s Warming soon!”

Fire nodded as he put on the outfit. “I look forward to that. Hearth’s Warming is always great!”

“Yes, and it is an especially lovely month for me! Cause my birthday is that month as well!” Rarity said.

“What?” Fire said. “I didn’t know that!”

“Well, good thing I mentioned it then,” Rarity said. “It is especially generous for me I suppose you could say.”

Fire would have to get her something. Something… beautiful. Those were the things she liked after all. Just like her. Flowers? No those would wilt. He’d have to find something… perfect. Wow, he was thinking of it as if she were his marefriend it seemed. He did wish that were the case, but she liked Blueblood. What sort of curse had driven him to have such strong feelings for her? They just seemed to keep growing with every day! He tried to tell himself she was gonna end up with Blueblood, that he needed to find another mare! He was going to go to the gala with Moondancer. But why couldn’t he be happy about that?

He just… didn’t want Moondancer the way he wanted Rarity. Fire sighed internally. He’d go with her to the gala and see what happened at least.

Suddenly the boutique opened and Rainbow Dash entered holding a… gun?

“Freeze!” Rainbow Dash said as she held it. “Unless you want to splattered!”

Oh it was just a paint gun they saw. Fire let out a breath of relief. However, Rarity’s eyes widened.

“Get that out of my boutique! This is no place for ruffian games!” Rarity said.

“Sorry Rare but I got a score to settle with this stallion!” Rainbow said as she pulled the hoof trigger.

The paintball flew faster than Fire or perhaps even Rainbow could. It came at Fire and hit him right on the forehead where he was wearing his new hat.

“Hey!” he exclaimed. “Rarity just made this!”

The white unicorn’s mouth fell open for a moment and then she gritted her teeth, fire of a different kind seeming to burn in her blue eyes.

“HOW DARE YOU!” she screamed. “Nopony attacks my outfits! I shall see you answer for this CRIME AGAINST FASHION!”
Rainbow Dash was seized in the cold blue magic and thrown onto an outfitting stand. Rarity then took a number of threads and tied her latest creations assailant up with them.

“Hey let me out of here!” Rainbow struggled.

“Oh, I will darling!” Rarity promised with a somewhat sinister look. “Right after a makeover!”

“What?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed before seeing Rarity grab several makeup kits and gulping.

“No! No! Nooooo!”

Rarity took the brushes and began painting Rainbow’s face. She made her way down her coat and covered her entire body as well.

Finally… “Hmm, I think that will do nicely,” Rarity said.

“I agree!” Fire said as he looked at the masterpiece before him.

Rainbow Dash had been painted white with a bit of red on her nose, giving her a clown like appearance. Fire pulled a mirror as Rarity untied their ‘captive’. Rainbow Dash screamed.

“There you go Clown Dash!” Fire said. “Now everyone can laugh with you! Or at you!”

He and Rarity laughed as Rainbow Dash ran out, humiliated. Soon the two fashionable ponies (at least somewhat in Fire’s case) gathered themselves.

“Well, that may have been a little extreme but she brought it on herself,” Rarity said.

“I don’t blame ya,” Fire said looking up at his head.

“Now let’s get that stain out of your hat. I think I can manage that.”

…

Rainbow Dash likewise had to take a long bath to get all the paint off.

“Finally!” she said. “Man, Fire just beats me at pranks! Gotta be something I can do to get him!”

Then an idea occurred. “Maybe I don’t need to target him. But somepony close to him.”

She began writing a letter and then flew to Canterlot, finding the residence soon enough. She smirked as she left the note in front of the house.

“Fire’s gonna get an unexpected happy visitor tomorrow.”

…

There was a knock on the front door the next morning as Fire was about to finish his waffle breakfast. He looked toward it in surprise.

"I wasn't expecting any visitors today!" he said.

"I'll see who it is," Vine Archer said going to the door.

He walked out of the kitchen and headed to the door. Fire meanwhile took the last bite of his waffle. Just in time as the visitor came in and he saw Moondancer who smiled at him.

"Oh hey Moondancer what are you-

"Oh Fire!" Moondancer exclaimed as she ran over and hugged him to his surprise. "I can't believe you feel that strong about me! I feel like I'm in a fairy tail!"

Fire looked at her in confusion. "Uh... what are you talking about?"

"Your note!" Moondancer said levitating it out of her saddle bag.

Fire looked at it and saw some rather flirtatious words.

"Uh... I didn't send this!"

Moondancer's smile faded. "What? But then who?"

Fire then frowned as the answer came to him.

"Rainbow Dash!" he shouted so loudly it could be heard outside of Warm Heart Tower.

…

Up in the sky, the sky blue Pegasus heard as she lay on her cloud. "Well looks like I get the last laugh here!"

"At least for this chapter!" Pinkie Pie said down below her on the ground before waving up ahead at the fourth wall. "See you next time!"

Chapter 25: Diamond Birthday

Fire had a major talk with Rainbow Dash for her prank on Moondancer which had simply gone too far. She apologized for that at least and they both forgave her (after she did them a few favors). Then time just seemed to go by quickly as the holidays began to come upon them. Before that, they had something else to see to, one of Fire's friends, the most beautiful unicorn he had ever laid eyes on was having her birthday.

And she was taking it… well.

"Oh this is a disaster I just can't decide whether to have my party at the Boutique or Sugarcube Corner!" Rarity exclaimed dramatically. "The Boutique is the place of refinement I daresay! But Sugarcube Corner is perfect for Birthdays!"

"Aww! Come on you know you'll love the party, and not to mention the unlimited cupcakes all around you!" Pinkie Pie said joyously.

Twilight put a hoof on her fellow unicorn's shoulder. "You just think about it, Rarity. I'm sure you'll make the right choice."

"Do we really have to have formal attire?" Applejack asked.

"Yes, this is my party so I make the rules. Surely wearing something fabulous for a couple hours wouldn't kill you!" Rarity said.

"I would certainly say not!" Spike said as he looked at her with a heavy blush.

“But I’m still uncertain where to have it!” Rarity said.

"If you want Rarity, you can have your party at Warm Heart Tower," Fire suggested. "We got plenty of room in the entry hall. We could have a dance party with music. I'm sure Lyra Heartstrings can play her harp if I ask her."

“Oh, that sounds marvelous!” Rarity said walking over and giving him a hug. “Thank you, Prince Fire!”

“No problem,” Fire said returning the hug.

He made his way to Lyra’s house and knocked on the door. She soon answered.

“Hello Fire,” the green unicorn greeted.

“Hi Lyra,” Fire said. “I have a little favor to ask. Could you play some music at Warm Heart Tower tomorrow for a birthday?”

Lyra smiled. "I’d love to! Music is my special talent after all, especially when it comes to the harp.”

“I know,” Fire said looking at her cutie mark which was of a harp. “You were pretty good at school.”

“I’ll get the choir I joined here in town and we’ll head to Warm Heart Tower on the day,” Lyra promised.

“Thanks Ly,” Fire said.

“So, I heard you’re taking Moondancer to the Grand Galloping Gala,” Lyra said.

“Uh, yeah,” Fire replied.

“I actually managed to get a ticket!” Lyra told him excitedly. “Pretty expensive but it is the biggest party in Canterlot.”

“Good for you,” Fire said, hoping she would have a good night even if the party wasn’t usually that great. “Are you going on a date with somepony?”

“You could say that,” Lyra said looking over her shoulder at Bonbon who blushed.

Fire’s eyes widened a bit. “Oh, you two are together like that huh?”

“Yeah. I just… never felt a major attraction to stallions,” Lyra told him. “No offense. You were always pretty cool though.”

“None taken,” Fire replied. “We all have our preferences. Do what makes you happy Lyra.”

She nodded. “Thanks. So are you doing anything for Hearth’s Warming after this?”

“I’m going back home to Canterlot. Get to know my Aunt Luna better since I haven’t had the chance yet and I’ll be able to see Cadance as well.”

Lyra smiled at the mention of the princess of love. “She was always so nice when she visited us in Kindergarten. How is she?”

“Doing well from my last letter,” Fire said. “I’ll be seeing her soon since she’s due back in Canterlot just before Heath’s Warming so perfect timing.”

“Good, I’ll be heading back as well to see my family,” Lyra said.

“And I’ll be coming along,” Bonbon added putting a foreleg around the green unicorn who blushed.

Fire frowned at her. “Uh, are you sure that’s okay?”

“Huh?” Lyra asked. “Why wouldn’t it be? She’s coming to the gala”

“Everything’s fine,” Bonbon assured him. “Not a problem.”

Fire nodded in response.

“What are you talking about?” Lyra asked looking from her friend (or perhaps more than friend) to Fire. “Is there something I don’t know about?”

Fire looked at Bonbon. “I’ll leave that for you to decide, Bonbon. But if you two are gonna be together like that I think there shouldn’t be any secrets between you.”

The yellow Earth Pony clutched her teeth nervously as Lyra looked at her.

“What is he talking about?” Fire heard her ask as he left.

He walked back along the streets heading home, but couldn’t help thinking he was missing something as he did so.

“Hmm, what could I be forgetting?” Fire asked.

“Hey Fire!” a loud and silly voice called.

Fire was startled as Pinkie Pie seemed to appear out of nowhere.

“Hey Pinkie,” Fire greeted.

“Can I help you with getting the party ready?” the pink pony asked.

“Sure,” Fire said.

“I can handle the decorations and the cake! Rarity loves vanilla oat flavor, and I got her a few pink yarn balls she can use for either her fashion making or to play with her cat.”

At those words, Fire put his hoofs to his head. “By my mother! That’s what I’m missing! A present!”

He began to panic. “Oh what do I do? The party is tomorrow! I got to find something for her!

“Oh relax,” Pinkie said. “You’re getting yourself all fired up here! Get it? Cause you’re fire?”

Fire took a few deep breaths. “Yeah, I need to just be calm and not lose my head.”

“That’s the spirit!” Pinkie said. “You’re sure to find something special for Rarity.”

“Thanks Pinkie,” Fire said appreciatively. “Well, I’m off to find the perfect gift! You mind decorating my entry way for the party if I can’t make it?”

Pinkie smiled. “No problem!”

“Just tell the guards I sent you and you shouldn’t have a problem.”

“Got it!” Pinkie ran off to Warm Heart Tower.

…

Fire looked around Ponyville in various shops but found nothing there. He then flew to Canterlot and arrived as the sun was beginning. He wondered the shopping area of Canterlot. He’d looked at the jewelry stores in Ponyville, and while they had some decent craftsponyship there he knew the ones at Canterlot were the trusted royal jewelers. And a mare like Rarity deserved the best.

“What oh what to get her?” Fire asked himself.

He looked at the jewelry stores and dress shops, but Rarity had plenty of those from the dozen or so times he’d been in her boutique. A part of him wished he could find something grand enough for her to choose him instead of Blueblood.

He could imagine himself presenting the gift to Rarity in a box, she would open it and gasp before saying “Oh Fire! This is such a magnificent gift! I love it! I love... you! You are the most noble and gracious prince in Equestria! I'm sorry I ever liked Blueblood! You are a better prince and I want to marry you!

"Rarity..." Fire said in his fantasy and they leaned in to kiss each other.

Fire sighed as he returned to the real world of Equestria. "If only that could come true. But she's in love with Blueblood. Stil I can get her something she'll love."

Fire looked around and saw beds, couches and other things. But Rarity already had a number of those and wouldn't be in need of furniture for a while. But then, Fire saws something that made his mouth fall open. A number of vases that held a variety of sparkling jewels in the shape of flowers.

They came in several different colors. Rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. Fire looked at the sapphires which reminded him of Rarity’s eyes.

"Yes! That is perfect!" Fire said. “Flowers that will never wilt!”

He approached the counter and bought them. This would have cost any common pony a fair portion of their life savings, but Fire had the luxury of being a prince of Equestria with thousands of bits at his disposal. He went to the castle and got the money from the royal treasury and then returned to the shop. Finally, he had the perfect gift for the perfect mare.

The gift was wrapped in a gift box filled with bubble wrap to keep from breaking and then sealed with a blue ribbon. Fire took it in his magic then exited the shop. He spread his wings and flew back to Ponyville just in time for sundown. After a late dinner he went to bed, looking forward to what would come at the party tomorrow.

...

Rarity inspected herself in the mirror, she wore a blue dress with a swirling frosting like design. Her birthday dress that she’d made a couple years ago. She also wore her personal diamond party hat.

"Perfect," she told herself in approval. "Worthy of a princess on her birthday! And one day I will be one! When I marry… Blueblood."

She sighed, more and more her attraction toward Fire Sword was growing.

“Get ahold of yourself Rarity, Fire will be happy with Moondance and you’ll be happy with Blueblood!” she said. “Just a bit more time and the gala will be here. You’ll be able to put this behind me once you see your prince.”

She took a breath to compose herself and walked down the stairs of her home and out the front door, her head held high elegantly as she made her way to Warm Heart Tower, the cool winter breeze running over her body.

“Ooh a little chilly,” Rarity remarked. “But I do have a fur coat underneath. At least its not snowing for another week.”

She soon found herself at the prince’s home and found Lieutenant Vine Archer and another guard at the door.

“Welcome Miss Rarity,” the lieutenant said as he opened the door for her. “Happy birthday.”

“Thank you good sir,” she replied as she made her way.

She saw the decorations hung up in the form of banners holding her cutie mark as well as a happy birthday sign. Music played as she entered and Rarity saw the source of the music was Lyra Heartstrings and some other ponies. They played for only a few seconds and then-

“Happy Birthday!” all of her friends said as they surrounded her in a group hug.

“Thank you everypony!” Rarity said.

All of her friends had their outfits and party hats that matched their cutie marks. She then looked around for Fire and saw him on his throne, which was the first time she could recall him being there. He wore a red party hat with orange flames and swords on it, as well as well as a red suit and orange tie.

“As the prince of this tower, I declare this party is now… in full swing!” Fire said flapping his wings.

The girls al whooped in excitement. The choir began to play beautiful music and the first event Rarity had wanted began. A dance party.

Fire approached her and offered his hoof.

“May I have this dance my fair unicorn?”

She smiled at him, “You certainly may, my handsome alicorn!”

Rarity took his hoof and they took the center of the entry way that for the party served as the dance floor. They twirled and spun, Rarity’s hoofs on Fire’s neck and his on her waist, just as they had during the Nightmare Night party at the Rich family house. Twilight and the others did their own group dancing for the most part except for Applejack and Grand Garden who were awkwardly dancing as partners as well.

“Ow!” Grand said as Applejack accidently stepped on his hoof.

“Oops! Sorry Grand!” Applejack said to her… Rarity wasn’t sure what they were at the moment. They’d gone on a couple more dates but weren’t official as far as she knew yet. Maybe in time though.

“Its alright Applejack,” Grand said.

They danced for a good half hour and did a variety of other party activities afterwards, such as pony train where the birthday pony walked in the lead with the others following. Rarity blushed as she felt Fire’s hooves on her hind legs near her flank while Twilight came up behind him, followed by Fluttershy, and so on.

They ate the cake with Rainbow Dash lifting some to throw at Fire and start a food fight. But recalling the makeover she’d gotten in retaliation from both him and Rarity, she lowered her hoof at their mutual glare.

“No ruffian behavior at my party!” Rarity said. “Or you’ll be missing a few feathers in your wings.”

“I think I’ll permit a little rough housing at mine,” Fire said.

“I’ll be sure to remember that!” Rainbow Dash said.

They ate their fill of cake. Finally the time came for Rarity to open her presents. She got a red bandanna with green apples on it from Applejack.

“Just in case you wanted something appropriate to wear when you might help me on the farm. Though that’s a pretty rare occurrence for you Rarity,” Applejack said. “Whoa, didn’t mean to make that a rhyme.”

“Thank you, Applejack,” Rarity said with a nod. “And yes that is correct. I believe that time when you were working yourself to near death was the only time I ever helped on your farm. But if you really need my help, I’ll be there.”

“Thanks. But unless Big Mac hurts himself I think I’ll be good. Still, best to be prepared,” Applejack said.

Twilight got Rarity a book on ancient Equestria fashion and decoration making.

“One of the few remaining original copies,” Twilight said.

“Thank you Twilight,” Rarity said as she forced a smile looking at the rather old book.

Fluttershy got her a fresh set of sewing pins.

“Oh good, mine are getting old and in need of replacing,” Rarity said.

Rainbow’s gift was a Wonderbolts shirt.

“For when I become a Wonderbolt so you can look like a real fan!”

“I shall cheer loudly,” Rarity promised. “For you Rainbow Dash.”

Next came Pinkie’s gift of a sketch book.

“I know you like to draw the outfits you make before you make them,” Pinkie said.

“Thank you, this will be quite useful,” Rarity agreed before turning to the last present.

Lighting up her horn, Rarity pulled blue ribbon off of the red box, pulled the item out, and unwrapped the protective packaging.

She gasped as she beheld the sapphire flowers. “Oh this is beautiful Fire! I love it!” Rarity said as she hugged him. “Flowers that I can look at forever!

“Thought you would,” Fire said returning the hug. “They may require a little cleaning now and then but they’ll never wilt.”

“You are such a wonderful friend and prince,” Rarity said as she kissed him on the cheek.

Fire blushed. Everypony else watched with smiles. Though one dragon frowned.

“Thank you everypony for a wonderful party with my friends!” Rarity said looking around. “You are the best friends a pony can ask for.”

They all smiled hearing that. Rarity gathered her presents and gave the remains of her cake to the choir.

“Thank you for a wonderful performance,” she told Lyra as she levitated a piece to her. “Enjoy this on me!”

“Thank you Rarity,” Lyra accepted the cake and took a bite of it along with the other members.

Rarity turned back to her friends. “I will see you all soon. For now I must prepare to join Sweetie Belle and our parents for their birthday appointment with me.”

“Bye Rarity!” Fire said. “Enjoy the rest of your birthday!”

“I will,” she said as she made her way out elegantly.

Twilight then looked at Fire. “This was a great party Fire.”

“You can thank Pinkie Pie for putting it all together since I had to hunt down a gift for Rarity at the last minute,” Fire said gesturing to the decorations.

“See you later Grand,” Applejack waved.

“Bye, my sweet Apple,” Grand said with a wink.

Applejack chuckled at that. “Ah shucks you… uh… Heart Digger?”

Might not have been the best come back. But it worked for Grand. The two maids of Warm Heart Tower began to clean everything up while the five other mares began their walk home, Spike following.

“Fire and Rarity seriously need to get together,” Rainbow Dash whispered to Applejack who nodded. “Its so obvious they like each other, yet they don’t know they both do.”

“Fire did kinda set me up with Grand,” Applejack said. “Maybe its my turn to return the favor?”

“You know what’s coming up right?” Rainbow asked.

“What?”

“Hearth’s Warming Eve!” Rainbow Dash said.

“Yeah, so?”

“So you know what they have at Heath’s Warming?”

“Gifts and lots of food?” Applejack guessed.

“That, and mistletoe!” Rainbow reminded her.

Applejack frowned. “I thought you would have learned your lesson after that prank on Moondancer!”

“Aww come on. This is to help them!” Rainbow Dash said.

“I’m in!” Pinkie said. “Maybe if they kiss they’ll realize they’re right for each other.”

“Leh,” Spike stuck his tongue out.

“But what about Moondancer and Prince Blueblood?” Fluttershy asked.

“Well sure Moondancer might be hurt but she can probably find another stallion,” Rainbow said. “And Blueblood’s never even met Rarity before so he probably wouldn’t care!”

“But what if it doesn’t work out?” Fluttershy asked. “What if they break up so badly and are mad at each other?

“That kind of thing happens in love,” Pinkie Pie said. “Even among family.”

“Girls, I think it would be best if we just stay out of this,” Twilight tried to reason before Rainbow could answer. “We can’t force love! Sure they fancy each other but these things take time.”

“They’ve taken a lot of time already!” Rainbow Dash said. “They need a little push or they’re gonna remain unaware of the other liking them and waste a bunch of time with the wrong pony!”

The only one not joining in the conversation of possibly helping the two love ponies get together was Spike who frowned.

“We’ll see if I can get a kiss from Rarity on Hearth’s Warming,” Spike declared to himself. “Just get myself under the mistletoe with her and I’ll have my dream come true!”

Chapter 26: A Royal Hearth's Warming Part 1

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 27: Royal Hearth's Warming Part 2

Fire sat on the train with Twilight and Spike as they sped toward Canterlot. Fire could have flown there, even without the aid of his royal guards who were probably enjoying themselves with their families or about to. He had hung up his sheriff attire and was now clad in his crown and a red and yellow scarf around his neck. Smoky was curled up on the seat next to Fire who stroked the cat. For the most part it was silent as of them were busy reading. Books for Fire and Twilight, with the former petting his new cat every so often. Spike meanwhile had a comic book out. Not that any of them minded, as Twilight enjoyed her reading time undisturbed.

After a while of silence, Fire felt it was probably okay to talk to her.

"So, Twilight what are you going to do with your family for the holidays?" Fire asked.

"Well, they said they want to stay for Hearth's Warming then we were planning to go in the hills between her and Ponyville," Twilight told him, looking up from her book.

"That should be lots of fun!" Spike said with a smile.

"Other than that, I'm gonna be reading," Twilight said.

"Why am I not surprised?" Spike muttered.

"Oh, come on Spike you like reading to!" Twilight reminded him.

"Yeah, comic books," Spike resumed reading the comic in his clawed hands.

"How about you Fire?" Twilight asked.

"Getting together with my mom and Aunt Luna, as well as my cousins," he said.

He was looking forward to seeing Cadance, but not Blueblood.

…

Their train finally arrived in the Equestrian Capital that all three of them had called home for most of their lives. The doors opened and the three of them stepped outside into the cool weather of the station. Fire looked at the lavender unicorn.

"Well, we've certainly come a long way in the past several months huh, Twilight?" Fire asked.

"Yes, there's so much I've learned about the magic of friendship and there's probably so much more still to learn," Twilight said.

"Yeah," Fire agreed. "I've learned a bit as well."

Like maybe just six guards for his tower wasn't enough for security around his home, especially when only two of them were left behind. He also should have maybe tried harder to get Rarity and Applejack to get along during that sleep over rather then get angry at the mess they created and leave them to clean it up. Lastly even members of the Royal Guard could not always be trusted, and he shouldn't rush into fights when things might not be as they appear. Maybe he could learn a bit more?

Still he had enjoyed all of the adventures with the mares so far. More would come, and hopefully he'd be able to find love along the way. Rarity was out, but hopefully things would work out with him and Moondancer or somepony else. He'd take Moondancer to the gala in a few more months, but he felt as though maybe he should do more with her. He didn't know if they were right for each other, maybe his standards were just high? But he knew she was a great mare, all of the mares he knew were great in their own way.

"Well, hope you and your family have a good time together. Send Princess Celestia my regards," Twilight said as she stepped forward and hugged him.

"I will," Fire said returning the hug.

He then looked at Spike. "See you little guy."

He extended his hoof and Spike shook it after a brief hesitation. "Bye Fire. Hope you have a good Hearth's Warming."

They went their separate ways with Fire heading to the castle while Twilight and Spike headed into the housing district they lived. As Fire walked up the path to the palace he was slightly surprised to find a group of royal guards there waiting. Several of them held trumpets.

"Presenting his royal highness, the son of Princess Celestia herself! Prince Fire Sword!" an announcer called.

Trumpets sounded and Fire couldn't help but smile as he made his way to the castle. Then the doors to the inside of the structure opened and the three alicorn princesses stepped out. The first and largest in the center was white, then there was a different but recognizable dark blue one, and finally a pink alicorn. All wore crowns on their heads.

"Welcome home, Fire Sword!" Princess Celestia said.

"Mom!" Fire walked over and hugged her.

Celestia returned the hug. "So good to have you home for a while.”

"I'll say!" the pink alicorn said.

"Cadance!" Fire exclaimed.

"Hello little brother," Cadance greeted with a smile.

They walked forward and kissed each other on both cheeks. Fire remembered Cadance and Twilight when they were young, doing that cute but somewhat embarrassing (at least in Fire's mind) nursery rhyme about sunshine and ladybugs.

Smokey meowed. Cadance gasped as she saw the cat. "You got a pet?"

"Yeah," Fire said. "His names Smokey.”

"Hi Smokey," Cadance said extending a hoof.

The cat sensed her loving heart, befitting since she was the Princess of Love. He walked over and nuzzled the hoof with a purr. Cadance smiled. "Smokey, huh? Fitting name for the pet of someone named Fire."

"Also reminds me of that mouse movie we watched when you were a foal," Celestia said. "Stew Small."

Fire chuckled. "Oh yeah, I forgot about that!"

Cadance then looked at him. "Did you grow more since last time?"

Fire chuckled. Another few inches and he would be eye to eye with her. "Maybe a bit. And you're still as lovely as ever."

She giggled. "Always the flatterer I see! You seem to have gotten stronger as well." Cadance looked at his muscles.

"Been pretty hard at training," Fire told her flexing his forelegs.

“I like it,” Cadance said. “You’re growing into a fine alicorn.”

“I quite agree,” Celestia said as she took her place by his side.

Fire then looked at the final, dark blue alicorn. "Aunt Luna."

"Nephew," she greeted with a small smile. “We never got the chance to thank you for freeing us when we were Nightmare Moon.”

“We?” Fire repeated looking around. “There’s only one of you.”

“Your aunt is having a little trouble adjusting to the modern day Equestria,” Celestia explained. “She still speaks as a pony from a thousand years ago. Progress has been a little… slow. She is usually up at night, in the realm of dreams. I’m usually asleep so I can’t exactly dedicate much time to teaching her to be a modern pony.”

“Strange, I don’t recall her speaking that way as Nightmare Moon,” Fire said.

“Nightmare Moon was part of us,” Luna said in response. “But she had a personality that was vastly different, speaking more as you modern ponies do. We cannot explain the reason for that. We only hope you do not hold it against us. After all we abducted your mother, attacked you and your mares.”

“My mares?” Fire asked.

“Were they not your group of lovers?”

Fire blushed intensely. “What? No! They’re just friends!”

“Oh, come now Fire!” Cadance said. “I know you fancy one of them in that nice little town! You mentioned the lovely white unicorn several times in our letters.”

“Cadance!” Fire exclaimed.

“Oh, don’t be shy about it Fire!” Celestia said. “Its only natural for us to have special feelings for somepony eventually. Rarity is quite a lovely mare. But I believe we should probably go inside. We all have a lot to catch up on. But you’ll want to put your things in your room no doubt.”

The head monarch led the way and Luna quickly followed with Fire going to stand beside her.

He looked at her. "You look different from when I last saw you. Darker blue from last time."

She nodded. "It took a while for our old form to be restored from before we turned into Nightmare Moon. But a few months of raising the moon has turned us back into the pony we once were. Though with an unpleasant lingering guilt. You never did answer whether you could forgive me or not.”

She looked at him with sad eyes. Fire smiled.

“We all make mistakes, Aunt Luna,” he said putting a foreleg around her. “I made a similar one myself when I was young.”

“Thou did?” Luna asked.

“Yes,” Fire said looking around.

This wasn’t to be public knowledge, fortunately the guards here were few in number. Most of them had been sent home, only a few remained to guard the castle and the royal family during the holidays. Most of the castle had been locked up to prevent intruders from getting in.

Once Fire was sure “When I was a foal, the day I got my cutie mark. I did something pretty bad."

He whispered it in her ear, and her eyes widened.

“By my moon!” Luna exclaimed.

“Thankfully my mom stopped me.”

Luna gave him a look of sympathy. “Seems you didn’t need to be banished to the moon like we were. Thank the stars. If you’d been banished with us, I probably would have attempted to get you to join me.”

“Well, I was just a colt,” Fire said. “But one mistake doesn’t mean you’re a bad pony.”

“One bad act doesn’t wash out the good,” Celestia said. “Nor the good the bad. But you are my family and all I have.”

Fire smiled at her. He made his way to his old room and dropped off his suitcase. Smokey jumped on the bed and circled around before laying down. Aurora was there too, having been transported ahead by some of the Royal Guards. She tweeted in her cage. Fire checked to make sure she had water and bird seed.

“All good in there, Aurora?” he asked.

The bird tweeted in response. Fire understood it however thanks to having not only the abilities of a unicorn or Pegasus but an Earth Ponies ability to communicate with animals. Strangely Fluttershy had this ability as well, despite being a Pegasus. Perhaps she had some Earth Pony blood? There were times when set of pony parents might have children that neither of their kind, and sometimes even a unicorn had weak magical abilities or other instances. Fluttershy seemed to have gotten an Earth Ponies ability to communicate with animals.

At times Fire wondered where he got his abilities. The fire magic part obviously came from his mother, but the combat aspect? His father perhaps? Celestia still refused to tell him the identity of his sire. Could he be a royal guard? That seemed to make the most sense as that was where ponies who received combat cutie marks were often enlisted.

Fire had no idea who though. There were hundreds of Royal Guards. It would have to be someone who’d been in there as an adult, he doubted his mother would ever lay with a teenage stallion. Still, even the oldest ponies could be considered children next to Celestia. But she had been with someone however briefly. Fire just wished he knew who his father was. He put that out of his head for the moment. He had something else to do.

“Come Smoky,” Fire said.

He levitated the cat onto his back, feeling the claws going into his fur. It didn’t hurt at least. He walked out onto his balcony and flew to where he knew the royal cat room was. They kept several cats in the castle to keep rats out. And that was just a small number of the animals that Celestia kept. The gardens had a wide variety of critters, which were sadly shy to most ponies.

Fire opened the door, finding about a dozen cats resting inside. There were litter boxes as well. Fire looked at them, he had thought of leaving Smoky here until he got a litter box, but it would be just as easy to borrow one. He took one of the boxes in his magic and flew back to his tower. He set the box near the top of the stairs were it wouldn’t stink up his room.

“There you go Smoky, you just go whenever you have to,” Fire said stroking the cat’s ears. “And feel free to explore the castle. But be careful, it can be a bit of a maze for somepony… or some cat new.”

“Reow.” Smoky meowed.

Fire gave the cat one final stroke and made his way to the royal dining hall. His family was there, all three of the female alicorns, along with several guests. Most of them were nobles, Fire spotted Fancy Pants, Fleur De Lis, and his old teacher General Bloodheart, a large brown stallion almost equal to Celestia in size. He had a black mane and cutie mark of crossed swords on top of a red heart. He sat on the edge of Celestia’s table on her right, leaving one seat available between him and Celestia. Fire took it.

“Prince Fire,” the general said.

“General Bloodheart,” Fire greeted.

“It’s good to see you,” the old stallion said with a small smile.

Fire nodded. He then looked at Cadance, slightly wishing he was sitting next to her as she was currently seated next to some… unpleasant company. She sat between Luna and Prince Blueblood. The other prince was a unicorn, and like Cadance was an adopted member of the family, though his lineage went back several generations. Celestia had been close to one of Blueblood’s ancestors and considered them a sibling like Fire did to Cadance. Celestia had mainly called Cadance her niece since she already had parents. Though Fire had never met them himself. They preferred to live a humble life as Earth Ponies.

Fire felt a desire to try and switch places with Blueblood. To save Cadance from having to endure him. But that wouldn’t look good and could cause a scene. At least they were sitting in silence for the moment.

But that didn’t last long. A moment after Fire sat down, Celestia levitated a spoon and used it to tap her goblet to get everypony’s attention.

“Welcome all to this Hearth’s Warming dinner!” Celestia addressed the nobles. “The year is ending, and soon a new one will dawn. Much change came this year, my son Prince Fire Sword helped defeat Nightmare Moon and return her to her true form my younger sister Princess Luna. There are also now a new group of heroes that will be ready to be called upon if the situation ever demands it. But for tonight, it is a time for family. Tomorrow we will be spending all our time with them!”

There was a cheer at Celestia’s speech from most of the ponies. But General Bloodheart sighed next to Fire, drawing his attention.

“Something wrong, General?” Fire asked.

“Um… yes well, I don’t have a family,” the general said with a heavy heart. “Not anymore.”

Fire’s eyes widened. “I didn’t know that. What happened?”

The old stallion hesitated. “It’s complicated.”

He paused for another moment then decided to tell his story. “You might not know this but I come from one of the one of the oldest and proudest military families in Canterlot. We’ve been members of Celestia’s guards for generations. I followed in those hoofsteps, and expected my son, Freedom Finder to do so as well. But he had other ideas. He wanted to become an artist. I was against the idea, saying it is was a job that paid less and he should proud to carry on our legacy. But he went anyway, against my wishes and left.”

Bloodheart looked from Fire. “I regret trying to force him down a path I thought was best.”

Fire nodded. “At least you see your mistake then. Do you know where your son is now?”

“In Vanhoover, he has a wife and son.”

“Maybe you should reach out to him.” Fire suggested.

Bloodheart shook his head. “He doesn’t want to see me. I’ve tried.”

That was sad. Fire put a hoof on the general.

“I’m sorry,” he said kindly.

“Thank you, Prince Fire,” Bloodheart said forming a smile, his eyes seeming to gleam with something. Pride maybe?

“I heard you defeated Nightmare Moon, as well as some thieves and a traitor in our ranks.”

“Yes,” Fire confirmed.

“That’s good. I’m sure your mother is proud,” General Bloodheart said glancing at Celestia with a small grin. “And your father, whoever he might be.”

“If I only I knew,” Fire shrugged.

Bloodheart looked away and saw the plate in front of him. They then noticed all the others had started eating. “Oh, dear seems we got distracted, son. I mean Prince Fire, sorry!”

Fire blushed. Seemed the general was getting familiar with him.

“It's alright general.”

He began to eat, but was soon faced with another, ruder interruption.

“To my cousins who have finally returned to the splendor of Canterlot!” Blueblood raising his wine glass. “I shall never understand why you would want to leave! Well, a tour of the land is one thing but living in a dump town? That only shows you have no royal pride!”

“Blueblood! Are you drunk?” Celestia asked.

Even if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t be much better.

“The ponies of Ponyville are much friendlier then here!” Fire stated. “You might even find a diamond in the haystack if you really look.”

Blueblood scoffed. “I doubt it. The only ponies worth spending time with are those of stature, means or at least looks.”

Well Rarity had looks. That would at least get her Blueblood’s attention. Cadance and Fire both frowned. Even Celestia was beginning to lose her patience, though she didn’t show it as openly.

“Prince Blueblood please watch your tongue or I may have to send you somewhere until you are sober,” she said.

That caused Blueblood to shut up. They ate their food as the musicians sung and played instruments. Some of the nobles began to dance as well. Fire finished his food and then got up and walked over to Cadance.

“Care to dance, my fair cousin by adoption and sister to my heart?” He offered a hoof.

“I think I’d like that, little brother to my heart.” Cadance accepted.

Fire pulled her out of her seat and they walked out into the center of the hall. They’d always liked dancing, Cadance had been the one to teach him.

"Sister, we are confused," Luna whispered looking at Fire and Cadance as they began to dance. "They are cousins, yes? Yet they refer to themselves as brother and sister?"

Celestia chuckled. "It’s a bit complicated. Cadance is my... our niece by adoption. When she earned her horn just a couple years after Fire was born, I took her under my wing so to speak. I taught her to rule as I knew she would one day in the land that will one day return. She very much enjoyed caring for young foals, including Fire. They would spend a lot of time together. She'd teach him to fly and use his magic. Some in Canterlot believed that I had made Cadance an alicorn to provide Fire with a future bride as she was an alicorn... and you know what many of them think we are." Celestia told Luna.

Luna nodded. "Immortal."

Celestia nodded back. "Well, Fire heard of this and began to even develop a crush on Cadance."

She thought back to those days when Fire would look at Cadance with that special gleam in his eyes, unable to take his eyes off her and blushing when she kissed him on the cheek every now and then. A picture of that released on the front page of the Canterlot newspaper only served to further credit the rumors.

“But when I brought him and Cadance together to tell them the truth.”

Flashback:

"I heard you two are thinking about perhaps marrying when you come of age, Fire," Celestia said as she sat on her throne before the two younger alicorns.

"Well... yeah," Fire said blushing. "Everyone thinks we are going to someday! And Cadance is the most beautiful alicorn there is! She’s also smart, kind and loving!"

Cadance blushed intensely at that. "Careful now, Fire. I don't think it would be appropriate for me to be compared to the head monarch. But thank you."

Celestia didn't get angry, however. "I am happy you two love each other so much. But you're both very young, especially you Fire. There is no need to worry about such things for a long time. Nor do you need to force yourselves to marry each other."

Cadance looked at her. "But we're immortal or at least capable of living for thousands of years. Everypony says so. And Fire is the only male alicorn in Equestria. If I marry anypony but an alicorn I'd outlive them by a long long time! Better to have just one husband for a lifetime right?"

Celestia looked down. "That would be ideal I suppose but not even Equestria is a perfect place, my little ponies. But this is only because you think you're both immortal?"

"No! I love Cadance!" Fire declared. "And she loves me! Right Cadance?"

Cadance hesitated. She did love him, truly. But she wasn't quite sure if it was the right kind of love. Still, it made the most sense for her to marry a fellow immortal or long lived alicorn. She was just a few years older him and could wait but-

"Of course I love you, Fire. I have no doubt you'll grow into a fine alicorn someday and make a marry very happy."

She then looked at her adoptive aunt (and possible future mother-in-law), noticing her words from a moment ago. "But what do you mean because we think we're both immortal? Aren't we?"

Celestia turned to her guards. "Leave us."

They did as ordered, leaving the ruler of the land with the two who would one day becomes rulers as well.

"Many ponies think that because I've lived so long, it’s part of being an alicorn."

"It's not?" Fire asked surprised.

"No," Celestia said. "My longevity comes from my immense magic power over the sun. Every time I raise the sun or moon my power is rejuvenated and I am able to remain young. Your Aunt Luna has the same power, but her body is in a sort of suspended animation while she is in the moon. Her consciousness still remains, but I doubt she is aware of what is happening her in Equestria as it so far away."

Fire and Cadance listened.

“So, we don’t have to marry someday then?” Cadance asked.

“No not at all,” Celestia said calmly. “Not unless you both want to.”

Cadance looked at Fire. She had for a time thought it might be best if they did marry when they both came of age. But now...

“I love you Fire. But I’m… just not sure its that kind of love,” she said. “You’re more like a… little brother to me.”

End Flashback:

“So in the end, Cadance felt they were more like siblings. Fire was upset for a while but eventually understood." Celestia concluded.

“That’s quite a story,” Luna said.

“Yes, and its not over yet.” Celestia declared. “We’ll have to wait and see what happens.”

They spent the next few days together as a family. General Bloodheart stayed with them, which was a comfort for Fire since he wasn’t the only stallion present. They exchanged gifts the next morning in the royal quarters where a Hearth’s Warming Tree had been put up with the presents underneath.

Fire had made each of his relatives a sketched picture of all of them together. A sun and moon were drew above them. Though the picture of Luna was of her in her lighter blue form that he’d seen after freeing her. He’d had to look at a newspaper that showed her returning to Canterlot and traced the image to make sure he got it right then put himself, Celestia and Cadance in.

“Not entirely accurate,” he said with a blush.

“It is still us. Quiet lovely,” Luna said. “You have some decent art skills, nephew.”

Fire smiled. “Another talent I guess, even if my special one is playing with swords and fire.”

“Just make sure you don’t get cut or burned,” Cadance said.

They chuckled at that joke.

“Well can’t promise that,” Fire said. “Combat ponies like me, we live dangerous lives every now and then.”

Fire looked at General Bloodheart. “I’m sorry I couldn’t get you anything General. I didn’t know you were staying with us.”

“It's alright Prince Fire,” the old stallion said. “At my age I don’t have much that I need in the way of material goods. It feels good just to be welcomed as an honorary member of the royal family.”

“You served me well for many years General,” Celestia said. “You are as good as family.”

She stepped forward and nuzzled the stallion who was almost as tall as she was. He blushed, no doubt most ponies would be overwhelmed at the thought of being touched in such a way by Celestia.

Fire received a shield, medallion, and helmet with a built on crown. All of them were gold colored and adorned with rubies. The shield bore a red crescent moon on the center like Luna’s cutie mark. The medallion’s ruby was in the shape of a heart like Cadance’s mark.

“I know you usually wear your crown with your armor,” Celestia said. “Or at least you used to. But a helmet is more practical.”

She pointed to his current winter wardrobe.

“And I thought you might want some extra protection in case you ever have to go up against a powerful villain again,” Luna said. “I had it enchanted to be able to reflect magical attacks.”

“Thank you, Aunt Luna,” Fire said. “This could be useful.”

“I kinda miss wearing armor all the time,” Fire admitted. “But Heath’s Warming probably isn’t the occasion for it. At least I can summon it if I need it. Thanks.”

“And my medallion is infused with healing magic,” Cadance said. “I hope it will protect you in a time of danger. Take it with my love little brother.”

“Thanks Cadance,” he said. “I’m sure they’ll all prove useful in battle.”

“I have something as well,” General Bloodheart said.

He reached into his saddlebag and pulled out a small paper wrapped object complete with a bow. Fire opened it and saw a gold hilted dagger in a scabbard lined with jewels.

“This dagger has been in my family for generations,” General Bloodheart said. “My son would have inherited it but he said he wanted nothing to do ‘relics of the past’ when I tried to send him a letter about it.”

Fire frowned. Even if they’d had a falling out about careers, that was no reason to turn away from a family treasure. Bloodheart’s son seemed to have a lot of resentment.

“You sure you want me to take that?” Fire asked.

“I am,” Bloodheart said. “After all, many royal guard weapons are kept here after they leave this world. But I’d like you in particular to have it. May it serve you well if you ever drop your sword.”

“Thank you,” Fire said.

…

The next few days passed and the new year was upon them. Snow covered Canterlot and Fire was at the front door to the castle with Cadance. His Flame Guard had assembled and were ready to escort him back to Warm Heart Tower. Aurora and Smoky both flew or walked by his side respectively.

“Send Twilight Sparkle my love,” Cadance said. “Or better remind her with that nursery rhyme I used to do with her.”

Sunshine sunshine!

Ladybugs awake!

Clap your hooves and do a little shake!

Fire clenched his teeth in embarrassment. “Uh… will do!” he lied.

He’d probably just send her Cadance’s love.

“I hope to see you again soon,” Cadance said nuzzling him. “And I hope you find a great mare the next time we see each other.”

“I hope so too,” Fire said.

His mind turned to Rarity, but he knew that wasn’t happening unless Blueblood rejected her. But even he would probably see her beauty. Fire just hoped he treated her right, for the sake of her dream.

“Let’s go guys,” he said.

He led them through the door and back to Ponyville.

Author's Note

Hope you enjoyed this latest chapter that featured a little royal time and much of Fire’s backstory. General Bloodheart is an original character I’ve used before in my G5 fanfic, My Little Pony: Make Your Mark In Love. He was one of the secondary antagonists there, serving as the leader of Opaline’s forces. I guess this would be considered a heroic counterpart for him. I might bring in another of my original characters from that story as well but I won’t say which one. Up next, back into canon with Winter Wrap Up.

I tried to replicate Luna’s speech we saw from Luna Eclipsed. Though I might have to go back to that episode as I only managed to see a small amount of it before writing this. Any suggestions or error spots are appreciated for that and future chapters if you have any changes in mind you’d like to see.

Chapter 28: Winter Wrap Up

The months seemed to just fly by in Ponyville as cool fun was held. Snowponies were made, snowballs fights were had, all that good cold stuff. While Fire preferred warmth, he still appreciated a good time in the snow. But that was all coming to an end today. Fire awoke when the sun was just starting to rise then got his red winter coat that Rarity had made him. He ate a quick breakfast then flew to Town Hall where Mayor Mare was addressing the town residents. He flew by her side next to the entrance.

“Good morning, Mayor Mare,” Fire greeted.

“Good morning, Prince Fire,” the mayor greeted in return. “I was just about to begin my speech for the start of Winter Wrap Up. Would you care to add anything?”

“Well, lets see how it goes.” Fire replied.

They waited for a while as many of the ponies came out of their houses. After the Mayor felt that there was enough ponies there she began her speech.

“Thank you, everypony, for being here bright and early. We need every single pony's help to wrap up winter, and bring in spring.”

She looked around at the ponies as she spoke to ensure she was speaking to all of them. The ponies cheered, all eager to help however they could. The Mayor then looked at Fire.

“Do you have anything you’d like to add Prince Fire?” she asked.

Fire thought for a moment then stepped forward. “Well, this is a new experience for me! I hope to be able to enjoy doing things the Earth Pony way and help out however I can!”

It might not have been much of a speech but it was friendly enough he hoped.

“Good,” Mayor Mare said before continuing. “Now, all of you have your vests, and have been assigned to your teams.”

Fire had been told the blue vests were for the weather team, green for plants, and tan for animals. Fire personally felt that he might have belonged with the animals. But he wanted to try everything he could first to be sure. It would be nice to see everything going on down below with the weather team as well.

As she spoke to the crowd, Fire spotted Twilight jumping up above the other ponies so that her head rose above the rest. Was she looking to say something, or trying to get a better view from the back of the line?

Mayor Mare didn’t appear to notice Twilight however as she concluded her speech. “So, let's do even better than last year, and have the quickest Winter Wrap Up ever!"

The ponies cheered once more.

“Alright everypony,” Mayor Mare then gestured to the right. “Find your team leader.”

Fire looked in the direction she was pointing and saw Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and another unicorn that he didn’t know. Fire had known Rainbow Dash and Applejack were team leaders for weather and plants. It made sense since they were both the best flyers and growers in Ponyville. Fluttershy would have been perfect for the animal team, if she just weren’t so shy.

“And let’s get galloping!” Mayor Mare finished.

The ponies divided up and went to do their tasks. However, Twilight was left behind with Spike on her back. She looked around in confusion, she also didn’t have a team vest on, just like Fire.

He flew over.

"Hey Twilight," he greeted.

“Hi Fire,” Twilight said nervously.

“Where’s your vest?” he asked.

“Oh, I didn’t know which team to join when I heard about them,” Twilight said. “Weather, animals, or plants?”

Fire took a moment to figure that out. “You’ve always been into magic huh?”

She nodded. “I don’t where I fit in without it.”

“Me neither,” Fire said with a shake of his head.

Twilight chuckled. “You know we’re kind of like two peas in a pod!”

Fire smiled at her. It was true, they were very much alike. Smart, magically gifted, “Well, why don’t we figure that out together? This is my first time doing Winter Wrap Up in Ponyville as well. And I bet its Lyra’s too.”

He looked around but couldn’t spot the green unicorn anywhere in the crowd.

“Well, guess we’ll have to figure it out,” he said.

“Yeah,” Twilight said.

Before the work began, a song erupted. Everything seemed to go dark.

“Three months of winter coolness! And awesome holidays!” Rainbow Dash started as a light shined on her.

“We've kept our hoofsies warm at home! Time off from work to play!” Pinkie Pie joined in with a little dance rising up on her hind legs like a ballerina.

“But the food we've stored is runnin' out. And we can't grow in this cold,” Applejack sang with a sad expression.

“And even though I love my boots, this fashion's getting old,” Rarity looked down lovingly at her yellow boots and then twirled her head gracefully.

Twilight trotted through the snow covered Ponyville as she sang as well.

“The time has come to welcome spring. And all things warm and green. But it's also time to say goodbye. It's winter we must clean How can I help? I'm new, you see. What does everypony do?

How do I fit in without magic?I haven't got a clue!

All the ponies began singing as one now.

“Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up! Let's finish our holiday cheer Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up! Cause tomorrow spring is here!

Cause tomorrow spring is here!”

Rainbow Dash flew high above into the clouds and song her own solo once again. She and the other Pegasi began moving and breaking apart the clouds to clear the skies.

“Bringing home the southern birds

A Pegasus' job begins

And clearing all the gloomy skies

To let the sunshine in

We move the clouds

And we melt the white snow

The sun shined through befittingly for the next set of lines.

When the sun comes up

Its warmth and beauty will glow!

Around town, all the ponies were setting up their various tasks, waking hibernating critters and bringing in supplies for… Fire didn’t know what yet. He saw Rarity sit at a table where much straw and ribbons were being delivered. He’d probably find out what she was doing soon.

“Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!”

Let's finish our holiday cheer

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!

'Cause tomorrow spring is here

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!

'Cause tomorrow spring is here

'Cause tomorrow spring is here!

Rarity then sung her own short solo.

“Little critters hibernate

Under the snow and ice.”

Then it was Fluttershy. She nuzzled a bunny as she sang.

“We wake up all their sleepy heads

So quietly and nice.”

Now it was Rarity again.

“We help them gather up their food

Fix their homes below.”

Fluttershy took her turn.

“We welcome back the southern birds.”

They both sung together.

So their families can grow!

Everypony sung together again. Fire now spotted Lyra with the animal team. Foals danced and many ponies performed tasks for clearing the snow.

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!

“Let's finish our holiday cheer

“Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!”

'Cause tomorrow spring is here

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up! ([Rarity] Winter, winter)

'Cause tomorrow spring is here

'Cause tomorrow spring is here!”

Applejack gestured to a variety of seeds in the fields.

“No easy task to clear the ground

Plant our tiny seeds

With proper care and sunshine

Everyone it feeds

Apples, carrots, celery stalks

Colorful flowers too

We must work so very hard”

Two other farming ponies joined her in singing.

“It's just so much to do!”

“Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!” Everypony sang.

“Let's finish our holiday cheer

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!

'Cause tomorrow spring is here

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!

Cause tomorrow spring is here

'Cause tomorrow spring is here!

Twilight walked again, still uncertain as she climbed a snowy mountain with Fire at her side and Spike on her back.

“Now that I know what they all do

I have to find my place

And help with all of my heart

Tough task ahead I face

How will I do without my magic

Help the Earth pony way

I wanna belong so I must

Do my best today,

Do my best today!”

The choir continued.

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!

Let's finish our holiday cheer

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!

'Cause tomorrow spring is here

Winter Wrap Up! Winter Wrap Up!

Twilight then finished the line a triple repeat.

'Cause tomorrow spring is here

'Cause tomorrow spring is here

'Cause tomorrow spring is here!

The song ended but Twilight still did not have an answer.

“Everypony belongs to a team,” she said. “What should I do? Where should I go?”

Fire who had merely been enjoying the song and humming to it, walked up next to her. "Don’t worry Twilight, we’ll both find our place in it.”

“Thanks Fire,” she said.

He looked around, spotting Rainbow Dash's team nearby.

"Well, I don't think you'll be able to help the weather team since that's for Pegasi," Fire said.

"You’re right," Twilight agreed before looking at his wings. "But you could do that!"

"True," Fire agreed flexing them. "I’m kinda torn between weather and animals. It would probably be nice to see all the stuff from up above but I do love spending time with little critters. I want to see what everything has to offer. Come on, I’ll sure we’ll both find something we can do.”

“You guys do that. I'm gonna be napping,” Spike said laying in a snowy bush.

"Lazy dragon," Fire muttered. "He may be a baby but that's no excuse."

Twilight nudged Spike’s cheek with a hoof, a frown on her face. "Come on Spike, this is serious business. Winter needs to be wrapped up, and I'm determined to do my part.” She said sternly while putting her hoof down. “Somehow."

“Come on Twilight, lets just see what we can find,” Fire said leading her along the streets.

They soon found the other unicorn in their main group of friends. Spike had woken up at Twilight’s insistence and was more
then happy to lay eyes on what he (and Fire) considered the most beautiful pony in Equestria, or at least one of them. Rarity certainly was the most beautiful unicorn Fire knew. Though Cadance got the alicorn beauty prize in his mind.

Rarity was currently tying a ribbon with her mouth on something small and brown that had been encrusted with jewels.

"Good day Rarity," Fire greeted.

"Hello Fire, Twilight, Spike," Rarity said with a happy smile. "I'm so looking forward to spring! Also, those bright blossoms coming out of the trees."

"That is lovely," Fire agreed.

"Not as much as you," Spike said to low for any of them to hear as he looked at Rarity.

Twilight then approached. "Rarity, please tell me there's something, anything I can help you with."

Rarity smiled and put a hoof to her heart proudly. “Well, how would you like to help create Ponyville's finest bird’s nests?

“Bird’s nests?” Twilight asked.

“Why yes. When the weather team guides the birds back north for spring, they'll need a place to live and lay their eggs.” She gestured to the object she’d just made which they now saw was a bird’s nest.

Twilight was impressed. “Wow, Rarity, that one's really beautiful.”

"Yeah," Fire agreed while thinking, Just like you.

“Oh why, thank you both most sincerely,” Rarity said putting her hoof to her heart once more. “Would you two like to try your hoof at a nest?"

“Would I?” Twilight asked eagerly. “Yes! Where do I begin?"

"Sure," Fire agreed.

Rarity levitated a basket full of straw and hay onto the table she was working at. “Okay. Now... uh, take some of that straw and hay over there, and a little bit of branch.”

They both soon had the materials in front of them.

Rarity tried to give instructions. “Now, weave them through there, yes! Uh, take some ribbon…"

She continued trying to instruct them but Twilight was moving to fast and the end result was … not pretty.

“There!” Twilight proclaimed proudly. “It looks just like... yours.”

She saw they actually looked nothing alike.

“Oh my.”

Fire put a hoof on Twilight. "I know you're eager Twilight but maybe wait to hear the instructions before you act."

“You’re right,” Twilight said.

“Yeah, that nest needs to be condemned.” Spike declared.

Rarity frowned at him while suppressing a laugh. “Oh, Spa-ha-hike, it's not so bad, ah, maybe birds can use it as a...”

“An outhouse?" Spike suggested.

Rarity walked over to Twilight. “Spike,” she said warningly before turning to her friend. “It's just fine. It's just a little rough around the edges. Let me lend you a hoof. Let's just untie this ribbon, and if we take out these sticks here, and we shape this...”

She began to mumble as she tried to undo the damage Twilight had done. Twilight looked down as she saw her attempt at making a bird’s nest had failed. Fire made his way over to her.

“Don’t let it get you down, Twilight,” he said putting a hoof on her. “So, your first attempt didn’t work out. You can always try again. Just think of it as a… rough draft! A… very rough draft!”

“No,” she said shaking her head. “I need to be perfect, not rough.”

There she went with her perfectionist attitude. She walked off to try and find another place she could fit in. Fire sighed. He looked from Rarity to Twilight. He could help her make bird nests, and she seemed to be obsessing over fixing Twilight’s disastrous one. He probably would have liked making those nests. But he felt Twilight needed him more right now, so he followed her.

They soon came across Pinkie Pie skating on a frozen lake.

“Hellooooooo, Twilight and Fire!” Pinkie greeted them before twirling on the ice impressively. “Wheeeeeeee!”

“Wow, Pinkie Pie,” Twilight exclaimed before galloping down to the waters edge. “You're quite the skater. Probably the best skater I've ever seen!”

“Yeah, really good,” Fire agreed.

“Thanks, you two,” Pinkie said coming over to them. “I've been doing this since I was an itty-bitty little-wittle Twinkie-Pinkie. Just comes naturally.”

She then went back to skating. “Which is probably why they designated me the lake scorer. I cut lines in the lake with my skates. That way, when the rest of the weather team comes here to break the ice, it'll be easy as pie.”

“How clever,” Twilight said. “When the thick ice begins to melt, it'll break along the lines. Well, you sure have a lot of work ahead of you, there's quite a few lakes in Ponyville.

Pinkie Pie came to a stop next to them. “Ha, tell me about it. Hey, you two wanna help me out?”

“I would!” Twilight proclaimed.

“Me too,” Fire said. “Been a while since I’ve skated before. But what the heck?”

“Come on, put on those skates over there! I bet you’ll be a natural too Twilight!” Pinie said.

Twilight nodded. “Okay.”

She put on the skates but was wobbly as she stepped on to the ice with Fire at her side.

“Yaaaaay!” Pinkie cheered as she stood on only her front legs with her hind ones in the air.

Twilight was now uncertain. “Uh... maybe on second thought.”

She lost her balance and hit her head.

“Easy Twilight…” Fire tried to counsel her.

Spike, however interrupted. “What are you talking about? You said you wanted to be helpful.”

“That’s rich coming from you!” Fire said pointing at the little dragon. “You’ve been doing nothing but try and nap all morning!”

“Yippie!” Pinkie did a somersault on the ice, not hearing them.

“Well now I’m gonna help! By getting Twilight to help!” Spike declared as he pushed the lavender unicorn out onto the ice. “Now get out there!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Twilight exclaimed in fright with no control and she began to spin around.

“Twilight, steer! Steer!” Pinkie tried to instruct.

“Hang on Twilight!” Fire called as he flapped his wings to try and help her.

But his skates were heavy and he couldn’t get his wings to move fast enough as Twilight went crashing into Pinkie Pie. Spike got caught up in the mess as well while Fire was fortunately above them and able to avoid the pony-dragon pile. They all screamed as they crashed into a tree which dropped its snow on top of them. Fire could see their eyes through the snow. They shook themselves off and Spike began laughing.

“Ha ha, you are a natural Twilight!” he got off the two of them and pointed at Twilight. “A natural disaster!”

He continued laughing until he heard something land behind him. He looked and saw Fire glaring down at him, his mane lit up in flames that were causing the nearby lake to melt slightly.

“That’s not very nice Spike! And it wasn’t funny either! Twilight has been trying very hard to help and find a place where she fits in!” Fire spoke with fury. “And meanwhile you have been doing nothing but nap and lounge around on her back like a LAZY LITTLE DRAGON! You ought to be ashamed of yourself!”

Spike looked at him for a moment and seemed to shrink. He then began to cry and ran off. Fire’s glare remained on him for a moment. But his anger was soon filled with remorse.

Fire then turned to Twilight. “I’m sorry, I just couldn’t stand him making fun of you like that.”

Twilight frowned at him but sighed. “You weren’t wrong about all that. But still, Spike is a baby dragon and does need his sleep. You need to go easy on him. Maybe I should have just left him at home.”

“If you go too easy, he won’t learn his lesson,” Fire objected before looking down. “Still, I shouldn’t have insulted him like that.”

“No, you shouldn’t have!” Pinkie said. “Just because Spike was being mean doesn’t give you the right to be mean back! Of course, you were defending Twilight so your anger was in the right place. But you do owe Spike an apology.”

Fire nodded. “I do.”

“In the meantime, Twilight! I think you'll be super awesome at something that keeps your hooves on the ground,” Pinkie said. “I know, Fluttershy could probably use your help with the critters.”

Twilight nodded. “Well... I'm pretty good with little animals. Yeah, I'll go help her.”

“How about you Fire?” Pinkie asked. “You don’t seem too clumsy with skating!”

Fire hesitated. Skating did sound fun and he probably had better control over it then Twilight. He looked over at her as she tried to skate off toward Fluttershy.

Pinkie saw this as well. “Uh... it's, ah, that a-way.”

Twilight went in that direction but ending up crashing again. Fire removed his skates and flew over to her off, offering his hoof to her. She took it thankfully.

“Thanks. You know you don’t have to stick with me the whole,” Twilight said. “You didn’t even get the chance to try and make your own bird’s nest with Rarity. You should do what you like best. I know you like arts and crafts as well as animals.”

She was right. He did like drawing occasionally and working with animals.

Fire’s eyes widened. “You’re right. I was so busy trying to help you I didn’t get the chance to try it myself.”

“Don’t worry about me,” Twilight said. “I’ll find something, I’m sure.”

“Okay,” Fire nodded. “I’ll go see if Rarity needs any help.”

He returned and saw that she did. She was still working on the horrible bird’s nest Twilight had made.

“You’re still stuck on that?” Fire asked before looking.

“I must fix it!” Rarity exclaimed, sweating.

Fire shook his head. “You’ve been at that for like an hour. If you can’t fix it in that time, you should probably quit.”

He took the junky nest in his magic and threw it in the trash. “Come on. Let’s get creating.”

Fire watched her carefully make a bird’s nest from the beginning and followed her steps, putting straw and branches together then wrapping them in ribbon and adding the fake jewels for appeal.

Rarity sighed in relief. “Thank you, Fire! I’d probably still be lagging behind if not for you.”

“No problem, Rarity,” Fire said. “I like arts and crafts, and animals. I wonder how everypony else is doing?”

Suddenly he spotted Twilight who was looking sad with Spike at her side. Then the little dragon noticed Fire.

“Ugh, here goes,” Spike said walking over. “Hey Fire.”

“Hey Spike,” Fire said with ears falling. “Listen I’m sorry for-

“Don’t apologize!” Spike put his claws up. “You were right. Making fun of Twilight was not very nice of me! And I just hung back and didn’t bother to help in any way. All I wanted to do was sleep. Early mornings are just not my thing. I like sleeping in.”

“And you kinda need more sleep than the rest of us since you’re a baby dragon,” Fire admitted.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t excuse it,” Spike replied.

Twilight still looked disappointed as she looked at all the bird’s nests. “Well, I see you’ve been keeping yourselves busy.”

“Did you find anything you’re good at?” Fire asked as he added some fake sapphires to his current nest.

“No,” she said miserably. “I tried to help Fluttershy wake up animals but the animals I woke up were snakes and I’m afraid of those!”
“Oh, I don’t blame you!” Rarity said. “They are such horrible slimy things!”

Fire himself wasn’t a big snake fan either, but he knew they didn’t have to be bad.

“So, I backed up into another den and woke up some bats that scared me,” Twilight continued. “And then I ran into a skunk den and got sprayed! I had to bathe in tomato sauce for an hour. And then I tried the last thing available, plowing. I just wasn’t strong enough for that and even tried to use magic.”

“That was kind of my fault,” Spike admitted. “I told her to use it. It just makes things so much easier and Twilight’s all about magic.”

Fire nodded. “I know magic is your special talent. Canterlot has it easy, but here its all about hard work. And we have to respect the traditions.”

“Sometimes tradition holds you back though,” Spike objected.

“That’s… actually not wrong,” Fire had to admit. “But we’re managing this way it seems. Besides this isn’t Canterlot. The birds there just have to make their own nests.”

Twilight sighed. “Well, I caused an avalanche and made it even harder for the plant team to get their job done. Applejack got mad at me for using magic.”

“Yeah, then I told her it was my suggestion and about all about all the difficulties Twilight’s been facing. That caused her to apologize,” Spike said with a small smile. “Just hasn’t been Twilight’s lucky Winter Wrap Up.”

“No. I’m nothing but a failure in this it seems,” Twilight said.

“Maybe you can give this another try.” Fire suggested.

Rarity gulped nervously.

“No thanks,” Twilight said. “I made a terrible nest last time.”

“You can’t give up just cause you fail once,” Fire encouraged. “Nopony gets something right away. It takes practice, just like with magic.”

Twilight considered this, but before she could make a decision they heard arguing nearby.

“Rainbow Dash, y'all on the weather team need to melt the rest of the snow here on the ground and the trees, pronto!” Applejack said.

Rainbow Dash saluted the Earth Pony. “Got it.”

She rose to perform her task but was interrupted by Fluttershy.

“You can't. My poor little animals' homes will get flooded if the snow melts too fast.”

“Got it.” Rainbow repeated.

An argument began between Applejack and Fluttershy over the subject.

“I'm tellin’ you, Rainbow, you gotta melt that snow now!”

“No, you simply must wait.”

“Okay.”

“Go.”

“Stop.”

“Go.”

“Stop.”

“GO!”

“STOP!”

Rainbow Dash finally had enough of the arguing. “Ugh! Make up your minds!”

Mayor Mare suddenly arrived on the scene. “Oh! What in Equestria are all you arguing about? This sort of silliness is why we were late for spring last year, and the year before that, and the year before that.”

“Did she say late?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah.” Fire confirmed.

Mayor Mare continued sadly. “I was hoping my amazingly inspirational speech would urge everyone to do better than last year, but now it looks like we're going to be late again. I mean just look at this catastrophe!”

She gestured around them. “The ice scorers made the ice chunks too big to melt. And don't get me started on all the clouds in the sky, the icicles on the trees... this isn't good, not at all. The nest designers…”

She broke off as she saw the many nests that Fire and Rarity had made. “Well, seems they managed to get a good number of them made. At least someponies are getting their job done right.”

“Well, it's gonna be all to pieces disastrous if we can't get our seeds all planted!” Applejack said.

“Chillax Applejack, we're bustin' our chops as fast as we can.” Rainbow Dash told them.

“No, not fast. We have to wake animals slowly,” Fluttershy said.

Suddenly Big Macintosh approached them with another Earth Pony by his side. “Uh, AJ?”

“Oh, good gravy,” Applejack hoofplanted. “Caramel lost the grass seeds again, didn't he?”

Big Mac nodded. “Eeyup.”

A Pegasus suddenly reported another problem. “Derpy Hooves accidentally went north to get the southern birds!
“Oh, that featherbrain,” Raibow Dash spoke in a frustrated tone. “Didn't she learn her lesson last year when she went west?”

Many ponies began complaining about all the problems and arguing.

Mayor Mare tried to calm the situation. “Stop this at once. We don't have time to argue. It's almost sundown. Spring is going to be late again. Another year of scandal and shame. If only we could be more organized.”

Fire’s eyes widened as somepony very organized came to mind. He looked at Twilight whose face lit up. She looked at her Number One Assistant with determination. “Spike! Get my checklist and clipboard, STAT!”

“Eh, yes, ma'am,” Spike saluted her and ran off.

Twilight then approached the arguing crowd. “Stop, everypony!”

But they were too busy arguing to notice.

“Stop!” Twilight called.

Fire frowned and flew up, calling in his royal voice. “STOPPPP!”

That got everyone’s attention. They all looked at him and he pointed to Twilight

“Thanks,” she smiled at him and turned to the crowd. “I know you all want to complete your jobs on time, but arguing is no way to go about it. What you need is organization, and I'm just the pony for the job.”

Spike returned with her quill and checklist just in time. They then went about their tasks. Twilight took a while to heard all the things that needed to be done then came up with a plan to get things back on track. The bird’s nests were completed, the ice skated in straight lines that allowed it to break up into smaller chunks rather than big ones, the fields were plowed by one pony who were followed by another that put the seeds in. Twilight had the bells Fluttershy and other ponies were using to wake up hibernating animals put on ropes above the dens. Bunnies came out along, along with snakes. Twilight hid up a tree at the sight of those and Fire flew over to her, reassuring her it was okay. She took his hoof and he helped her down. Fluttershy then looked up at a bird on her head who whistled, signaling the Pegasi to finish melting the snow. They created a drill in the sky that tore apart the clouds and blew away the snow, allowing sunlight to cover Ponyville. The Earth Ponies got to work, working through the night to get everything planted and make up for lost time. Spike helped out as well, digging holes with his claws and putting seeds inside. Twilight walked with Mayor Mare and Fire as they oversaw the preparations.

By morning, when the sun rose the flowers were blooming, the critters frolicking. Butterflies and bees pollinated the flowers. Twilight stood at a hill overlooking Ponyville proudly as she saw everything was done.

Everypony approached her.

“I can't believe it. Spring is here, on time!” Mayor Mare said looking at Twilight. “And we have you to thank for it. If it weren't for your organizing skills, we would still be arguing.”

Rarity leaned into Fire’s ear. “And I probably would have been working on that bad nest for hours if not for you.”
“Eeyup.” Big Mac agreed while others laughed.

“It was a team effort,” Twilight said humbly.

“And since you helped every team, we have an official vest for you,” Mayor Mare said.

Rarity approached Twilight with that vest. It wasn’t just any of the three colors for the teams. It was a mixture of blue and green with a tan trim, a mix of all three teams. Fire himself now wore a tan vest as he’d chosen the animal team. Maybe next year he could do more with waking up the animals?

“We give you the title "All-Team Organizer," Mayor Mayor said.

Twilight looked at the vest proudly. “Gosh, I don't even know what to say. Thank you,
everypony!”

“You had a rocky start Twilight,” Fire said. “But it all worked out in the end.”

“Yeah,” Twilight agreed. “And thanks for doing your best to help me. Just don’t forget to help yourself too Fire.”

“I won’t.” Fire promised.

“And hereby I declare that winter is... wrapped up on time!” Mayor Mayor said.

The ponies cheered.

Applejack then looked to the side with amusement. “Spike's sure gonna be in for a hog-sized surprise when that last piece a' ice melts.”

Everypony laughed as they looked at Spike who had finally fallen asleep again on the last chunk of ice in the lake. Fire smirked and shot a red beam at it. The ice melted under the direct heat and Spike was woken by the sound a moment before being swallowed by the water. Fire flew out in case he needed help but the little dragon swam up to the surface with a slight cough. He frowned up at Fire.

“Very funny Fire,” Spike grumbled.

“Yeah, it was,” Fire said.

“And how was Twilight not funny?” Spike asked as he climbed out of the water onto the edge of the shore.

Well, spring was here and they could enjoy the lovely times.

Author's Note

Author’s Notes: Well I felt that Spike needed to be told off for being such a lazy bum as I was writing this episode and making alterations to it. Hope I wasn’t being too over the top with that. Also had him confess to putting Twilight up to using magic rather then hypocritically blaming her when Applejack accuses her (which happened offpage and is merely mentioned). I was kinda tempted to have Fire explain things to Applejack but changed as I wrote. Hope you enjoyed it and I’ll see you next week. Since Fall Weather Friends and Winter Wrap Up were switched the next episode is Suited for Success. Whoa, that’s just episode 14 of season one? So, thirteen more to go huh? If I just did the canon episodes after this it would be a total of 41. I think I’ll try and go for at least 45-48 so I’ll add a couple more original episodes, I think. I’m thinking of also splitting the seasons up into different stories, with just as many episode each. Let me know your thoughts.

Chapter 29: Suited For Success

Spring was beautiful in Ponyville now that winter had been all wrapped up. Fire made his way through the town with a smile, glad to feel the slight warmth of spring. Then he suddenly happened upon Twilight and Applejack.

“Good morning you two,” he greeted. “Where you headed?”

“Howdy Fire!” Applejack said. “We’re just heading over to Rarity’s.”

“I need a button on a dress fixed,” Twilight said gesturing to a saddlebag on her back that must have contained the dress. “The Grand Galloping is finally getting close after feels like forever so we need to get ready.”

“You’re right,” Fire agreed. “I’ll go with you.”

They all headed to Carousel Boutique and into Rarity’s sewing room where she did most of her work. Appejack knocked and was the first to go in.

“Howdy, Rarity!” the Earth Pony greeted in her country manner.

Fire and Twilight followed with her. They didn’t get a response and so walked in to get a better look. They saw the lovely unicorn was hard at work with her sewing. She had a pair of red glasses and a measuring tape around her neck, making her look hardworking and professional. Her back was to them as she was looking intently at an outfit she was making.

“Shh... can't you see Rarity is trying to concentrate?” Twilight whispered.

“What do you think she's makin'?” Applejack asked.

“Uh, a dress?” Fire said as it was rather obvious from the starting shape, and the unicorn’s career.

“That’s what it looks like,” Twilight agreed.

“Well, that makes sense. Since this is a dressmaker's shop and all,” Applejack replied.

Rarity growled like her cat Opal who lay nearby. The unicorn put on a forced smile as she turned to her friends. “Is there something I can help you with?”

“Oh, so very sorry to trouble you, Rarity, but I need a quick favor,” Twilight said reaching into her saddlebag and pulling out a red dress. She set it down on a table nearby and continued. “Could you please fix the button for me? It's my dress for the Grand Galloping Gala.”

Fire looked and saw the button was loose. But, if he was being perfectly honest, he felt this dress didn’t really fit Twilight. It was good, but the red and yellow he felt might clash with her purple coat.

Rarity gasped as she looked at the dress Twilight had. “Oh, no, no, no! You can't wear this,” she cringed at the sight of it. “…old thing. You need a glamorous new outfit for the Gala and I'll make it for you. No problem at all. It will be my pleasure!”

That was sweet of her. Fire smiled at the display. She was just a fine mare. Maybe she could change Blueblood for the better?
Twilight smiled as well before shaking her head. “Oh, that's really sweet of you to offer, Rarity, but I can't let you do that. It would be so much work. This dress is fine.”

“Twilight Sparkle. I insist on making you a new dress.” The fashionable unicorn pressed.

“And if I might offer my opinion,” Fire said levitating the dress Twilight had brought with her next to her body. “I don’t think this dress really goes well your coat.”

“But...” Twilight tried to object.

Rarity simply waved her hoof in the air rapidly while saying, “Not another word! I won't take no for an answer.”
“Well, in that case... thank you for your generosity, Rarity. Knowing your handiwork, I'm sure it will be absolutely beautiful.” Twilight relented.

“I agree,” Fire said. “I’m sure it will be lovely.”

Rarity blushed. “And I’d be happy to make a suit for you as well, Prince Fire!”

Fire smiled. “Well, I still have my own suit but it is getting a little small now that I think about it.”

“You alicorns do tend to grow a bit more then most of us common ponies,” Rarity said. “Say no more! You shall have a suit befitting of the wonderful prince you are! Strong and warm hearted!”

“Thanks Rarity,” Fire said. “You’ve already given me a few outfits though.”

“You need a new one to match the occasion!” Rarity said. “You’ll be getting together with Moondancer after all!”

“Yeah, but who knows if we’re going to end up together. I mean-

“Oh, don’t doubt yourself. She is a wonderful and smart mare!” Rarity said. “I’m sure you’ll both be very happy together.”

She looked away as she said that, forming a jealous frown. But she pushed it aside as she reminded herself, she would be meeting Blueblood. They’d both have a wonderful night and then live happily ever after like in a fairy tale.

Rarity then turned to the Earth Pony in their group. She looked down at Applejack’s hooves. “Let me guess, Applejack. You don't want a new gown either.”

“Gown?” Applejack repeated looking a bit uneasy. “Shoot. I was just gonna wear my old work duds.”

Rarity was horrified at that. “You can't possibly be serious, Applejack! You absolutely must wear formal attire.”

Applejack hummed in thought. “Nah.”

Fire stepped in. “I know you’re not into the whole fashion thing but Rarity’s right. This is a formal event where you have to wear clothes of some kind that are… very decent if not extravagant. Work duds aren’t gonna cut it. You’ll probably be the laughing stock of the other guests.”

“What if I just spruce up your... duds for you a little bit?” Rarity suggested while having difficulty saying the word duds, clutching her throat as though it hurt to say.

“Um…” Applejack hesitated but soon relented. “Okay, sure, why not? Since you're up for it and all. Just don't make them too... frou-frou-y.”

“Deal!” Rarity complied.

“Look out below!” A voice suddenly called from above.

A hole appeared in the roof of the boutique as Rainbow Dash came crashing in. She then bounced backwards into a trio of mannequins which fell over. Rainbow got up with a bucket and a couple pieces of cloth on her head and wings.

“Sorry. New trick. Didn't quite work,” the Pegasus said.

Rarity didn’t get angry, instead humming in thought before gasping excitedly. “Idea! I'll make you an outfit for the Gala too, Rainbow Dash!”

Rainbow Dash looked at her in surprise and looked around as though there might be another pony with her name. “Outfit for the what now?

“I'll make one for you and you and all of you. Oh!” Rarity jumped for joy as she said. “And of course Pinkie and Fluttershy too. Oh, and when I'm done, we can hold our very own fashion show!”

“What a great idea!” Twilight said. “If you're sure you can handle it.”

Rarity began levitating multiple rolls of cloth out to begin. “Oh, it'll be a little bit of work, but it will be a wonderful boost for my business. Plus, fun!”

“Oh, I love fun things!” Rainbow agreed.

“Well, you enjoy fashion. But are you sure you can handle this?” Fire asked.

“Fear not my prince!” Rarity objected. “I will have it all done in no time!”

“Alright,” Fire said.

“Then it's settled.” Rarity declared as she sat at her desk with one of the cloths. “We'll have a fashion show starring us!”

The mares cheered while Fire smiled.

Applejack then walked up beside Rarity who was now cutting the fabric. “So, all you have to do is make a different, stunning, original, amazing outfit for one, two, three, four, five, six, plus yourself… six ponies? And lickety split?”

“Oh, Applejack. You make it sound as if it's going to be hard,” Rarity said confidently with a laugh.

“Well, if you’re really sure that you can handle this,” Fire said.

“I am,” Rarity said.

…

They left her to do her work and she began to sing while making each outfit. Her sewing machine sewed, her sketches flew around her as she levitated them.

“Thread by thread, stitching it together

Twilight's dress, cutting out the pattern snip by snip

Making sure the fabric folds nicely

It's the perfect color and so hip

Always gotta keep in mind my pacing

Making sure the clothes' correctly facing

I'm stitching Twilight's dress

Yard by yard, fussing on the details

Jewel neckline, don't you know a stitch in time saves nine?

Make her something perfect to inspire

Even though she hates formal attire

Gotta mind those intimate details

Even though she's more concerned with sales

It's Applejack's new dress!”

She then moved onto her sketches of designs for the next two ponies.

“Dressmaking's easy, for Pinkie Pie something pink

Fluttershy something breezy

Blend color and form,”

She then turned to Opalescence. “Do you think it looks cheesy?”

The cat only gave a low meow in response.

Rarity then continued singing.

“Something brash, perhaps quite fetching

Hook and eye, couldn't you just simply die?

Making sure it fits forelock and crest

Don't forget some magic in the dress

Even though it rides high on the flank

Rainbow won't look like a tank

I'm stitching Rainbow's dress

Piece by piece, snip by snip

Croup, dock, haunch, shoulders, hip

Thread by thread, primmed and pressed

Yard by yard, never stressed

And that's the art of the dress!”

She concluded her song as well as the dresses… before realizing.

“Oh, and last but certainly not least.

Fire’s suit must be bright red

With a little orange flare

Something fitting a royal alicorn like him! Rarity sang with a blush before looking down sadly.

“Oh, how at times I wish I were going to the gala with him.”

She then put on a smile as she told herself, “But I’ll be fine with Blueblood!

We’ll each have our happily ever after! I’ve made Fire’s suit

With the same art of the dress!”

…

Fire followed the sound of Rarity’s voice as she led him and the rest of the mares in their group into her boutique workspace. She’d come over and gotten them all when the outfits were completed. “That's it. Keep them closed. Don't look. Okay, you can look now!”

All six of the other ponies opened their eyes, and gasped at what they saw. But not in a positive manner for the most part. Rarity had made five dresses and a suit. Applejack’s was primarily green and varying shades of brown with front hoof boots and red apple insignias. It even came complete with a new formal hat. Twilight’s dress was blue with stars and a matching hairpiece. Fluttershy’s had a nature theme, colored green with flowers on the flowing back, a butterfly hairpiece, and shoes that resembled vines. Rainbow’s dress befittingly was the same colors of a rainbow with a cloud like base, a hairpiece that resembled a pair of wings and what looked like a cluster of grapes on the chest, her shoes were the same shade of gold as her hair piece. Pinkie’s was primarily pink with some blue and white as well designs of candy wrappers as well as candy corn. Then there was Fire’s suit which was red with gold flame patterns on the sleeves, a red and yellow tie on the white color, a brooch in the shape of a sword on the chest, and blue shoes which added a nice contrast.

“These are your new outfits. What do you think of your old duds now, Applejack? Pretty swanky, are they not? And Twilight! I made this dress for you, and I designed each outfit theme to perfectly reflect each pony's unique personality. Oh, it took me forever to get the colors right on this one, Rainbow Dash, but I did it. Oh, and it turned out beautiful, don't you think? And I know you are going to love yours, Fluttershy. It just sings spring! And Pinkie Pie, look! Pink! Your favorite! Aren't they all amazing?”

She looked at her friends who stammered. Then her heart slowly began to sink as she noticed Fire was the only one who had a full smile on his face.

“I think you did a wonderful job Rarity!” Fire said stepping forward and getting a closer look at his suit.

He looked at the others saw their reactions. They stood frozen for a while, as if struggling to find the words and Rarity could only grin nervously.

“Wow... they're...” Twilight tried to speak first.

“Yeah, they're...” Rainbow Dash couldn’t find the words either.

“They sure are... somethin'.” Applejack managed.

“Yes!” Twilight agreed pointing to Appejack and finally finding some of her voice. “Something.”

“I love something! Something is my favorite!” Pinkie agreed halfheartedly.

“It's... nice,” Fluttershy said politely but with drooped ears.

Rarity noticed all their reactions. “But what's the matter? Don't you like them?”

“They're very nice…” Twilight said reluctantly.

“And we're plumb grateful 'cause you worked so hard on them.” Applejack added.

“Mine's just not as cool as I was imagining,” Rainbow bluntly told Rarity, causing the other two to glare at her. “She asked.”

Fire frowned. “I don’t get what you guys are not enthused about! These all really suit you. Applejack this has your sign on it! Literally! And it doesn’t look nearly as formal as a lot of others! But it will get the job done! And Twilight, this blue is the perfect shade to go with your coat and it certainly sparkly enough for a pony with the last name Sparkle with all these stars! Fluttershy, you love nature and this dress just speaks it! Rainbow Dash, this is every bit as colorful and sky high as you! And Pinkie, you’re all about sweets and pink!”

“I guess what we're all saying is that they're just not what we had in mind,” Twilight said.

Looking into Rarity’s eyes, Fire saw she was devastated.

“Yeah. Uh-huh,” all the others agreed.

“Hey, sometimes what you have in mind isn’t what’s best! I think these are all perfect reflections of each of us!” Fire said.

Rarity sighed and rubbed her hoof. “That's okay. Not a problem. There's plenty more where that came from. They were only a first pass. You're my friends and I want you to be one hundred and ten percent satisfied. Not to worry, I'll redo them.”

“Oh, Rarity. You don't have to do that. They're fine,” Fluttershy tried to kindly say.

“I want them to be better than just fine. I want you to think they're absolutely perfect.” Rarity wouldn’t settle for less.

“Are you sure? I mean, we wouldn't wanna impose,” Applejack said.

Rarity shook her head. “Oh, it's no imposition. Really, I insist.”

“Well, in that case... thank you again, Rarity.” Twilight acknowledged.

They all left except Fire. Rarity let out a strained laugh. “What have I gotten myself into?”

Fire walked over to her and put a hoof on her. “I think your designs were perfect for everypony.”

“They didn’t seem to agree,” Rarity said looking down.

Fire began to stroke her mane. “I don’t think they have the same fashion eye as you do.”

“And you do?” Rarity asked looking at him.

“Maybe a little,” Fire admitted. “I appreciate the finer things for sure. Been getting fine clothes all my life. They… not so much. You don’t need to fix my suit in any way. I love it.”

“Oh, thank you,” Rarity said with a sincere smile.

“We don’t have much time till the fashion show which is coming by,” Fire reminded her. “Try not to work yourself too hard.”

“I must get something!” Rarity insisted. “My whole career could depend on it!”

She rushed over to her table and got to work. Fire sighed, having a feeling he couldn’t talk her out of it. Everything just had to be perfect with her and their friends had not been satisfied.

…

Rarity was hard at work on her sewing machine. Her normally elegantly curled mane had become a bit messy due to her being so focused on her dress making. Then suddenly the door opened.

“Hello? You wanted to see me, Rarity?” Fluttershy asked as she came in.

“Fluttershy!” Rarity exclaimed excitedly. “Your new-new gown's ready. I completely revised it and I know you're going to love it.”

Fluttershy looked at herself in the mirror. Though, her gown didn’t seem different from the one she’d seen earlier.

“What do you think?” Rarity asked eagerly.

“I... love it.” Fluttershy spoke without enthusiasm.

“Oh, you're just saying that,” Rarity saw through the ruse and turned away.

“No, no. I do. It's... nice.” Fluttershy said.

“Nice?” Rarity repeated unsatisfied.

“Nice.” Fluttershy said once again.

“If you don't like it, you should just tell me,” Rarity said.

“Oh, but I do like it.” Fluttershy insisted.

“Like it or love it?” Rarity pressed.

“Um... both?”

“Which is it?”

Fluttershy stammered. “Please stop asking me this, I...”

Rarity kept pressing until the Pegasus cracked.

“All right! Since you really wanna know,” Fluttershy said before speaking very fast Rarity could barely keep up. “The armscye's tight, the middy collar doesn't go with the shawl lapel, the hems are clearly machine-stitched, the pleats are uneven, the fabric looks like toile, you used a backstitch here when it clearly called for a topstitch or maybe a traditional blanket stitch, and the overdesign is reminiscent of prêt-à-porter and not true French haute couture. But, uh... you know... um, whatever you want to do is fine.”

Rarity looked at her with an open mouth and moved onto the rest of her friends.

“Now, the stars on my belt need to be technically accurate. Orion has three stars on his belt, not four.” Twilight said as Rarity made her a darker star themed dress.

Rarity began to sing once again to keep her mind in the zone but it was far less enthused then when she made the first dresses.

“Stitch by stitch, stitching it together

Deadline looms, don't you know the client's always right?

Even if my fabric choice was perfect

Gotta get them all done by tonight.”

She then got her friends opinions.

“Pinkie Pie, that color's too obtrusive.” Rarity said as Pinkie held a green color she wanted for her dress.

“Wait until you see it in the light.” She opened the window to let some sunlight in.

“I'm sewing them together!”

Pinkie Pie joined the song. “Don't you think my gown would be more "me" with some lollipops?”

Rarity tried to say/sing, “Well, I think...

“Balloons?” Pinkie cut her off.

“Well...”

“Do it!” Pinkie didn’t let her get a word in.

Rarity then painful continued singing and sewing, giving into each of her friends demands.

“Hour by hour, one more change

I'm sewing them together, take great pains

Fluttershy, you're putting me in a bind

Rainbow Dash, what is on your mind?

Oh my gosh, there's simply not much time

Don't forget, Applejack's duds must shine

Dressmaking's easy, every customer's call

Brings a whole new revision

Have to pick up the pace, still hold to my vision.”

Twilight then presented an image to Rarity. “That constellation is Canis Major, not Minor.

“French haute couture, please.” Fluttershy requested as she had her bird friends present a picture of a dress with a star on the base and a sharp leaflike headdress that Rarity knew didn’t suit her at all.

“Ugh.” Rarity sighed as she got a fresh line of fabric out.

“What if it rains? Galoshes!” Applejack insisted.

“More balloons! Oh no, that's too many balloons. More candy!” Pinkie instructed before changing her tune. “Oh, less candy. Oh wait, I know. Streamers!”

“Streamers?” Rarity repeated.

“Whose dress is this?” Pinkie asked cluelessly.

“Streamers it is.”

Next was Rainbow Dash. Rarity looked at her.

“What?” she asked.

Rarity sung her question. “Aren't you going to tell me to change something too?

“No, I just want my dress to be cool.” Rainbow sung.

“Do you not like the color?” Rarity asked/sung.

“The color's fine, just make it look cooler.” Rainbow replied in her line.

“Do you not like the shape?”

“The shape's fine, just make the whole thing... you know, cooler. It needs to be about twenty percent cooler.”

That didn’t give Rarity clear instructions and the unicorn banged her head in frustration.

All we ever want is indecision

All we really like is what we know

Gotta balance style with adherence

Making sure we make a good appearance

Even if you simply have to fudge it.”

Pinkie, Rainbow, Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applejack all sang a line as they came in and out of the boutique.

Then they all sung together. “Make sure that it stays within our budget.”

“Got to overcome intimidation,” Rarity sung nervously.

“Remember, it's all in the presentation!

Piece by piece, snip by snip

Croup, dock, haunch, shoulders, hip

Bolt by bolt, primmed and pressed

Yard by yard, always stressed

And that's the art of the dress!”

Rarity finally finished and collapsed after all her work. Not to mention she was utterly dismayed with the results. “Oh, Opal. These are the ugliest dresses I've ever made!”

Her cat was on the mannequin that had Rarity’s still incomplete dress on it with the drawing for the end result on the wall behind it. Even if the cat was rather prissy and irritable, deep down she wanted her owner to succeed.

…

Rarity once more gathered her friends and Fire was there as well.

“Okay. I did exactly what each of you asked for,” Rarity said with a look of disgust. “Now don't hold back. Let me know what you really think.”

They all looked at their dresses. Fire could understand the disgust. Even Opalescence was mad at the dresses and was swiping at them with her claws. The others didn’t share the sentiment.

“Oh my!” Twilight squealed in delight.

“It's... perfect!” Fluttershy said.

“It's cool!” Rainbow chimed in.

“Why, they're the best duds I ever did see.” Applejack said as she looked at an ugly pair of boots.

Then they all spoke together. “It's exactly what I asked for!”

Rarity sighed.

“Thank you, Rarity,” Twilight said.

Pinkie Pie then bounced over right in front of the unicorn. “Are you as happy with them as we are? Huh? Huh? Huh?”

Rarity forced a grin. “Well, I'm... happy that all of you are happy. I'm just relieved to finally be done.”

Fire sighed, knowing this fashion show would probably be a disaster.

Suddenly the door opened and Spike came rushing.

“You are never gonna believe this! You've heard of Hoity Toity?

“The bigwig fashion hotshot in Canterlot?” Twilight asked.

“Uh-huh,” Spike nodded. “He heard about your fashion show. Well, maybe I happened to mention it to him.”

Fire frowned. “How do you know a fashion bigwig?”

Spike shrugged. “Not important! Anyway, he's coming here all the way from Canterlot to see your work, Rarity!”

Somehow, Fire had a feeling that Spike had used his connection with Celestia to get this as a favor to Rarity.

“Whoa, Nelly!” Applejack exclaimed before turning to Rarity. “You could sell a ton o' dresses to this guy. Your business will be booming!”

The others were all excited for her at this prospect.

“Hoity Toity? He's coming here? To see these dresses?” Rarity asked with growing fear.

Spike nodded. “Yep! Get ready for all of your dreams to come true!”

That night, many ponies gathered around a stage around Townhall. Opal and Rarity both looked out of the curtain nervously to look at the audience.

“There he is!” Rarity exclaimed as she spotted a gray pony with sunglasses and a bigwig on.

Rarity took several deep breaths to calm herself. “Okay. Relax, Rarity. Your friends like their outfits and so will he.”

Suddenly the lights began to dim. “What's wrong with the lights?! Oh, yes. That means the show's starting. Good.”

She pulled her head back in.

Music began to play, a light was lit on the stage and Spike spoke into a microphone.

“Since the beginning of time, the elite of Equestria have longed for pony fashions that truly expressed the essence of their very souls. Patiently waiting decades—no, centuries—for the perfect pony gown. Today, at long last, Equestria, your wait is over! Let's hear it for the breathtaking designs of Ponyville's own Rarity!

The mares stepped out onto the stage in their outfits. Fire felt they all looked like more of a circus group then a fashionable group. Twilight and Pinkie had stars and a giant cupcake on their heads, Rainbow looked more like a soldier then a party goer, and Fluttershy had what looked like a bird's nest as her hat.

They noticed several unimpressed glares and even a tongue sticking out.

“Why's everypony lookin' at us like that?” Applejack asked.

“Oh dear,” Twilight said.

“You think we overdid it?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Nah,” Applejack said before looking at her boots which were really meant for rain. “Okay, maybe a little.”

Hoity Toity took a look at the outfits and gave his honest opinion. “Oh, those amateurish designs look like a piled-on mishmash of everything but the kitchen sink!”

The ponies laughed at this causing the five other mares to cringe. Coincidentally, Rarity had a kitchen sink right next to her in back of the stage which she pushed back.

“It's a travesty is what it is. Those outfits are the ugliest things I've ever seen, oh for shame! Who is responsible for subjecting our eyes to these horrors? Not to mention wasting my valuable time!” Hoity declared.

“Oh!” Rarity exclaimed and turned to Opal. “Hide me!”

Fire was back with her and spoke up. “Don’t worry Rarity. I still have my suit!”

She looked at him desperately. “Please save me!”

He nodded. “I will.”

Fire stepped out onto the stage in his suit as the mares stepped off. The attending ponies all smiled seeing the son of Celestia in his very attractive outfit.

“Now that is much better!” Hoity Toity said. “And with a royal no less!”

“Apologies for the bad first impression Mr. Toity,” Fire said as he gestured to the mares. “My designer friend all made wonderful outfits for these mares but they… in their…”

He turned to face them. “Sorry for saying this girls but it really needs to be said… lackluster taste in fashion… asked the designer to make it the way they wanted.”

The five of them looked down as they realized they had made a big mistake.

“Well, they certainly are lackluster!” Hoity Toity said. “I hope you still have the good dresses and they are as wonderful as you claim your highness! Because you have about fifteen minutes to get them and show me or this fashion show will only receive a three-star review. And that’s only because of your wonderful suit.”

Fire looked at the other mares who were still looking disappointed.

“Go and put on the good outfits and get back here immediately!” he ordered. “And no complaints! By order of your prince!”

“Right away!” Applejack said as she the others ran off while throwing their bad outfits to the ground.

…

They returned just in time in their better outfits. Twilight in her blue star gown.

“Hello,” Hoity said in awe as the other ponies looked impressed with stars in their own eyes.

Next, he saw Applejack.

“Simply magnificent! And I suddenly have a fierce craving for some Dutch apple pie, candied apples on a stick, apple turnovers, apple cobbler.”

He mumbled more about apples until Pinkie came up.

“Brilliant! Oh, spectacular!” he said as he saw Pinkie and then Rainbow and finally Fluttershy in their very befitting and fashionable dresses. Now this is a fashion show! All of these dresses are absolutely amazing. Who is responsible? Step forward, show yourself!”

Rarity stepped out nervously in… her bare state.

“Marvelous designs miss!” Hoity said. “But where is your outfit? Don’t tell me you didn’t make one for yourself?”

Rarity blushed.

Twilight stepped forward. “That was our fault once again. We had her make the dresses the way we wanted them. But that was a mistake we see now. Please if we could do a finale tomorrow?”

Hoity huffed. “Well, since the son of Celestia himself apologized and the true designs were simply marvelous I will grant that request.”

The ponies all left, very happy with the do over performance. Rarity then ran out and hugged Fire.

“Oh, thank you Fire!” she cried out. “You’re my hero!”

Fire smiled.

“Now I just need to make my own outfit before tomorrow morning,” Rarity said.

“No,” Twilight said approaching her.

“You have worked yerself way too hard getting our designs done.” Applejack told her.

“Let us do this one to make it up to you,” Rainbow Dash said.

“You? But none of you know anything about making dresses!” Rarity exclaimed.

“I am actually pretty handy with sewing,” Fluttershy said. “Just show me the design.”

Rarity did so and Fluttershy got to work while she slept till morning. When Fire arrived, he found the unicorn dressed in a dark pink dress lined with jewels and complete with a tiara on her head. She looked like a real princess.

“Wow,” Fire said. “You are… beautiful Rarity.”

“Thank you, Fire,” Rarity said with a blush. “And thank you again for last night. I’d probably be super depressed right now if you hadn’t stepped in with your suit and royal status.”

“No problem,” Fire said. “That’s just what a flame is after all, a light to get close to and warm up by when things get dark and cold.”
Rarity stepped out onto the stage as Hoity Toity watched.

“Brava! Brava! Magnifico!” he clapped as he saw her and all of them in their dresses as well as Fire in his suit.

They headed back to the boutique where Rarity received a five-star review put in her window.

“Big step in maybe becoming a royal fashion designer,” Frie told her.

She smiled while Twilight began to recite a letter.

“Dear Princess Celestia,” Twilight said while Spike wrote. “This week, my very talented friend Rarity learned that if you try to please everypony, you often times end up pleasing nopony, especially yourself. And I learned this, when somepony offers to do you a favor, like making you a beautiful dress, you shouldn't be overly critical of something generously given to you. In other words, you shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.”

Spike sent the letter and Hoity Toity approached the mare of the moment who was currently being nuzzled by her cat in a rare show of affection. “Rarity, my congratulations to you on a most impressive fashion debut. Would you do me the great honor of allowing me to feature your couture in my Best of the Best Boutique in Canterlot?”

Rarity eyes sparkled and she smiled then gasped in delight.

Seeing her enthusiastic silence was confirmation, Hoity Toity went on. “Now, I'll need you to make a dozen of each dress for me by next Tuesday."

Rarity gave another strained laugh.

“I think she can manage that,” Fire said. “With a little help from her friends. Or at least Fluttershy.”

He looked at the yellow Pegasus who blushed.

“She managed to do all the things we requested. She’ll have no problem with a little help.”

Author's Note

Alright, another chapter done. Was tempted to have Fire tell off the others but as I wrote it just felt better for him to save the day (or night). Still a bit rocky but it all worked out in the end. Hope you all liked it.

Chapter 30: Feeling Pinkie Keen

Author's Note

Well, hope you guys had a happy 4th. Mine was a bit quiet. Played videogames and watching videos online as well as a bit of writing this, it’s a long one. As well as barbequing myself a hot dog and hamburger. Sorry for those of you that were expecting it to come out last week. Just felt I needed a little break. That sometimes happens I guess, may have said it before but if you don’t see it by Saturday for this story at the latest it will probably be out the week after.

Just to give a little warning for this chapter it contains some slight defense of lesbians. But that’s only for a brief scene. That is not meant to offend anyone, unless you’re a violent opposer of that sort of thing. Everyone has a right to love who they choose to love, be it man or woman. Though certain lines should not be crossed of course like… well… I’ll be mentioning those in the story when the scene comes.

Chapter 30: Feeling Pinkie Keen

In one of the streets of Ponyville, Twilight was practicing her magic with Fire and Moondancer as well as her constant companion Spike. Both Spike and Fire had rocks on their heads, a cluster of vines around their necks, a branch in their hand or hoof respectively. Twilight and Moondancer faced them with horns lit up, lavender for Twilight and white for Moondancer.

Both unicorns struggled, then the vines around Spike’s neck turned into a black suit with a white undershirt and red bow tie.

“Wow, nice work Twilight!” Moondancer praised as she looked at her fellow unicorn.

“Thanks, Moondancer,” Twilight acknowledged with a smile but didn’t look her way.

It wasn’t out of rudeness, but this particular bit of magic required constant concentration until done or it would fail. She then turned the stick into a fancy black and gold cane which Spike grabbed happily. But then he looked off to something on the side.

“Eyes over here, Spike!” Twilight said.

“Uh, sorry,” Spike replied as he turned back to her.

Moondancer’s horn flashed a bit but she couldn’t seem to get any of the simple nature objects Fire was wearing to transfigure.

“Wow this hard,” she sighed as she sweated a bit.

“For this to work, it's crucial we keep our concentration totally on the-

They heard a faint cry nearby. This drew the attention of most of them. Twilight, however was too concentrated on her magic and managed to transform the rock on Spike’s head into a hat hovering above him. But as he looked away, it turned back into a rock and hit him on the noggin. He cried out in pain.

Twilight frowned. “Spike! This magic needs our full attention to make it happen. There's no other way!”

Fire frowned at her. “Twilight! He just got hit on the head by a rock and you’re more worried about your magic working? That’s no better than when he laughed at your attempt of skating during Winter Wrap Up! Just because he’s your number one assistant doesn’t give you the right to dismiss his well-being!”

Twilight’s eyes widened and she gasped in remorse. “You’re right! Sorry Spike. I just really wanted to get this one down!”

Spike got up and rubbed his head. “It’s okay. I just can’t help it! I can't help it. Look!”

He pointed and the three ponies looked. They saw Pinkie Pie come out from behind a tree with a… weird rainbow-colored umbrella hat on her head and a scared expression as she looked around and scuttled forward so fast she seemed to vanish in a puff of smoke. She hid beneath the patio of one of the houses and looked up as though expecting something to fall. Then she somehow squeezed under a rock near them and continued.

“Never mind her,” Twilight said with a sigh. “She's just being Pinkie Pie.”

“Super-extra Pinkie Pie today,” Spike said scratching his head.

“This does a seem a little unusual,” Fire noted. “Even for her.”

“Maybe we should see what’s up,” Moondancer suggested.

They followed her and Pinkie stopped. Then her tail started twitching rapidly and she looked at it.

“Hmm... Twitchy twitcha twitcha twitch.”

“Pinkie Pie?” Twilight asked as the four of them approached her. “What in the wide, wide world of Equestria are you up to?”

“Oh! It's my tail! It's my tail!” Pinkie said as she showed Twilight her tail so close it brushed the unicorn’s face. “It's a-twitch a-twitchin'! And you know what that means!”

Twilight moved the tail out of her face. “Actually, Pinkie, I haven't the slightest idea.”

“Me neither,” Fire said as Moondancer likewise shook her head in confusion.

“The twitchin' means my Pinkie Sense is telling me that stuff's gonna start falling!” She told them. “You guys better duck for cover.”

Fire frowned and looked up. There wasn’t anything in the sky… except for…

Twilight smiled. “Oh, Pinkie, it's not gonna rain. Why, there's barely even a cloud in the-ugh!”

Suddenly a frog had landed on her face. It croaked.

“He just said ‘nice catch’ in Frog,” Pinkie translated.

The frog croaked again. Then the one Fire had spotted in the sky spoke softly. Fluttershy, she was currently flying just above them with a wooden cart, a basket, and a saddle bag all full of frogs.

“Oh, I'm so so sorry,” Fluttershy said. “You okay, Twilight Sparkle? I just couldn't stand to see the pond getting so over-populated, what with the frogs all hopping into each other and all, so I decided to fly as many as I can on over to Froggy Bottom Bogg.”

Twilight looked annoyed as the frog that had fallen on her was still on her face. “Of course you did.”

“Bye-bye!” Fluttershy said in a muffled voice since she now had the basket in her mouth.

“Hey wait!” Fire called.

She stopped.

“You probably don’t want to forget about this frog!” Fire said as he pulled the frog on Twilight’s face off and flew up to Fluttershy with it then put it gently in her mane.

“Oh, you’re right! How silly of me!” Fluttershy said before looking at him. “But maybe you’d like to take him?”

“Uh,” Fire hesitated. “Thanks, but I don’t have a pond or anything around my place.”

Also, he wasn’t much of a frog pony either. Fluttershy though, she’d take anything.

“Oh, right,” Fluttershy agreed. “Bye now.”

She then took off.

“Well, see you guys later,” Pinkie said as she walked off singing with the umbrella hat still on her head.

Twilight looked at them. “C'mon, guys, let's continue our practice session where there's a little less commotion.”

“Wow! That was amazing!” Spike said jumping on Twilight’s back as they began walking through Ponyville. “Pinkie Pie predicted something would fall, and it did!”

“Oh, come on. She said that something would fall, and a frog just happened to fall right around the same time. A coincidence, nothing else to it.”

Fire wasn’t entirely sure. He tried to keep an open mind but this was a little unbelievable for him.

Moondancer, however, wasn’t so open. “Yeah, no way a twitching tail can…”

“My tail! My tail!!” Pinkie interrupted as she appeared behind them, her tail twitching again as she jumped wildly. “Twitch-a-twitch Twitch-a-twitch! Somethin' else is gonna fall!”

Twilight smirked and continued walking as Fire looked up in slight worry. “Oh, Pinkie, please.”

Fire saw nothing in the sky. But looking back at the way Twilight was going…

“Hey look out!” he called.

“Nothing else is gonna fa— aaah!” Twilight yelped as she fell into a ditch that she hadn’t seen while distracted talking to Pinkie.

Spike landed on the edge of the ditch. “Oh no, Twilight fell! Is it... safe to go help her?

“It's okay, my tail stopped twitching,” Pinkie said gesturing to said tail and throwing off the umbrella hat before walking off while singing.

Twilight got up in the ditch, shaking off the pain from the fall.

Spike laughed as he said, “That was amazing!”

Fire was beginning to think this Pinkie Sense was for real.

Twilight was still not having it. “Oh, please.”

Moondancer was likewise frowning in disbelief.

Then they heard a new voice and looked to see Applejack with Grand Garden by her side. “Uh, Twilight? Why are you hanging out in a ditch?”

“Yeah, I mean I like working in the dirt but that doesn’t seem to be your cup of soil,” Grand Garden said.

“Because, Pinkie Pie predicted it!” Spike told them.

“No, she did not!” Moondancer objected.

“Yeah! Two coincidences in a row like this may be unlikely, but it's still easier to believe than twitchy tails that predict the future,” Twilight agreed as she climbed onto the edge of the ditch and twitched her tail for them to see.

Applejack gasped and flailed her hooves in fright. “Twitchy tail? Pinkie Sense? Whoa! Come on Grand! Nyu-uh!”

She grabbed Grand who looked confused. They both went under a fruit cart. Fire reached out a hoof to help Twilight out of the ditch and she took it with a smile.

Spike, meanwhile, approached Applejack. “Don't worry, it's safe. Prediction already came true.”

“Oh, wait. Don't tell me you believe in this stuff, too?” Twilight asked incredulously.

“I know it doesn't make much sense,” Applejack said as she got out from under the cart. “But those of us who have been in Ponyville a while have learned over time that, if Pinkie's a-twichin', you better listen.”

And then Pinkie was back again. “My ears are flopping! My ears are flopping!

“Nyuh!” Spike put both hands up to shield himself. “What does that mean?”

Not wanting to take any chances after seeing the two time fall confirmation, Fire put up a red shield around himself.

Pinkie turned to Twilight and Moondancer. “I'll start a bath for you two.”

“Huh?” They said together.

“A bath?” she chuckled. “This thing keeps on getting more ridiculous by the minute!”

Moondancer smiled in agreement, but in the next second a cart came speeding by, running through a nearby puddle of mud which flew up and hit both mares. Their eyes widened and then Twilight growled furiously while Moondancer was shocked.

“Okay, now I believe it!” Fire said.

“Me too!” Spike said.

“Well, I’ll leave you two to clean up,” Applejack said. “Got some work to finish up. I’ve got a new apple cellar that I just got done making! Now I can have more room!”

Grand Garden smiled at his marefriend. “Well I’m happy to lend you a hoof with that my strong tender apple.”

“Aw shucks,” Applejack said with a blush. “I always appreciate it my fine gardener feller.”

They’d been rather awkward with flirting at first but now after a few months of dating they were completely on the same page. The two Earth Ponies walked off to do their work together.

Fire and the others meanwhile, went inside Sugarcube Corner where the two scholarly unicorns each had a bubble bath in the tub. Moondancer was in first while Twilight sat on a towel to avoid getting mud all over the place.

Pinkie meanwhile took the opportunity to explain her Pinkie Sense to them as she brough in another formula for the bath. “Sooo, basically, it works like this; I get different, little, niggly feelings and they mean different things. Like when my back is itchy.”

Her back seemed to shake for them to see. “It means it's my lucky day. And, when my knee gets pinchy.” Her knee shook. “That means something scary's about to happen.”

Twilight and Moondancer both looked at her skeptically but frowned uneasily.

“Is your knee pinchy now?” Twilight asked.

“No,” Pinkie replied before turning to the tub and Moondancer. “But my shoulder's achy. That means there's an alligator in the tub.

Fire’s eyes widened as he looked at Moondancer who was in the tub. Pinkie got there first though and dunked her head into the water, pulling out a little alligator. Moondancer screamed and jumped out onto Fire’s back, getting him all wet too.

“Don’t let it eat me!” she said frightfully.

Twilight looked at Pinkie in confusion as well as fear now. “How come your knee didn't get pinchy?! That isn't just scary, it's downright dangerous!”

Pinkie smiled. “No, it's not, silly!” she put the alligator down and pointed at it. “This is my pet alligator, Gummy. He's got no teeth.”

As if to demonstrate, Gummy opened his jaws which were indeed devoid of teeth and began jumping around on Pinkie and harmlessly biting her on various parts.

“See? Haha!” Pinkie giggled.

“Okay, okay... I get it,” Twilight said.

She got her bath then they walked outside. Unfortunately, both unicorns were still very skeptical.

“Well, I still don't believe all this... "special power" stuff,” Twilight said. “It's just a bunch of mumbo-jumbo.”

Moondancer nodded in agreement.

Pinkie Pie was looking a little agitated now. “What's not to believe? You three do magic, what's the difference?”

This cause Twilight’s mouth to fall open as Pinkie went ahead. That had touched a nerve though.

“Huge!” Twilight exclaimed. “For one thing…”

She stood on a soap box among the streets vendor stands, brushing the soap on top of it aside then clearing her throat as though proudly giving a speech. “Magic is something you study and practice. It only happens when you decide to do it, and it's meant to make something specific that you choose to happen, happen.”

“Yeah, we have to hone our skills through lots of effort!” Moondancer concurred as she stood by Twilight’s side. “Right Fire?”

“Well, yeah but I’ve both seen Pinkie’s ability in action,” Fire said as he stood between them. “And Fluttershy is a Pegasus! Earth Ponies are supposed to be the ones that can talk to animals typically. Maybe this is just another one of those unique cases. I can’t really explain it.”

“Well, it makes no sense at all!” Twilight said to Pinkie.

“That's so not true, Twilight!” Pinkie said seriously before changing her tune to that of a silly one. “Sometimes it's a bunch of random things happening to my body at random times that supposedly predict the future. I call 'em "combos".

“Combos?” Twilight repeated as she got off her high horse, or high box.

Moondancer sighed. “Here we go. Just another crazy visit to Ponyville.”

“Sure!” Pinkie said as she bounced after Twilight who was now approaching the Golden Oaks Library. “You know, like, ear flop, then knee twitch, then eye flutter.”

She flopped her ears then twitched her knee and fluttered her eyes to demonstrate. “That means the sky is about to be graced with a beautiful rainbow!”

Twilight smiled to hide her disbelief. “Yeah, sure.”

“Uh-oh!” Pinkie exclaimed. “I feel a combo coming on. Ear flop, eye flutter, knee twitch!”

Her body did all these actions as Twilight just smirked and made her way toward the door… which suddenly burst open, right into her. Twilight exclaimed in pain as Spike emerged from within the library carrying a pile of books. He closed the door behind him, revealing Twilight flattened on the other side, literally.

“Ughhh...” Twilight groaned as her friends gathered around her in concern. “You said that combo meant ‘beautiful rainbow’.”

Her eyes spun as she spoke.

“Oh no-no-no-no-no,” Pinkie shook her head. “You're thinking of an ear flop, then knee twitch, then eye flutter.”

She did those actions to demonstrate and then did them again in a different order. “This was an ear flop, then eye flutter, then knee twitch. That usually means "look out for opening doors". You okay?”

Twilight got up and shook her head. “I don't believe this.”

“Me neither!” Moodancer agreed.

Fire sighed. “You bookworms are really stubborn you know!”

“You read nearly as much!” Moondancer said.

“Whatever, I’ve seen like four or five times where Pinkie is right so far,” Fire said. “And you guys wrong that many times. Good enough for me. See you around.”

He flew off, wanting to avoid listening to this arguing back and forth. He pondered what he would do now. Rarity and Rainbow Dash were both out of town, Rarity for her fashion debut in Canterlot while Rainbow was in Cloudsdale. He sighed in contentment, glad for the break from the arguing. Things were peaceful now, for the moment at least.

But that moment soon came to an end as he heard an earpiercing scream.

Fire dove into action and headed in the direction of the sound. He found a dark brown stallion hitting a green mare… one he recognized.

“Please stop Hardy!” Lyra Heartstrings begged the stallion.

“You should be with a stallion like me not another mare!” the stallion snapped. “Its an abomination! Mares like you should be whipped for such things!”

“Stop right there!” Fire shouted as he flew over the scene, levitating Lyra away from the stallion.

“Prince Fire!” she exclaimed in relief.

He landed in front of her protectively, facing Hardy. “How dare you strike a mare!”

“This mare has been kissing another mare, your highness!” Hardy protested. “That goes against the natural order!”

“Says who? We should all be free to love who we love!” Fire snapped.

“Oh, like if a brother were to love his sister? Or a grown stallion could love a little filly?” Hardy retorted.

“Okay, maybe not that kind,” Fire admitted. “But you can’t just attack or discriminate somepony because of who they like! Not in this instance!”

Hardy growled and came at him. The air around Ponyville was filled with grunts of pain and the sound of magic was heard. When it was all over, Hardy lay on the ground groaning in defeat while Fire barely had a scratch.

His Pegasus guards soon arrived at the scene and put the villain in a cage.

“Take this one to Canterlot for assault,” Fire ordered. “Both against me and a mare!”

“Yes, Prince Fire.” They said as they harnessed themselves to the cage and took off toward the city that was visible even from here on the mountain.

Fire then turned to Lyra. “Are you okay?”

She nodded, though he noticed a black eye. “Nothing permanent at least. Thank you. That stallion was trying to win me over for these past few weeks but I guess he saw me and Bonbon holding hooves and got angry.”

Fire sighed. “Some ponies just can’t take rejection. You need any help?”

“I’ll be fine, after a little ice.” She rubbed her eye.

He escorted her home where Bonbon was. They got of a plastic sack and filled it with ice which they put on Lyra’s eye.

“Should be fine after an hour, at least to stop the swelling,” Bonbon said before turning to Fire. “Thanks.”

“No problem. I’m just glad you’re okay,” Fire said.

Lyra smiled. “You’re probably gonna be a famous knight of Equestria as well as a prince, Fire. I bet the histories will remember you for thousands of years.”

Fire stiffened. “Uh… yeah. Maybe.”

She got up and gave him a one-legged hug that he returned. Fire then made his way outside and began flying once more. He spotted a pink pony below that he immediately recognized as Pinkie Pie and her also saw a purple and green shape that was unmistakably Spike, then… his eyes narrowed. Did a plant just move? Fire glided down to take a closer look. He soon the spotted the cause as Twilight and Moondancer came out of it, having used it as a movable cover. They were both wearing safari like hat and had a set of binocaulurs in their hooves.

“What are you two up to?” Fire asked as he landed next to them.

“Ah!” Both mares yelped in surprise, jumping above the plant.

“What’s going on here?” Spike asked as he saw them.

“Honestly, Fire, Spike! Don't you know better than to sneak up on ponies?” Twilight asked.

Fire sniggered. “Yeah like I’d know better! I like to sneak up on ponies sometimes and give them a little fright. Boo!”

Twilight frowned while Moondancer giggled.

“You’re funny Fire!” she said.

“Well, we’re observing observing Pinkie Pie,” Twilight told them as she took cover in the bush. “Scientific name: Pinkius Pieicus, in its natural habitat.”

“Yeah!” Moondancer said as she joined Twilight inside.

“Pinkius-whoicus?” Spike asked as he was dragged in.

“There's something fishy going on with the whole twitchy prediction thing,” Twilight said. “And we’re getting to the bottom of it.”

Moondancer nodded. “So can you boys be quiet?”

“And get down Fire!” Twilight said as he was still standing tall.

“Hi Fire!” Pinkie called as she saw him.

He waved awkwardly. “Heeey!”

She turned away and began bouncing while he knelt down.

“Come on, Pinkius Pieicus is on the move,” Twilight said from inside the bush.

The three of them followed her from inside the bush and Fire followed behind them, the bush was too small for all four of them.

“You sure this is a good idea?” Fire asked.

“I have to figure this out!” Twilight insisted.

They trailed Pinkie who simply rolled around carefreely on the grass of the nearby school. Twilight got of the bush and looked at their quarry with her binoculars again. She watched as Pinkie scratched her nose.

“Hm, itchy nose.” She said for Spike to take notes on the pad she had.

Fire watched. The binoculars were actually a bit pointless as they were able to see Pinkie clearly from this distance. He saw her mouth fall open and heard a faint gasp from her before she took cover under a nearby metal structure while looking up at the sky in fear.

“Aha!” Twilight exclaimed then turned to them. “That makes no sense. See? She's hiding like something's about to fall from the sky, but a twitchy tail means something's gonna fall from the sky, not an itchy nose.”

Fire looked up at the sky. There wasn’t anything seemingly about to fall but, he heard a faint buzzing sound and saw a large swarm of bees flying around.

Twilight didn’t notice it and continued speaking. “This proves perhaps conclusively, that—

Spike, having noticed the bees as well, yelled in fear and began running away.

“Spike! Where are you going?” Twilight asked.

“Girls look out!” Fire shouted as he flew above them and conjured a red shield around the bush they were in as the bees came swarming toward them, trying to sting them.

Twilight and Moondancer were shocked as they saw the bees coming at them. But thankfully didn’t get them thanks to Fire’s shield. The bees soon realized the futility and flew off elsewhere.

“Phew, that was close!” Twilight said. “Probably would have received a dozen stings there! Thanks Fire.”

“Yeah, thanks!” Moondancer said as she hugged him with a blush. “You really saved us a lot of pain there! My hero.”

Fire blushed as well, appreciating the compliment. “Uh, you’re welcome. That must have been the combination for angry bee swarm.”

They’d lost Pinkie Pie in the commotion and got back on the move.

“Come on Twilight, Moondancer, you two should just leave it be,” Fire said.

“No! I’m gonna prove this is a hoax!” Twilight declared.

“We’re so gonna be famous around Ponyville!” Moondancer said.

“I thought you were shy about that?” Twilight asked.

Moondancer shrugged. “Being on a stage is one thing but proving something scientific is another matter.”

They found Pinkie near the Apple farm and hid behind some haybales.

“What's she doing now?” Spike asked.

“Smelling a flower,” Twilight said.

“Holy guacamole!” Spike exclaimed. “I wonder what that means?

“Probably that the flower smells good.” Twilight stated the obvious as she continued watching through her binoculars. “Wait. I'm getting something. Ear flop, eye flutter, knee twitch.”

“Hold on,” Spike looked behind them before picking up his notebook and running away. “You told me that's the combo that says "watch out for opening doors"!

Twilight and Moondancer looked at the door to the barn behind them. Then Twilight smirked. “Oh-ho. You really, really believe this stuff, don't you?”

“Here, let me show you there's nothing to be afraid of.” She leaned on the door to the barn, and nothing happened. “You see?”

Moondancer smirked and nodded.

Twilight began walking away from the barn triumphantly. “I promise you there's nothing to fear from that-“

Before anypony knew what hit them, or hit Twilight really, a door from the ground suddenly popped open and Twilight fell in.

“Twilight!” Fire exclaimed.

They heard her give grunts of pain and crash down the steps into-

“Twilight!” Applejack’s voice came from inside. “You came to visit my new apple cellar, how nice. Twi? You okay? Uh, Twi?”

Fire, Moondancer and Spike ran down to help.

“Twilight didn’t come to visit, she fell in!” Fire told Applejack. “Oh, she looks like she’s in bad shape! Come on, let’s get her to the hospital!”

Good thing the hospital had some healing potions in stock that helped heal broken bones in just an hour. But Twilight still had to be in a wheelchair with built on supports to move her front hooves for that time. And she still insisted on following Pinkie Pie.

“Here, let me help you,” Spike said as he wound a wheel on the chair to help Twilight lift her broken forelegs.

Twilight had a big frown on her face as she put the binoculars to her eyes and they watched.

“Okay, take this down. Twitchy tail,” she told Spike.

“Twitchy tail? The little dragon repeated then gasped and yelled in fright. “Twitchy tail!”

He caused the wires supporting Twilight’s hooves to move and her to grunt in pain. She turned to him.

“Hush, Spike! We can't let Pinkie know we're here, remember?

But Spike was too scared to hear. “Something's gonna fall, something's gonna fall! Run for your lives.”

And he did just that. Moondancer seemed rather uncertain, seemingly unable to deny it anymore. Fire meanwhile looked up and saw-

Twilight, however was still not having. “Ugh. Spike, honestly.”

“Move!” Fire yelled as he grabbed her and pulled her out of the wheelchair.

Moondancer likewise leapt off to the side. First a flower pot hit the chair where Twilight had been sitting, then a heavy metal anvil, bales of hay, and finally a piano. That would have probably been enough to nearly kill somepony.

Fire turned up to the team of Pegasi that had dropped the things they were transporting in a massive… truck? Fire didn’t see those very often. And how were a pair of Pegasi able to even keep it straight? Much less fly it when it must have weighed a few tons?

“Hey! Watch it!” He yelled up at them. “You could have killed my friend here!”

“Sorry!” the leader of the air transport team said.

Fire turned to Twilight. “You okay?”

“Yeah, thanks to you,” Twilight said before stubbornly frowning again. “But there’s no way Pinkie predicted that with her tail. Right, Moondancer?”

But the yellow unicorn with the red and purple mane sighed. “I’m sorry Twilight but every single time Pinkie’s been right! I can’t deny it anymore!”

Twilight seethed, steam coming out of her ears.

Fire sighed as he held her in his hooves. “Twilight, this has to stop. You could have been crushed under a bunch of stuff there that would have severely injured or maybe even killed you! I’m taking you back to the library. And you’re staying there until you’re healed!”

He did just that, carrying her that direction as she rolled her eyes.

“You really have a fetish for picking up mares bridal style, don’t you?” she asked.

“I guess,” Fire admitted. “Just seems to happen. Had to save Rarity from falling off a cliff, carry Fluttershy up a mountain, and then Rarity jumped into my hooves when we first met Zecora.”

“And you picked her up when you danced as I recall,” Twilight said. “That’s three times for Rarity.”

“Oh yeah that too… and now this,” Fire said.

“You danced with Rarity?” Moondancer asked a bit jealously.

“It was at a party,” Fire said in his defense. “Just as friends.”

That appeased Moondancer. He soon put Twilight on bed and conjured a bit of rope to pin her to it.

“Until you heal!” Fire said flatly.

“Is this really necessary?” Twilight asked as she struggled against the rope.

“You seem to be willing to do this even if it kills you! You should have quit after the fall through the cellar,” Fire told her.

“There’s just no sense or logic to this Pinkie Sense!” Twilight objected.

“And how about Fluttershy speaking to animals when that should be an Earth Pony thing?” Fire reminded her. “It could just be a special ability of Pinkie. Like my mom raises the sun, and my aunt raises the moon!”

“Those are clearly related to their cutie marks and magic!” Twilight said. “Pinkie doesn’t have a cutie mark for danger detection or psychic!”

“No, but she is like the queen of weird… in a good way!” Fire said. “Now you get some rest!”

“You’re not the boss of me!” Twilight declared.

“TWILIGHT SPARKLE, I’M TELLING YOU THIS FOR YOUR OWN GOOD!” Fire shouted in his royal Canterlot voice. “You. Need. Some. Rest. Now either you lay down and let yourself heal quickly and quietly, or I’ll put you to sleep with a spell.”

He lit up his horn to let her know he wasn’t kidding. That shut her up, enough.

“Fine… your royal protectiveness,” Twilight grumbled.

She shut her eyes and rested. Thanks to the potions she’d been given it was soon over and she was able to walk on her hooves again, though they remained in casts for now. But Twilight was back on it with her them following her. They found Pinkie in the street near the edge of the forest humming.

“Hey, Applejack, Grand. What you two doin'?

“Takin' more apples to my new apple cellar,” Applejack gestured to the buckets she and Grand had on their backs. “How 'bout you, Pinkie? What you doing?

“Oh, letting Twilight secretly follow me all day without me knowing,” Pinkie said as they approached.

“You mean you knew all along?! Why didn't you tell me?!” Twilight shouted.

Pinkie giggled. “Silly, that would've spoiled the secret!”

Twilight grunted as Spike appeared behind her and asked fearfully. “Tail... still twitching?

“All done,” Pinkie replied gesturing to her tail. “Clear skies from here on in, as far as I can tell…”

She sudden began shuddering as though very cold. The vibration was so intense it caused Applejack and Grand’s buckets to fall off their backs.

“Oh no! What does that one mean?” Spike asked.

“Dunno, never gotten any like it before, but whatever that shudder's about, it's a doozy,” Pinkie said, actually sounding scared now. “Something you'd never expect to happen is gonna happen.”

She shook again.

“And it's gonna happen... at Froggy Bottom Bogg!”

Applejack gasped. “That's where Fluttershy's headed!”

“Oh no!” Spike said. “Is it about her?”

Pinkie seemed uncertain. “Uh, I'm not sure.”

“How do you even know the location?” Moondancer asked.

“Just saw in my pinkie mind eye!” Pinkie said.

“We better go and make sure she's okay,” Applejack said running off.

Twilight was ever in denial. “Calm down, everypony. All we know right now is that Pinkie Pie just got a case of the shivers. That's all.”

She looked around and was surprised to see Pinkie, Grand, and Moondancer had all run off after Applejack while Fire flew behind them. She stripped herself of the casts, relieved to see her front legs were finally fully healed and sprinted after them, taking Spike on her back.

“Hey! I thought you didn't believe in this stuff?” Spike asked as he held on.

“I don't,” Twilight affirmed. “I just want to be there to see the look on Pinkie's face when we find out nothing's wrong.”

“Okie-dokie!” Pinkie replied with no ill feelings.

They continued with Pinkie getting more shivers. Fire did his best to ignore Twilight’s denial the rest of the way.

“So... whadda'ya think happened to Fluttershy?” Spike asked.

“I hope nothin,” Applejack said.

“Well, if there’s some monster or something attacking her, I’ll fight it off!” Fire declared.

“You’re always so brave,” Moondancer said with admiration. “But… I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

Fire scoffed. “Relax, my talent is combat! And I’m the Element of Balance! The one that evens the odds when things get bad, remember?”

Moondancer smiled. “Yeah, you did keep me from maybe sinking into a long depression.”

“And helped me feel better during Winter Wrap Up,” Twilight said. “If you hadn’t talked some sense into Spike, he might have never stood up for me to Applejack.”

The orange Earth Pony frowned. “He’s also the reason you tried to use magic in the first place.”

She then turned to Fire. “But yeah, you do seem to keep things from getting worse then they could. At least some of the time. Let’s just hope Fluttershy’s okay.”

“She's fine, I'm sure of it,” Twilight insisted.

Applejack continued into the woods. “I hope you're right, for Fluttershy's sake. Look!”

She pointed at a large muddy bog. “There's Froggy Bottom Bogg!

Dragonflies buzzed around the brown river which they approached.

“Fluttershy?!” Applejack called.

They all began walking (or in Fire’s case, flying). He flew up to get a bird’s eye view and soon spotted their Pegasus friend standing on a rock near the edge of the bog.

“Fluttershy!” he exclaimed as he flew over to her.

“Fire?” she spoke in surprise.

Spike spotted her as well and jumped onto her back, hugging her in relief. “Fluttershy! You're okay!”

Fluttershy was surprised by so many of her friends coming there. “Of course.”

“Phew, what a relief,” Applejack said.

“Yeah,” Grand Garden agreed.

Fire looked at Fluttershy. “Sorry to startle you. Pinkie had this feeling something was going to happen here and we were worried about you.”

“I'm so glad everything's all right,” Pinkie said.

Twilight stepped up to the edge of the bog in triumph. “Sorry, I know it's not nice to gloat but... Aha! I told you there was nothing to worry about, and I was right.”

Suddenly something big began to move around them and green mist covered the area as Twilight continued.

“Pinkie Pie said whatever she was shuddering about was a…” She coughed a few more times as she spoke. then resumed speaking. “Doozy, and… and the only…doozy here is how right I am.

Applejack shuddered now as she and Grand Garden fearfully walked over to the others who were all huddled together. Except for Fire who was in front of them with a determined battle-ready expression. “Um... Twilight?” the Earth Pony said.

But Twilight was still gloating, not noting the danger behind her as she continued coughing. “Pinkie's made a lot of predictions today but… ugh, what is that smell? But what we've shown here is that there's no point in believing… in anything you can't see for yourself.

Spike stuttered as he pointed. “W-Well t-then, s-see what's b-b-behind you, Twilight!

The creature growled and Twilight turned to see the four long snakelike necks reaching high into the sky, with four heads at the top towering over them.

“I see it... but I don't believe it!” Twilight said.

Three of the heads roared, then the fourth joined in after a brief hesitation.

“Is that a hydra?!” Pinkie asked in fright.

“Yeah!” Fire confirmed. “You girls run! I’ll hold it off!”

He flew up high and shouted to get the creature’s attention. “Hey! Up here! Come get me you four headed freak!”

“Fire no!” Moondancer exclaimed as she and Fluttershy looked up at him in concern.

“Come on let’s do what he says!” Applejack said to the yellow unicorn. “Run!”

They all did so, except for Pinkie and Grand who were both shaking in fear. Above them, the four heads snapped at Fire who barrel rolled out of the way of them all. Two of the heads banged into each other. Then he shot the third with a beam of magic, causing it to cry out in pain. Fire then flew up high, out of range of the attacks. He looked down and saw that two of the ponies were not going. At the same Twilight and Applejack did as well.

“Pinkie! Come on!” Twilight called.

“Grand! Move!” Applejack said in the same worried tone.

They ran back to retrieve their friends (or coltfriend in Applejack’s case). Fire leapt onto the face of one of the hydra heads, blocking its sight as it snapped its jaws fruitlessly. He then dodged as another bit at him and got the first head instead. The bitten head hissed at its fellow. Another head though saw the two ponies that were vulnerable. It hissed at the others who looked and saw the ponies that couldn’t fly, they turned that way.

“Oh no you don’t!” Fire called as he called upon his swordhorn spell for the first time in months before any of the heads could lunge.

He swung the magical blade of his horn as he flew, the hydra cried out as its heads were cut off one by one in a space of just five seconds.

“Fire no!” Twilight called.

The four heads fell inside the water or on the edge of the bog, getting blood everywhere. Fire grinned as he looked down at the water where the rest of the body. He then turned to the others in triumph as they looked up at him.

“Nice going Prince Fire!” Grand Garden said.

“I killed it!” Fire exclaimed in triumph.

Fluttershy shuddered uncomfortably in the distance where she was with Moondancer. She didn’t like the violence, but at the same time she was grateful for being safe again.

“Killed it?” Twilight repeated as if that was ludicrous. “Fire you just made it worse!”

“Huh?” Fire asked looking at her.

“Fire when you cut off a hydra’s head…” Twilight froze as her eyes widened at something behind Fire. “Three more grow back in its place.”

They heard something and looked. Fire’s eyes widened as he saw a hydra that now had twelve heads.

“Oh boy,” Fire said, losing his bravado. “Didn’t see that coming. Run!”

They all did so, Grand and Pinkie finally snapping out of their frozen fear. Though Fire still flew, man he’d been flying most of the day like Rainbow Dash typically would. His wings were getting sore. But he had to do something. Just hold the hydra off for a few seconds to buy some time for the others to get away then he could fly away. He better be quick though. At this rate he was gonna slow down pretty soon. He looked and saw the rest of its body come of the bog, revealing a golden belly and matching spikes.

“Come on!” Fire said as he rose up high once again.

The hydra struck at him with its twelve heads but he was just out of range.

“Neh, neh, neh, neh, neh!” Fire taunted as he mooned them. “I got wings! You cannot reach me! You’re just twelve stinkers in one!”

The hydra heads gave numerous growls. Then one of them spotted a large tree and grabbed hold of it in its mouth. As Fire stopped laughing and saw this, that head used the tree as a makeshift club to try and swat him like a fly. Fire barely managed to for a shield in front of himself. It blocked the worst the blow but he was pushed far back, going past all the others and hitting a rock blocking their way out.

“Ahh!” Fire yelled as he felt that wing break.

“Fire!” Moondancer called in concern as she reached him.

They were trapped this way, and Fire couldn’t fly anymore. He gritted his teeth as the worst of the pain passed. At least the hydra was a good distance away from them since he’d held it off and he could still run.

Twilight looked around for another escape routed and pointed to her right. “Everypony up that hill!”

“Help!” Spike screamed.

They looked and saw the little dragon was trapped in the mud.

“Coming, Spike!” Twilight called as she ran back for him. “Hang on!”

Fire got up and was about to go and help as he saw the hydra come back into view. But Moondancer and Fluttershy held him back.

“You’ve done enough Fire!” Moondancer said.

“Please don’t put yourself in harms way for us anymore!” Fluttershy begged.

“Not unless you really have to!” Applejack said. “Come on!”

They all made their way up the hill Twilight had indicated. Twilight soon caught up with them with Spike as the hydra lagged behind, eventually getting trapped in the mud Spike had. But it soon pulled itself and redoubled its efforts, coming after them with all the speed it could manage.

“We're gonna make it!” Twilight said certainly. “Since Fire bought us some time!”

“But Pinkie's still shuddering!” Spike pointed out.

The pink pony was indeed as she somehow moved up the hill without moving her legs. Just shuddering her way up. Then it stopped.

“Oh, lookie there, it stopped,” she announced, but then it came back again, and she spoke, stuttering as she shuttered. “O-h-h-h, t-h-e-r-e i-t i-s a-g-a-i-n!”

Spike pushed her the rest of the way as the shutter froze her in place this time. The group made it to the top of the hill only to find a dead end, except for a series of six thin rock spires that just made it to the other side. There was only room for one pony at a time. The hydra was still a good distance away but with this many ponies… well, they might make it but they’d have to be quick.

“Quick, one at a time, cross!” Twilight said.

Fire frowned. He hated the idea of running away… it was just so… cowardly. But it was probably better than getting eating by a twelve headed hydra.

Spike approached the edge of the cliff and looked down in fright. He then ran back to Twilight hopefully. “Uh, do you know any spells for turning a hydra into a mouse?”

“No,” Twilight said.

“How about a squirrel?” Spike asked.

“No!” Twilight repeated more impatient.

“How 'bout-

“No small rodents of any kind!”

“That's too bad,” Spike said before turning to Fire. “And I guess you already tried your sword spell.”

“Remind me to get an encyclopedia of monster extermination if we make it through this,” Fire said.

Heavy footsteps sounded as the hydra reached the mountain base.

“Go!” Fire said.

Suddenly Fluttershy spoke. “A hop, skip, and a... jump!”

She leapt from one spire of rock to the other.

Fire frowned. “You could have used your wings Fluttershy!”

She looked at them, having forgotten. “Oh, right. I forgot about them.”

Fire sighed. “Well go! Quickly!”

Grand Garden grabbed Spike and leapt across as well. Moondancer was uncertain as she peered over the edge.

“Oh if only I could teleport! I don’t think I can make that!” she said fearfully. “Can you carry me over, Fire?”

His only response was to groan in pain at his damaged wing as it acted up.

“Oh, I guess not,” Moondancer gulped.

She then ran back aways and then charged, making it across the first two spires but only getting her hooves on the edge of the next mountain. Fortunately Grand, Fluttershy and Spike grabbed hold of her and managed to pull her up before she could fall.

Pinkie was shuddering again and went off over the edge, hanging in midair seemingly. Applejack grabbed hold of her before gravity could reactivate (if it could even be deactivated as it seemed to be) and pulled her back onto their side. The hydra was closing in.

“He’s too close!” Twilight said.

“I’ll distract him!” Fire said.

“No Fire!” Twilight told him. “You already got hurt protecting us. Now it’s my turn. You three go!”

“No way Twilight!” Fire said. “I’m the fighter here! You go with the other two!”

“Uh! You two better make up your minds quick! Cause I’m not gonna wait for y’all to settle it!” Applejack said as she grabbed Pinkie’s tale and leapt to the other side. That left Twilight and Fire as the last ponies. And the hydra was closing in.

Twilight shuddered in fear. “Oh what would a brave pony like you or Rainbow Dash do?”

Looking back at Applejack and Pinkie making their way across the spires, Fire came to a realization.

“Screw this Twilight lets just go!” Fire turning around. “Now’s not the time to-“

“Chaaarge!” Twilight called as she ran at the Hydra.

“Twilight no!” Fire called.

Twilight looked at the twelve heads of the hydra who lunged at her. But miraculously she made it past them (or him, whatever). She went it under the hydra’s belly and its heads tried to follow but ended up dragging their body down in the awkward position. Some of the extra heads managed to lunge at her though, and she barely managed to dodge. Then one opened its jaws wide open, seemingly certain to swallow her then Fire leapt into action. Grabbing hold of her and rolling out of the way of the near fatal move as the hydra wobbled.

“T-T-T-Twilight! F-F-Fire!” Pinkie called through her stutters.

They both ran back toward the cliff as fast as they could. But the hydra got up and was after them in an instant. One of the heads lunged, breaking part of the cliff and one of the rock spires. The spire collided with the others, destroying their walkway. All the ponies gasped. Another of the new hydra heads lunged at Twilight and Fire who managed to put up a shield around them. The hydra bit into the shield which cracked slightly. Fire then added some flame to the shield and burned the hydra’s mouth. The head that had hit the cliff had a major bump, it and the one with the burned mouth cried, their pain turning to anger and they roared.

“T-T-T-Twilight!” Pinkie stuttered her name. “Fire! You two have to jump!”

“We'll never make it!” Twilight said looking at the immense gap.

“We’ll have to fly with one wing!” Fire said grabbing hold of her and flexing his good wing. “Hang on! I can at least slow our fall!”

“No, Fire don’t! Don’t try to fly! Just jump! You'll be fine!”

“We will not!” Twilight objected after looking down.

Fire heard the hydra roar behind them and looked at Pinkie.

“It's your only ho-o-ope!” she said with another stutter. “You have to take a leap of faith!”

“Pinkie, I trust your sense!” Fire said.

Twilight gulped and both of them ran toward the hydra as it advanced toward them, its angry heads now asserting control with the rest joining in. They and Twilight screamed as they plummeted. They were almost to the remaining spires. Fire was certain that if he did just one flap they could make it, but seeing how accurate Pinkie’s sense had been today… he closed his wing.

“No! Oh no! Fire flap your wing!” Twilight screamed as they fell.

He didn’t, and they plummeted toward the bog below. They hit the a bubble on its surface, which somehow popped and sent them both soaring back upwards. Fire held onto Twilight as they ascended and hit the two remaining spires then landed on the other side with their friends. Both of them saw stars as well as their friends. Shaking it off, they smiled. Across the gap, the hydra frowned as they were out of range. It would be going hungry today.

Pinkie then hugged them. “I knew you two could do it!”

“Well, I could have. If I’d just flapped my wing,” Fire said as he did so with his good one. “But I’ve seen how good you are at this.”

“I don't know how it happened,” Twilight said. “Coincidence, dumb luck, or what, but you said there'd be a doozy here at Froggy Bottom Bogg, and I'd say we just had ourselves one heck of a doozy. I mean that hydra—

Pinkie Pie suddenly shuddered again.

“Pinkie?” Twilight asked.

“That wasn't it,” Pinkie told them.

“Huh?” Twilight asked confused.

“What wasn't what?” Spike asked.

“What are you talking about, Pink?” Applejack now asked.

“The hydra wasn't the doozy,” Pinkie informed.

The hydra blew a raspberry at them as it retreated. Fire looked after it.

“That’s right you better run!” he called.

“I'm still getting the shudders,” Pinkie continued as she shook for them all to see. “You see? There it is again. Whatever the doozy was at Froggy Bottom Bogg, my Pinkie Sense says it still hasn't happened.”

“Huh?” Twilight exclaimed before ranting. “But I— WHAT?!”

She looked really mad now. “The hydra wasn't the doozy?! How could it not be the doozy?! What could be doozier than that?!”

“Dunno, but it just wasn't it,” Pinkie told them.

Twilight growled, her rage reaching an all new level. Then she suddenly transformed for an instant, into a white pony with a mane made of pure fire. It was just like when Fire got angry, but on a whole other level… or at least a level that hadn’t been seen in a long time. Light flashed around Twilight as everypony else watched in shock.

Twilight then returned to her normal state, albeit slightly burned as she hit the ground. “Ooh... I give up.”

“Give what up, Twi?” Spike asked.

“The fight. I can't fight it anymore,” Twilight said in surrender as Pinkie continued to shudder. “I don't understand how, why, or what, but Pinkie Sense somehow... makes sense. I don't see how it does, but it just does. Just because I don't understand doesn't mean it's not true.”

“Y-Y-Y-You m-m-mean you b-b-b-believe?” Pinkie said shuddering even more at this.

“Yup, I guess I do,” Twilight relented.

Pinkie began shuddering more than ever and then finally it stopped. She smiled and proclaimed. “That was it! That's the doozy!

Spike shook his head in disbelief.

Twilight looked at Pinkie in confusion and approached her. “What? What is?”

“You believing!” Pinkie pointed at her then bouncing. “I never expected that to happen! That was the doozy, oh and, oh what a doozy of a doozy it was!”

She began singing as she led them on the path.

Fire got a healing potion in town and soon his wing was all better.

“Lucky we have a good number of those in stock your highness,” Nurse Redheart said. “Otherwise ponies would have to wait much longer to heal.”

Fire thanked her and flew out over Ponyville, enjoying the feeling of the wind against him. He soared up high and saw something in the distance. He narrowed his eyes in disbelief.

“Mom?”

“Oh, hello Fire!” Princess Celestia greeted. “Its been a while since I really had a chance to stretch my wings. Royal duties are so time consuming. So, I figured since Spike should be sending me Twilight’s next friendship letter I’d come to Ponyville in pony to pick it up. Care to fly with me.”

“Sure,” said Fire.

They flew for a while in happy silence.

“Then they were directly above the Golden Oaks Library.

“Look out below!” Celestia exclaimed as she collapsed her wings and allowed herself to fall to the top of the library.

She caused a loud crash as she landed, thankfully without injuring herself or damaging the library. Just in time too, as Spike opened the window and was surprised to see her and Fire.

“Twitchy tail?” Spike asked as he handed her the letter and she took it before rising back into the air with so much grace Fire could almost hear music.

“Holy Guacamole!” Spike exclaimed as he watched.

“Pinkie predict something would fall?” Fire asked.

“Yep. And your mother did,” Spike told him.

“She did indeed,” Fire agreed.

This had been quite a day.

Chapter 31: Sonic Rainboom

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 33: The Show Stoppers

Author's Note

Well, was considering skipping this one for a bit but took another look at the episode and figured I could make something of it. This will be only about half the size of the last two chapters but that's probably good, don't need too many humongous 8K chapters. I took out the stuff that couldn't be told from Fire's point of view, but I won't always do that and there will be the occasional glimpse into other characters heads.

Chapter 33: The Show Stoppers

Fire walked over to Sweet Apple Acres one morning after eating breakfast at Warm Heart Tower. It was a regular thing since Applejack was his closest neighbor. He was with Grand Garden as the green Earth Pony wanted to spend some time with his marefriend.

"So, uh… how are things going with you and Applejack, Grand Garden?"

"They're going fine, I suppose," Grand said. "We're both pretty busy though, I mean she has to run a farm, and I have to do the Gardening around Warm Heart Tower. The plants and flowers are already in bloom now that its spring."

He looked back at Warm Heart Tower which now had a fine garden of flowers around it in front for display. There was also a good source of food in the backyard which served as the training ground for Fire and his guards.

"Yeah, she is a busy mare," Fire agreed. "And you're a busy stallion. Probably busier than I've been lately. No major trouble aside from helping Fluttershy babysit the crusaders recently."

"You just wait Prince Fire. I bet there's gonna some real trouble real fast. Things get quiet around here a lot but even the mundane can turn to extraordinary in the blink of an eye," Grand Garden said. "Of course, I prefer things when they're nice and peaceful. I ain't a warrior like you."

Fire nodded.

They soon arrived at the Apple home as Applejack and Apple Bloom waited.

"Howdy Fire! Howdy Grand!" Applejack said with a grin at them. "What's cooking?"

"Nothing much Applejack," Fire said. "Just thought I'd say hello before I head off to work patrolling Ponyville."

"Well, it should be a nice few days off for me this weekend," Applejack said. "I thought I'd use the opportunity to show my little sis and her friends something I think they could use."

She turned her attention back toward the path leading to town from her home and soon a pair of small fillies came running up. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, both with eager grins on their faces.

"Hey Apple Bloom!" they said together.

"Hey girls!" the yellow filly said to her friends.

"So, what'd you call us here for?" Scootaloo asked.

"My sister Applejack says she has something she'd like to show us," Apple Bloom said.

"Right this way girls," Applejack said as she walked toward the orchards nearby. She then remembered her other visitors. "You stallions can come along and see if you like."

"Alright," Fire shrugged.

They walked through the orchard for a few minutes, coming to a part of the orchard that had other growth in the form of blue flowers among it.

Then Apple Bloom asked. "Where are you takin' us?"

"Into danger so I'm gonna have to rescue you!" Fire joked with a laugh.

Applejack rolled her eyes at him. "Nah. Should be perfectly safe. We're almost there, young'uns.

Sweetie Belle looked around and noted, "I've never been here before."

Applejack shifted a large thick green leaf of a plant that was bigger then any of them. Grand Garden followed next to her with Apple Bloom behind them, she pushing the thick leaf out of the way but it came back like a slingshot and hit Scootaloo in the face.

"Ouch!" the young Pegasus exclaimed, drawing the attention of the ponies in front.

"Oh. Sorry," Apple Bloom apologized as she realized she'd done that.

"Are we there yet?" Scootaloo asked impatiently as she continued after them.

Fire followed with Sweetie Belle at his side. He used his red magic to lift the thick leaves out of the way for both of them.

She smiled at him in thanks but then looked around in confusion. "There? Where? What? I don't even know what we're doing."

Applejack then stopped and looked at… something… with pride. "Here we are."

Apple Bloom looked at what her sister had brought them to in confusion. "What are we lookin' at?"

"I have no idea," Scootaloo said.

"What is that thing?" Sweetie Belle asked.

It was an old tree house, and it was in bad shape. The windows were cracked, the roof was worn, and Fire even spotted a spider web. Applejack, didn't seem to see the mess above her.

"Cutie Mark Crusaders, welcome to your new clubhouse!"

New? It was clearly old, looked older than Fire's mom, and that was saying something considering Celestia was a thousand years old. At least Celestia had the rare power which kept her young. As if to demonstrate its age, the treehouse lost one of its window panels an instant later.

The girls looked at it with various expressions that showed they were... unimpressed.

Applejack noticed, her mouth falling open as she walked toward the walkway going up into the treehouse. "Well, don't thank me all at once. This was my clubhouse when I was your age. Sure, it hasn't been used in a while, but it's empty and on a secluded, private part of the farm. And it's all yours."

She gestured up to the roof which then chose to cave in.

"It just needs a little, uh... TLC." Applejack added.

"TLC as in Tender Loving Care or Totally Lost Cause?" Scootaloo asked sarcastically.

"Applejack, we're supposed to turn this into our new clubhouse?!" the younger apple asked her sister incredulously.

"Well, maybe y'all will get your cutie marks when you discover your talent for-"Applejack yelped as she put her hoof on the side of the treehouse which caved in as well. More wood fell on of the mare who popped her head out a moment later.

"Uh... house cleanin'?"

"You okay?" Grand Garden asked as he extended a hoof to help her out.

"I think so, just a smidge of a headache," Applejack said taking his hoof and rubbing her head.

Fire sighed. "This is gonna take a lot of tender love and care."

"Well, we wanted to have a clubhouse where we could work on our club activities for getting our cutie marks," Apple Bloom said. "We've been working hard as it is."

"Alright, lets get going then," Scootaloo said.

…

A couple days later, Fire patrolled the sky and streets with his guards. It was quiet as usual, but the citizens of Ponyville looked up at their prince with smiles, glad he was here to offer them protection in the event they needed it. He eventually landed on the ground and-

"Fire is that you?" a voice asked nearby.

Fire turned in the direction of the voice and smiled as he saw a familiar yellow pony with glasses in a black sweater.

"Oh, hey Moondancer!" he greeted. "In town visiting again huh?"

"Yeah, I was just on my way to Twilight's place," Moondancer said.

"Allow me to escort you," Fire said with a small smile.

"Thank you, your highness," Moondancer said, returning the smile.

They began the walk to the library silently for a moment.

"I'm looking forward to our time together at the gala," Moondancer said.

"Me too," Fire said.

But not as much as I would be if I were going with Rarity. He thought.

If only she didn't like Blueblood, he could have asked her out after moving to Ponyville and they might already be a couple for several months. Then Fire realized something guiltily.

"Hey, it just occurred to me!" he said. "I haven't taken you out on a date anywhere yet!"

Her eyes widened as she realized what he meant. "Oh, it's okay."

"No, it's not," Fire said. "I asked you to the Grand Galloping Gala but we've had months to do other things. I've… neglected you."

"We have been busy," Moondancer reminded him. "But we've hung out as well. I've been having a lot of adventures with you, Twilight and everypony else."

That was true, she had been present through a number of the recent events.

"Seems the others from Canterlot are always gone when the interesting stuff happens," Moondancer said.

"Yeah, it sure is interesting around here," Fire admitted. "I just helped Fluttershy babysit the Cutie Mark Crusaders."

"Cutie Mark Crusaders?" Moondancer asked.

"Oh, you didn't know? That's what Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle call themselves since they're on a 'crusade' to find their cutie marks."

"Oh," Moondancer replied in realization. "So, you babysat them with Fluttershy?"

"Yeah. It was fun. They're so full of energy," Fire told her. "We put them in Fluttershy's bed while she and I slept on the bottom floor."

"You slept together?" Moondancer asked with a suspicious frown.

"I slept on her couch, she slept in a sleeping bag," Fire elaborated, knowing what she was thinking of.

"Oh, that's better I suppose," Moondancer said in a softer tone. "I mean... I know we're not really together yet. But I hope that will be the case."

"I hope so too," Fire told her honestly.

Then he could finally put Rarity out of his mind. Maybe it would be a good idea to start now though.

Fire heard a clock chime nearby, it was already noon.

"Uh, you want to have lunch together? Just the two of us?" he asked.

She beamed. "I'd like that. But I want to pop in and say hello to Twilight first."

They soon arrived at the library where they found Spike and-

"Girls? What are you doing here?" Fire asked.

The three fillies were inside the library, on top of a messy pile of books that was almost as tall as Fire.

"Oh, hi Fire!" Sweetie Belle greeted. "We're trying to see if we can get our cutie marks for bein' librarians. We made our clubhouse, and then we made a map of places in Ponyville and decided to try every one of them."

"Yeah, and this is the last one!" Scootaloo said as she went down to the bottom of the pile, vanishing under the books. "This has got to be it!"

"The only thing this is is a mess!" Spike objected. "I'm gonna have to clean this up when you're done."

At that moment, Twilight arrived with Cheerilee, the girl's teacher at the foal school. They must have been discussing something to do with academics or her school.

"I had nothing to do with this," Spike quickly said as they entered.

Twilight and Cheerilee both looked at the messy mountain in shock.

"What is going on here?" Twilight asked.

"Hmm... well, we sure aren't gettin' our cutie marks for bein' librarians," Apple Bloom said from on top of the pile as Scootaloo came out of the bottom.

"Huh. I should think not," Spike grumbled.

Twilight gave a glare at him causing to him to ask, "What?"

Fire frowned at him as well. "That would be another instance where you say some rude things that can be hurtful there, Spike."

"I'm just being honest!" Spike raised his hands.

"Sometimes even honest things have to be kept to oneself," Fire told him. "Unless you want to risk hurting someponies feelings."

Fire had someponies he hated enough to maybe disregard their feelings. Like Blueblood for instance.

Twilight walked toward the young fillies. "Girls, I think you're going about this the wrong way. Instead of trying to do things in areas you're not familiar with, why not try doing things in areas that you already like?"

Cheerilee came up by Twilight's side. "And I have the perfect place to start."

She reached for her back where she carried a saddlebag. She opened it and drew out a rolled-up piece of paper. Cheerliee spread it over the floor for the fillies to see. It was a poster with a pair of golden masks, stars, musical notes, and text on it.

Apple Bloom read the text toward the bottom. "Showcase your talents..."

Scootaloo took over, "...for all to see."

"Perform in the Ponyville School Talent Show!" Sweetie Belle finished.

"There'll be all sorts of awards," Cheerilee said. "Best dramatic performance, best comedy act, best magic act... surely you can find your talent."

"This would be the perfect place to discover our talents," Apple Bloom agreed before coming up with an idea. "Jugglin'!"

"Acting!" Scootaloo suggested.

"Magic tricks!" Sweetie Belle chimed.

"Square dancin'!"

"Tightrope walking!"

"Tiger taming!"

"My little ponies!" Twilight called to get their attention. "You're missing the point. Think about the things you already enjoy doing. Think about what you're already good at."

"Sure! We can do that," Scootaloo said.

"Yeah! Sure, we can," Sweetie agreed.

"Well, whatever we do, we'll do it as..." Apple Bloom paused for the other two to join her in saying "...the Cutie Mark Crusaders!"

They did a high hoof in their air.

Fire smiled. "Well girls if you want a little help I'd be happy to lend you a hoof."

"Thanks, but we'd rather try and do this ourselves," Apple Bloom said.

Fire frowned. "Like you tried to a chicken back yourselves and ended up almost turned to stone?"

They shook as they recalled that recent incident, feeling like the words had roasted them.

"Too shay. But this won't be anything dangerous," Apple Bloom said.

"Knowing you three, you'll end up in some kind of trouble," Fire said. "Feel free to come get me when you think you actually need help."

"Nah! We'll be fine!" Apple Bloom declared as she ran out with her friends to make a plan.

Fire sighed in admiration. "Those fillies, they never give up."

"They sure don't," Twilight agreed.

As the fillies ran off to figure out a plan for the play, Twilight turned to her other guests.

"Hello Fire, Moondancer," she said.

"Hey Twilight," Moondancer greeted. "How's it going? Run into anymore hydras lately?"

"No, but I did run into a cockatrice," Twilight told her. "It turned me to stone."

"Same with me," Fire said.

"Wooh. You guys have a lot of adventures. Meanwhile I'm stuck in the boring capital most of the time."

"Maybe you should move to Ponyville," Fire joked with a laugh.

Moondancer smiled. "Things might be a little crazy then. I mean, hydras, cockatrice, and falling out of the sky? What's next? Marenappers? I think I'll just stay in Canterlot where it seems safer. But the occasional excitement during a visit doesn't hurt. At least it hasn't yet."

Fire could understand, though a part of him enjoyed the danger and ability to pit himself against dangerous foes. Even he was not completely fearless, and neither was Rainbow Dash.

Twilight then spoke again. "Well, I have to let Cheerilee borrow a few other books for the foals to read. But first we have to fix this mess."

Using their magic (or hooves in Cheerilee's case, and claws for Spike) the books were put back in their proper place.

Spike sighed. "Those fillies should clean it up theirselves."

"Eh, they're bound to make mistakes," Twilight said. "Now let's get you those books, Cheerilee."

"Guess you're busy huh?" Moondancer asked.

"Yeah, but I'd love to have magic practice with you and Fire again soon Moondancer," Twilight said.

"I have been wanting to give that butterfly wings spell another try," Moondancer said.

"I'd like to learn that spell as well," Fire agreed. "Maybe we can include the other Canterlot girls as well. They were all at the School for Gifted Unicorns."

"I'd like that," Twilight agreed.

Fire then looked at the clock. "But probably after lunch."

Cherilee got the books she needed in her saddle bags and smiled at them. "Well, I wish you luck and good day."

She headed back to her school while Twilight took her lunch with Spike in the library and Fire led Moondancer to the Hayburger.

"A double hayburger with grilled onions and extra crispy fries," Fire said to the waiter as he came over.

"Just a regular hayburger for me thank you," Moondance said.

They sat at a table and talked while their food was prepared.

"So, you have an outfit for the gala yet?" Fire asked.

"No," Moondancer said. "I do have an old dress but I'm not sure it's the right kind."

"Hmm, Rarity can probably make you one," Fire suggested.

"Sounds good."

They ate their food then headed to the boutique.

"Oh, hello Prince Fire!" the white unicorn greeted. "How can I help you today?"

"I was wondering if you could make an outfit for Moondancer for the Gala?" Fire asked.

Rarity's smile wavered as she looked at the yellow unicorn. "Oh, certainly. Never fear my friend. I shall make you a dress worthy to be a princess!"

"Oh, um... thank you but that won't be necessary."

"You are going to be on a date with the son of Celestia," Rarity reminded her. "It's important for you to look the part. Come, lets see what we have."

She made to lead Moondancer further into the store, then stopped Fire.

"We should probably have this be a surprise for when you see her," Rarity said. "She's likely already seen your suit in the newspaper."

"Maybe," Fire agreed. "Good day mares."

Another few days went by and Fire walked with Applejack and Grand Garden toward the club house that was now finished.

"The talent show is just around the corner," Applejack said. "I wonder how the fillies are doing?"

"I'm sure they'll be doing great," Grand Garden said. "What could possibly go wrong?"

"Well, we're about to find out," Fire said.

He soon saw the clubhouse. It looked much better then when he'd last seen it. It had an orangish pink colored wall and brown roof with the heart shutters on it and flowers above the doorway. They walked up the wooden walkway.

"Oh! Sorry Scootaloo!" Apple Bloom said from inside.

The three bigger ponies looked in through the window and saw the younger three dancing, or trying to dance, but they kept stepping on each other's hooves or tails.

"Ow!"

"Sorry Scootaloo! Ouch!"

"Ooh sorry Sweetie Belle!"

Their rhythm was all wrong. Applejack looked and saw the results along with Grand and shrunk back. They went back down to the ground as the crusaders began to sing. One of them sounded good, but not the others.

"Well gosh, sure wasn't expecting that," Applejack said.

"I think that sounded pretty good," Apple Bloom said as they came of the clubhouse.

"Me too! Think we're ready?" Sweetie Belle's voice said.

"Ready as we'll ever be!" Scootaloo replied.

They then noticed the three ponies below them as Applejack and Grand began to retreat.

"Hey! Did you see us practicing?" Scootaloo asked.

"Uh… yeah," Applejack said nervously.

"Well, how'd we do? How'd we do?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Uh…" Applejack paused.

Fire stepped forward. "You're the Element of Honesty Applejack. You know its important to tell the truth."

"Yeah but… sometimes the truth can hurt," Applejack said.

Fire remembered saying a similar thing to Spike a little while ago. He didn't want to hurt the girl's feelings but-

"Yeah, but they need help," he said. "Sorry girls, but you were… terrible. Stepping on each other's feet and then the song… well…"

"I'm just glad I didn't hear the whole thing with my hooves over my ears," Grand said.

That earned him a glare and rough nudge from Applejack.

"Ow! AJ!"

The three fillies looked down and sighed.

"We've been working really hard and all we get is terrible," Scootaloo said. "And the talent show is tonight at sunset!"

"This has just been one mishap after another!" Apple Bloom lamented. "I can't dance good!"

"I couldn't make outfits for a while and made everything muddy," Sweetie Belle said.

"And my singing is probably the worst of all of us," Scootaloo said.

Fire flew up to the clubhouse and landed in front of them. "Well, you up for a bunch of hard work at the last minute? Or few hours? We might still be able to salvage this."

"Yay!" they exclaimed.

Fire got them some extra help for singing, outfits, and dancing. Rarity, Spike, and Lyra Heartstrings all met them at the clubhouse. They listened to the song being done while Apple Bloom did a kung fu style dancing.

"Okay, definitely need an improvement on the lyrics," Lyra noted as she listened. "And your dance moves are rather wild and crazy."

She thought for a moment, "Though if you were to maybe use those moves to say… destroy the stage props… it could be a pretty funny performance."

Fire hadn't thought of that.

"Huh, that actually might be pretty funny to see," he admitted before looking at the girls.

"Yeah," Applejack agreed. "I was worried you guys were gonna fail outright but hearing Lyra's perspective casts a new light on it."

"Maybe you could win a comedy prize if you just go with what you have right now."

They looked at him then at each other.

"Well, we kinda wanted to go for best musical performance," Apple Bloom said.

"But comedy's not bad either," Sweetie Belle admitted.

"Well, lucky for you three, music is my special talent. But maybe another one of you should sing," Lyra suggested.

"And I daresay somepony else should design the costumes," Rarity said as she looked at them. "I mean we have a pirate, rockstar, I suppose that wouldn't be too bad for the singer… and… whatever this is."

"Sweetie Belle has a good singing voice," Fire said, recalling the sleepover.

"But I really wanted to sing," Scootaloo said.

"Yeah, we all wanted to try some new things here for the talent show," Apple Bloom said. "I really wanted to dance."

"Girls, these aren't your natural strengths," Fire told them. "But if you really want to do it this way and try then who are we to stop you?"

"Yeah, we support you in whatever you choose," Applejack said.

They thought for a moment, debating.

"I say we go by our natural strengths," Sweetie Belle said.

"Well, my singing wasn't that great, yours is better," Scootaloo admitted.

"You could still get it with some practice though," Lyra encouraged. "I can teach you."

"I can still learn to dance right?" Apple Bloom said. "Maybe with a little coaching?"

"Sure, but you might not be able to do so at the talent show," Lyra said.

"I can still do the effects then," Apple Bloom said.

"And I brought just the pony, or dragon to dance with you," Fire said. "The rest of us are a bit big."

Spike came forward. "I'll be assisting Cheerille in the talent show giving out medals. But I think I have enough time to help you learn to dance better, Apple Bloom."

And so, Spike and Apple Bloom danced. Fire noticed Sweetie Belle frowned at that before Lyra called her over to work on the lyrics of the song.

"Sure, you up for making new ones and memorizing them instantly?" Lyra asked.

"I can do it!" Sweetie Belle said confidently.

Scootaloo joined in learning to dance and practiced singing as well. The hours rolled by until the sun was getting close to setting, and they felt ready.

Just in time too.

…

The towns ponies gathered at the theater stage near the school house. There were only three performances. First Snips and Snails, the pair of unicorn colts that always hung out together tried to put on a magic. They both had magician hats with Snips, the shorter turquoise colt with the scissors cutie mark having his hat on his head while Snails held his hat in his mouth. On a table in front of them was a cute gray rabbit.

"And, on the count of three," Snips spoke to the crowd. "This rabbit will disappear, and something tasty will reappear in its place."

A hat was put on top of the rabbit and Snail counted. "A one, a two, and a three!"

He took off the hat to reveal… nothing?

"Hey! Where are they?" Snips asked looking around before turning to his friend. "Snails, where are the... carrots."

The carrots were in Snails' mouth as he chewed them. Fire and the rest of the crowd laughed. They had made the bunny disappear at least, if they hadn't managed that Fire was sure he and the others would probably go 'boo'.

"SNAILS!" Snips exclaimed as he chased his partner backstage.

Cheerilee then came out on the stage nervously. "Uh, how about a round of applause for the S&S magic act? Now for our next act, we have Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie reciting their favorite poem... on roller skates!

The two next fillies came and began to recite the poem while rolling on their rollerskates.

Come to me in the silence of the night

Come with rounded cheeks and eyes as bright

As sunlight on a stream

Come back in tears,

O memory, hope love of finished years.

Oh dream how sweet, too sweet, too bittersweet,

Whose wakening should have been Paradise

Where souls brimful of love abide and meet

Where thirsting longing eyes

Watch the slow door

That opening letting in, lets out no more

Yet come to me in dreams that I may live

My very life again through cold in death

Come back to me in dreams, that I may give

Pulse for pulse breath for breath

Speak low, lean low,

As long ago, my love, how long ago.

It was a good poem. Kind of reminded Fire of his Aunt Luna with the mentions of the night in there.

"And our final performance, the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Cheerilee said.

The stage grew dark for a moment then the three of them came out in their new costumes that Rarity had managed put together. Sweetie Belle had a set of headphones around her neck to look like a DJ, fitting since she was the singer. Scootaloo had a red and white dress for her role as the dancer, and Apple Bloom wore a white shirt with red straps and brown pants with a gray hat on top that looked fit for a director. That was close enough for the special effects provider, and she did seem to be the leader of the trio, so it fit her.

Sweetie Belle then sung their song as Scootaloo danced

"We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders,

Hmm Hmm Hmm

We'll never stop the journey

Through Day and Night."

Appe Bloom used the pulley ropes to cause a wooden sun and moon to move.

"Hmm Hmm Hmm," Sweetie Belle hummed and continued her song.

"We'll keep trying

To get our cutie marks

Until we succeed

Hmm Hmm Hmm

We're on a mission

A crusade!"

A flag was visible, reminding the audience of old pony crusades.

"To find our role in Equestria

Hmm Hmm Hmm.

Whatever may come our way

Whatever bullies may call us blank."

A pair of wooden laughing ponies came on the stage now, made in a pointing image. Scootaloo stopped her dance and frowned at them then pushed them down.

"We will not give up

We will make our markssss!"

The crowd gave loud woos and stomped their hooves as the CMC's bowed with smiles.

Applejack let out a sigh of relief. "Wooh. Those girls really turned things around."

"Yeah," Fire agreed.

"They just needed a love, care and a friend who was willing to be honest with them," Grand Garden said next to Applejack before turning to Fire. "Good thing you stepped forward your highness or who knows whether they would have done that good in unintentional comedy?"

"Who knows?" Fire shrugged.

Cheerilee then came back on stage and spoke to the crowd. "Let's hear it for all our talented fillies and colts!"

The crowd stomped their hooves and cheered.

Cheerilee began passing out the rewards. "Our first award goes to... Snips and Snails for best magic act."

If those two had been in an actual magic competition their act probably would have been in last place. But they had made everypony laugh, Fire was surprised they didn't win comedy instead.

"The next award goes to... Sunny Daze and Peachy Pie for best dramatic performance," Cheerilee continued.

The two fillies took their medals which resembled masks proudly.

"And finally, the last award of the night goes to... the Cutie Mark Crusaders! For best musical act.

The three fillies came up and accepted their musical note medals. They stood proudly on the stage for a moment then retreated backstage once more. As the crowd began to disperse, Fire, Applejack, Rarity and the others went backstage as well to see the crusaders.

"Great job Apple Bloom," Applejack said.

"You as well Sweetie Belle," Rarity praised. "Your singing voice was lovely. Maybe you should sing a song about dresses to attract customers for my shop?"

"And awesome moves Scootaloo," Rainbow Dash said.

"Did you see our reward?" the three fillies said together as they ran to them.

"It was all thanks to Fire!" Apple Bloom said as she approached. "He told us we weren't very good and taught us that its always best to go with our true talent!"

"You're the best Fire!" Sweetie Belle said.

Fire smiled at them. "Its always good to try new things. But when the stakes are high, always go with what you know best. And then after some practice, try something else."

"That's great advice Fire," Scootaloo said. "I just wish we got our cutie marks."

She and the others looked at their flanks which were now visible since they'd taken off their costumes.

"You will one day," Fire assured them.

"Yes, one day," Twilight agreed.

Chapter 34: A Dog and Pony Show

Rarity was hard at work in Carousel Boutique, arranging a set of gems on a dress. The dresses were kept behind a curtain that she just had slightly open so only she could see them. She levitated a ruby out and put it on one of the front leg sleeves then followed up with a ruby on the other.

"Perfect!" she declared.

"Is that it, Rarity?" a voice asked nearby.

Rarity looked over and saw Twinkleshine coming forward.

"Yes my dear, my greatest masterpiece!" Rarity said pulling back the curtain to reveal it to her fellow fashionable unicorn.

Twinkleshine's mouth fell open as she beheld it through the small opening.

"Wow, its amazing Rarity!" Twinkleshine praised. "You know I think you are the most talented dressmaker in all of Equestria."

"Thank you Twinkleshine," Rarity said. "And thank you for the help as well. Ever since my fashion show I've just been getting so many orders I don't think I could have finished the orders for you and your friends if you hadn't lent a hoof."

"Well, you did have Prince Fire in it," Twinkleshine reminded her. "Having a royal partake in it boosts views like you wouldn't believe. I'm just happy to help. Mane might be my main focus but dresses are probably an even bigger part of fashion. I have a few back home in Canterlot myself."

Rarity smiled. "Well since you helped me, we can probably arrive in time to join the others for their magic practice. Though I doubt I'll be able to keep up with all of you since you all studied at the School for Gifted Unicorns."

Twinkleshine put a hoof on Rarity's shoulder. "You're still very gifted in your own way. How did you learn to use magic?"

"From books and my parents, though it was mainly a book on everyday task use for magic," Rarity said. "Nothing special."

Twinkleshine smiled. "You've obviously learned enough with how you make your dresses."

Rarity smiled back. "I wouldn't mind learning a little more though."

Suddenly the door opened and the bell above it rung, signaling a customer had arrived.

"Coming!" Rarity called as she turned to face her customer and walked elegantly forward with her eyes closed. "Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic, unique, and magnifique."

She opened her eyes and gasped as she saw who her customer was. An Earth Pony in a white frilly outfit trimmed in purple, gold buttons on the collar, crown like ends, and a puffy cloudlike structure above her tail. She also wore a matching hat upon her blue mane, and purple shoes.

"Sapphire Shores! The pony of pop!" Rarity exclaimed.

Twinkleshine's mouth fell open at this as well.

"Good afternoon, Miss Rarity!" Sapphire said as she walked past the unicorn into the shop.

"You yah…" Rarity stammered to speak. "Y-y-you know my name?"

"Well, of course I do, darling," Sapphire said. "I make it a point to know all of the up-and-coming designers and Clothes Horse magazine simply raved about you."

She pointed at Rarity who brightened up.

"Oh, my stars," she turned to Twinkleshine who coincidentally had a star cutie mark. "If I'm dreaming, do not wake me up."

"Its real Rarity," Twinkleshine assured her.

Rarity then turned back to her latest customer. "How may I help you, Miss Shores?"

"Oh please, call me Sapphire," the pop pony said as she inspected the available outfits, pulling out copies of the dresses Rarity had made for her friends to wear to the Grand Galloping Gala.

Rarity giggled. "How may I help you, Sapphire?"

Sapphire turned to her and spoke dramatically as she declared. "Well, as I'm sure you know, I'll be touring all of Equestria with my latest concert, Sapphire Shores' Ziegfilly Follies, so I need to look seeensational! Ow!"

She added the 'ow' for extra drama.

"I have just what you need," Rarity said as she walked back to the curtain she'd closed a moment ago. "Sapphire Shores, prepare yourself for the pièce de résistance de la haute couture."

Sapphire looked bored as she heard the title. But then as Rarity opened the curtain to reveal her latest creation, her best work in fact… Sapphire's eyes sparkled. The outfit was white and completely covered in gems of various shades.

"I used every last diamond I found on this one garment!" Rarity told her proudly.

Sapphire Shores gasped. "And it is spectacular! I'll take it."

"Really?" Rarity asked excitedly.

"Oh yes, and five more, each done up in a different jewel," Sapphire replied.

Rarity suddenly lost her excitement. "Beg pardon?

"Costume changes," Sapphire informed her.

Rarity and Twinkleshine looked into the diamond box they'd gotten all their jewels for the dress from. It was completely empty. Rarity fainted.

Sapphire Shores chuckled. "Yes, I do have that effect on ponies."

Twinkleshine patted Rarity out of her stupor.

"You really have your work cut out for you now!" she said.

"Yes, I do," Rarity replied. "I'm going to need help to get all those gems."

"I can come with you," Twinkleshine told her.

"But you have magic practice with Fire, Twilight, Moondancer and all the others you went to the school of magic with," Rarity reminded her.

Twinkleshine put a hoof on her. "They'll understand I'm helping a friend. If you're okay with me calling you that and not simply a friend of a few friends."

Rarity smiled. "Twinkle, I feel we are kindred spirits you and I! A mane stylist and a dress maker!"

"Those two do kind of go together," Twinkleshine said. "Maybe we can join our businesses together someday? Oh and if you don't mind could I get some gems for a new mane band or two while we're out there?"

"Certainly," Rarity obliged. "But we would probably get dirty if we had to dig for the gems ourselves."

"No worries, it will come right off after a wash," Twinkleshine reasoned.

"A lady should never get her hooves dirty if she can help it," Rarity insisted.

"I suppose if we can help it."

"We need somepony to assist us," Rarity said. "Fire is out of the question as he is a prince and should never have to get his hooves dirty for this kind of work. But I think I know some dragon that would be perfect for the job."

They went and got Spike, as well as a wagon. Rarity then led them to the outskirts of Ponyville in a rocky formation.

Rarity then lit up her horn and Twinkleshine did the same. Coincidentally, both of them had the same color magic. Bright blue.

"Wow, we're like two peas in a pod huh, Rarity?" Twinkleshine said as she noticed this. "Fashion, manes, white shaded coats… well… ivory in my case… but close enough. And we both have blue magic!"

"Yes indeed," Rarity agreed. "Where did you learn the gem finding spell though?"

"Well, it wasn't really taught at the school of magic but I found it in a spellbook and practiced it a bit. Never had the chance to really employ it till now though."

"So why are doing this anyway?" Spike asked.
"I have an order from Sapphire Shores," Rarity told the dragon.

"Oh my gosh!" Spike exclaimed when he heard that. "Sapphire Shores! The pony of pop! She is awesome! I mean, she's gorgeous and talented and-"

Rarity glared over her shoulder at him.

He chuckled nervously. "Heh... and not even half the pony you are, Rarity. I mean, you're ten times more gorgeous and talented and-"

"Spike, a lady is never jealous," she told him with her nose in the air.

Twinkleshine frowned. Spike had made such a big deal out of Rarity and not her.

"What do you think of me?" Twinkleshine asked the little dragon, putting on a small smile.

"You? Uh, well… you're great!"

The pink maned unicorn rolled her eyes and muttered to herself. "Just great? Nothing else?"

Spike didn't hear her mutter and simply turned back to Rarity about Sapphire Shores. "But were you totally flipping out or what?!

"Ladies do not "flip out", Spike," Rarity told him.

"You fainted," Twinkleshine reminded her.

"That is not the same as flipping out," Rarity stated. "However, I was quite in awe."

She increased the power to her spell and began to pace around the dirty and rock covered terrain.

"Oh, I need to find more jewels than ever before to decorate her costumes."

"Well, let's see who can the most jewels first and make this a contest Rarity!" Twinkleshine suggested playfully.

"I suppose," Rarity said before her horn led her to a few gems right in front of her. "Oh, aha!

Spike jumped over. "Did you find some?"

"Yes, Spike! Right there!" Rarity pointed.

Spike dug his claws in rapidly and soon the gems appeared for all of them to see. There were several, and different colors too.

"Ooooo!" Spike said as his eyes lit up and he licked his lips as drool leaked out. "You look so delicious!"

He leapt in and grabbed the jewels, opening his mouth wide.

"Spike!" Rarity called, interrupting him. "I promised I'd give you gems to snack on, but we need to collect more first or I'll never be able to make these outfits for Sapphire."

Spike glumly carried the gems over to the wage. "Hm... I will miss you, my sweets."

"Don't worry Spike," Twinkleshine said. "You'll get some at the end when we're done. Just be patient."

"Yes. Come my friends! We have many jewels to find!"

Spike bowed. "At your service, milady."

Twinkleshine frowned again. "Hey I've known you for a long time and I've never gotten that sort of special treatment from you!"

"Well… you're uh…"

"Not the pony you have a crush on," Twinkleshine guessed.

Spike grit his teeth. "How'd you know?"

"Its totally obvious," she said. "I wouldn't be surprised if half of Ponyville knew."

"Just don't tell anypony!" Spike begged, fearing his 'secret' would get out.

"Alright," Twinkleshine rolled her eyes before walking off. "But you should know she's too old for you!"

Spike frowned and muttered. "I'm not gonna give up!"

He looked over his shoulder. "At least Fire seems to have. He thinks she's in love with Blueblood. But I can see that look in her eyes when she looks at him! I'll have her look at me that way! Somehow! Someday!"

But his confidence faded as he recalled Fire's past heroics. Protecting Fluttershy and the fillies, fighting the hydra, and stopping Gold Steel. How was he supposed to compare with that hero?

Spike sighed. "If only I were a big strong knight like Fire."

"Spike!" Rarity called.

They found many more gems, with Spike digging and the two unicorns using their gem finder spells. After a while they had a large pile in their wagon. Spike eyed it hungrily as Rarity patted his head scales.

"You've been very patient today, Spike," she told him. "And for that you get the finest reward."

She levitated a large blue sapphire from the pile over his waiting mouth. "This is from me to you."

Spike suddenly closed his mouth and caught it in his hands.

"Is something wrong, Spike?" Rarity asked.

Spike looked at her. She shined in his vision like a goddess. "No. It's perfect."

Just like her in his eyes. Rarity smiled and turned away, her horn still glowing.

"There are more here!" Twinkleshine called. "I think I'm getting better at this spell!"

"Oh, Twinkleshine I almost forgot!" Rarity said "You should have a few gems as well."

"That's okay Rarity I don't have anything to put them in at the moment," Twinkleshine said.

Spike meanwhile, stayed behind, looking at the gem. "For me. From Rarity."

He looked after her as she walked with Twinkleshine following. Then he looked back at the gem.

"Eh, she intended for me to eat it!" he said as he took a bite and chewed slowly. "Mmm! I'll savor it!"

He ate slowly as he dragged the wagon with his other hand. Little did he and the two unicorns know though, they were being watched from the bushes nearby.

…

A large paw moved the bushes to allow eyes to peek out and look. A canine named Rover saw the cart full of…

"Yesss, gemsss. Gemsss!" Rover said.

"Where?" one of his companions asked.

"Preciousss gemsss Fido!" Rover said before looking back at the little dragon. "He is the gem hunter. With him we can have all those gems... and more! Let's get the dragon."

He was about to lead them to do so when-

"Spike! Where are you?" they heard a voice call.

"Wait! Who is that?" Rover asked and took another look.

He saw a pair of ponies who had their horns lit up. They appeared to be leading the dragon. Their horns lit up an area and the dragon dug out more gems.

"Oh, it's not the dragon we want," Rover said. "It's the ponies!"

"The ponies!" he and his and fellows said together as they moved in.

…

Rarity watched as Spike put the many new gems from their last find in the wagon. "Well, Twinkleshine, Spike, I think that's all we can do for today."

"Good," Twinkleshine said as she looked back at town. "I think I'll still have some time to join the others for magic practice."

"And these will certainly get me well on my way with Sapphire's outfits," Rarity continued. "Why don't we start headi... oh!"

Her horn had lit up on its own and dragged her off like a magnet. "What's this? Another jewel."

She was led toward the trees. "Oh... oh, strange. It's in the trees."

Her horn led her to a bright yellow diamond. "Oooo!" she exclaimed in delight.

Then a large and ugly dog rose from out of the trees. He had gay fur, greedy green eyes and wore a black color lined with diamonds.

"Eww!" Rarity exclaimed as she backed up and nervously greeted their unexpected visitor. "Uh... uh... good day, gentle... uh, fellow. Uh, I am Rarity and these are my friends Spike and Twinkleshine."

Spike waved nervously.

"Hello," Twinkleshine said in a similar tone.

"And you are?" Rarity asked in repulsion.

"Rover, a Diamond Dog," he told them, the greed in his eyes evident as he advanced on them with extended arms.

"Oh really? Rarity asked as she and the others backed up. "Oh well, that explains your fine taste in jewelry."

"You could probably use a makeover though," Twinkleshine remarked fearfully.

"I mean I-I-I know that diamonds are a girl's best friend and now I know that they're a dog's best friend too," Rarity said with a nervous laugh. So, um, you're out hunting for gems as well?"

"Yes. We hunt," Rover replied as he continued advancing.

"Uh... we?" Rarity repeated.

"We hunt for gems," Rover said as he held out the citrine on his color then gestured at the two unicorns. "But you are better hunters. So now we hunt... for you!"

Two more dogs sprung out of the ground behind them, knocking over Spike who was right on top of one of the holes. One dog was big and bluish gray one while the other was smaller and light brown. The mares screamed as the big dog grabbed for them. Rarity dodged but Twinkleshine wasn't so lucky. The pink haired mare struggled but the dog was too strong.

"Get off me!" Twinkleshine screamed as she tried to hit him with her hooves in vain.

Spike tried to help them, he used the point of his tail like a drill, causing the tan dog to leap and cry out in pain. He then pushed back the big dog, who dropped Twinkleshine. The ivory shaded unicorn got to her hooves and ran for Rarity.

"Come on we have to get out of here!" she said.

Spike had been pushed into the dirt.

"Run Rarity!" he called.

"Hey I'm here too!" Twinkleshine scolded, not liking that she was being ignored by him ever since they began their expedition.

Spike ignored her as he grabbed the big dog and tripped him.

Then Rover came from a hole behind them. "Gotcha!"

The two mares screamed and grabbed Rarity.

Twinkleshine made to run. "I'll get Prince Fire!"

But then a fourth dog appeared, one that was large and black with a diamond crown on his head and an elaborate gold handled spear in his paws as well as whip at his hip. He blocked Twinkleshine's way and pointed the spear at her.

"Well, well, found some ponies, did you?" he asked his fellows.

"Oh Brutus!" the tan dog exclaimed in fear. "They can find gems!"

"Can they now?" Brutus asked. "Well, we can put those talents to good use."

He then grabbed Twinkleshine and they made their way to a hole as Rarity scolded them.

"Unhand me this instant, you ruffians. Stop! Put me down, you thugs! You brutes!" she screamed.

"Let me go!" Twinkleshine begged with tears of fear appearing in her eyes. "I don't wanna work for you!"

Spike managed to free himself from the tree his head had gotten stuck in while fighting the dogs.

"Rarity! Twinkleshine!" Spike exclaimed running to help.

Rarity had managed to cling to the top of the hole.

"Spike!" she called before realizing she was touching dirt. "Aah! Dirt!"

She was dragged under as Spike reached the whole.

"Rarity? Twinkleshine?"

"Help!" Twinkleshine screamed.

"Save us!" Rarity screamed as well.

"Nooo!" Spike screamed dramatically.

…

Fire was in front of the Golden Oaks library with Twilight, their friends from Ponyville and Canterlot (minus Twinkleshine and Rarity but plus Bon Bon). Fire wondered where the two white shaded unicorns were. Last he heard she was visiting Rarity and the two of them had stopped by the library to borrow Spike before Fire arrived.

But as they were preparing to try and cast the butterfly wing spells, Spike came running up looking frantic!

"Aaaah! Rarity... Twinkleshine… jewels... dogs... hole... taken... save them!"

Then he gasped heavily for breath.

"What happened?" Twilight asked, confused.

"Sounds like Rarity and Twinkleshine are in trouble!" Fire exclaimed. "Come on!"

They ran toward the outskirts of town where they knew Rarity went for gems Spike breathed into a bag on Twilight's back.

"Spike, can you breathe now?" she asked him after a while.

Spike panted and then spoke clearly. "Yes. I think so."

"Good," Twilight said. "Now tell us what you know."

"Yeah. Cause all you said earlier was Rarity, Twinkleshine, and a bunch of different words we couldn't figure out," Rainbow Dash said.

"Not a whole lot to go on there, sport," Applejack said.

"Sorry," Spike apologized. "Rarity, Twinkleshine and I were in the woods looking for jewels when these creepy guys showed up.

"Creepy guys?" Twilight inquired.

"They called themselves the Diamond Dogs. They grabbed Rarity and Twinkleshine then disappeared down a hole in the ground."

Applejack smirked. "Well, this sounds mighty easy. Just take us to that there hole and we'll save those two."

"Yeah, no problem!" Minuette agreed in her upbeat manner.

But they gasped as they came to the spot where the abduction had taken place had many holes in the ground.

"Holy moly, that's a lotta holeys," Pinkie exclaimed.

"Come on! Let's get started!" Twilight said moving forward only to have somepony grab her tail. "Ow!"

She looked and saw Bon Bon holding her back. The Earth Pony narrowed her eyes.

"We can't just go charging in!" the pink and black maned mare said. "We need a plan!"

"What makes you think you know any better?" Twilight asked.

"I uh…" Bon Bon stammered. "I've read a few books on subjects like infiltration and spying."

Fire took a breath. "Alright mares, Spike. Two of our friends have been taken. Spike how many dogs did you see?"

"Four!" Spike said. "There were only three at first but then a big black one showed up."

"There might be more down there," Fire noted looking at the holes. "Okay, we need every advantage we can get."

He turned to Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow, you're the fastest! Go and get my guards around town and at Warm Heart Tower! We'll need their help for this."

"On it!" she saluted and flew off.

Fire looked around. "This is gonna be dangerous girls. If anyone has second thoughts, I'd advise you to leave now."

They all thought for a moment but shook their heads.

"No way!" Lemon Hearts said. "We're gonna help rescue Twinkleshine! And Rarity! I've been missing out on a lot of the adventure and I don't want to miss out on anymore!"

They all nodded. Fire smiled at the bright yellow unicorn. She'd always been the crazy adventurous one in class at Canterlot. Fire remembered when she'd gotten her head stuck in a beaker, among other things.

"Alright, lets see."

He looked around, four of his friends from Ponyville were here (five if he counted Spike). Rainbow Dash would be back soon with reinforcements hopefully. Then there were the four unicorns from Canterlot present and Bon Bon. With Fire that gave a total of eleven right now with another seven on the way, so-

"We'll have eighteen on our side total," Fire said. "But right now there's only eleven of us. Alright, lets divide into groups and each go down a hole. If we find Rarity and Twinkeshine we'll cast alarm spells. Hopefully we'll be able to hear them down there."

"So who goes with who?" Applejack asked.

Fire thought for a moment. "We need at least one capable fighter per group. Bon Bon, Twilight, Applejack, you three are probably our best fighters here along with me. Let's see… okay… our Earth Ponies will need magic protection for backup. Lyra, go with Bonbon!"

The green unicorn nodded with a smile and joined her marefriend.

"Fluttershy…" Fire looked at her. "You're probably not a fighter, so I want you to stay with me so I can keep you safe. As best I can at least."

Fluttershy smiled and blushed. "Thank you, Fire."

She walked over and stood by his side.

"Alright, Lemon Hearts you go with Applejack. Minuette, Pinkie!"

The lemon coated unicorn joined the orange apple Earth Pony. Minuette and Pinkie both giggled as they stood next to each other.

"Then Twilight and Spike. And Moondancer, you can join Fluttershy and me!"

Moondancer nodded and came beside her crush.

"You're a real leader Fire," she said.

Fire smiled at the praise. "I have worked the royal guard after all. Alright lets all pick and a hole and go in!"

They all did so, four groups of two and one group of three. The five teams dove into the holes, ready to save their friends.

…

Rarity and Twinkleshine were both backed into a corner of the underground caves.

"Oh please, Diamond Dogs. Please let us go!" Rarity said fearfully.

"Yeah, we're scared," Twinkleshine agreed next to her.

"No!" the short tan dog, Spot said.

The big dog, Fido, spoke next as he raised his large fist. "You're our precious little ponies!"

"Forever!" Rover declared with a wicked laugh.

"Forever?" Twinkleshine repeated.

"But whatever do you want from me?" Rarity asked with drooped ears.

Twinkleshine shivered. "Please tell me you don't want to… marry us?"

Rover shook his head. "No no! We don't want to marry you! Leh! Whoever heard of a pony marrying a dog?"

Twinkleshine sighed in relief.

"We just want gemsss!"

"Yes!" Spot agreed greedily. "The gems. The jewels."

"Find them!" Fido ordered. "Find them all!"

Rarity managed a smile at that. "Oh! Is that all?"

She walked about the cave, hoping cooperation would allow her and Twinkleshine to be let go. She lit up her horn and activated her gem detecting spell. Soon she located a small batch of gems underground and took some nearby sticks in the tunnel to mark the location. "There. A lovely pocket of jewels are right there. Now, if you'd be so kind as to show us the exit?"

But Rarity was interrupted as an armored dog raised a spear at her.

"Good!" Rover shook in delight and laughed. "Now, dig them up, pony."

Rarity turned to him in disgust. "What? But you said you wanted me to find the gems."

"Yes! Find and then dig." Spot elaborated.

"Dig?" Rarity repeated.

"Do what they say Rarity," Twinkleshine told her.

Rover turned to her. "This pony seems to know her place. You dig pony!"

Twinkleshine stepped toward the marked spot and began to dig with her hooves. But Rarity stopped her.

"Twinkleshine! You must not lower yourself to helping these ruffians!" Rarity told her. "They oh so rudely dragged us underground. We should not chip our hooves digging for them."

"But they might hurt us!" Twinkleshine replied.

"Or they might give into our demands," Rarity whispered. "Follow my lead."

She then spoke loud enough for the dogs to hear. "Uh, I suppose you're right. Best to cooperate, but I am such a slow digger I fear it will be an hour before I reach those gems!"

She dug at an extremely slow pace that got the dogs impatient.

"Oh, for goodness- Fine! Just stop! Stop!" Rover barked then looked up. "Dig, dogs! Dig! And fast."

Another few armored dogs appeared from above and leapt dog from the top of the tunnel. They quickly dog the gems out. Rarity then smirked at Twinkleshine who grinned in relief. The dogs then tried to get them to pull a cart instead. They were harnessed up with rusty chains and felt the dogs long claws dig into their bright coats.

"Well, somebody certainly needs proper nail care. When was the last time you two had a manicure? You're scratching up our coats with those jagged things!" Rarity pointed out.

"Please be quiet!" Rover told her.

Twinkleshine was quiet, but Rarity wrinkled her nose and asked, "Good heavens, what is that smell?"

Rover looked at her and asked in a long-drawn-out breath. "Smeeeeeell?"

Rarity got a whiff of his open mouth. "Ah, mystery solved. It's your breath."

Rover breathed into his hand and his eyes widened as he smelled. "Enough! Search, pony!"

"Well, since you insist," Rarity said as she and Twinkleshine began to pull their carts while casting their detection spells and marking the areas gems were. "But I must say the working conditions in here are simply dreadful."

"Oh yes!" Twinkleshine agreed, following her fellow unicorn's lead. "Musty and damp, my mane is my most treasured part of myself! It will be frizzled before long!"

"And this air in here is stifling," Rarity added. "Suffocating. And when I try to take a deep breath, the stench of all you dogs makes me nauseated. You look and smell like you haven't bathed in weeks. Have you never heard of soap?"

Two dogs heard this and smelled themselves, quickly finding their own scent repulsive.

Twinkleshine then had an idea. "Tell me, do you wear diamonds to look attractive?"

"Well, uh… yeah. And to get rich," Rover said.

"Diamonds can only take you so far!" Twinkleshine said. "I bet you would get lots of lady dogs if you improved your hygiene! Bathed, trimmed those nails and brushed your teeth! I mean who wants a stinky dirty dog as a boyfriend?"

They hesitated, then the black scary dog appeared.

"What's going here? I'm hearing a lot of talking from these two ponies!" Brutus said.

"The one with purple mane was complaining nonstop Brutus!" Rover said.

"Excuse but I'm terribly thirsty. Could I please have some water?" Rarity asked.

Spot grabbed his ears. "Good gracious, I can't take this anymore. Be quiet, pony!"

"And that's another thing. I would appreciate if you stopped calling me "pony". I am a lady and I wish to be addressed as such," Rarity said proudly and without fear. "So you may call me "Miss" or "Rarity" or "Miss Rarity". And the same goes for Twinkleshine here."

Brutus growled. "That's it! Since you three!" He pointed at the three main dogs. "Can't control a pathetic little pony, I'll discipline her myself!"

He drew out a whip. Rarity and Twinkleshine both froze now.

"You ponies pull, find the gems… and pull!" Brutus ordered as he whipped Rarity first.

She yelped in pain.

"And for everytime you talk, I or one of my little omegas here will whip you!" Brutus said before whipping Twinkleshine as well. "You are both slaves now! And you are our property. We own you just as we own the gems in this mine!"

"Oh, my plan was working until he came along," Rarity whispered then said loud enough for them to hear. "Please sirs, I'm very very thirsty! You can hardly expect me to work if I collapse from thirst?"

Brutus growled. "I suppose you're right. Get her and the other one water a glass of water! Let them drink at least once an hour! But no food until nightfall!"

Rarity clenched her teeth. She felt real fear now for an instant, but then there was the sound scrambling hooves and two ponies appeared.

"Well howdy there little doggies!" Applejack greeted.

Lemon Hearts glared at them. "We're here for our friends! Let them go!"

"Another couple ponies!" Fido said.

"Get them!" Brutus ordered. "We can either keep them as worker horses or sell them to my pony business partner in Manehattan."

"Lemon Hearts, do the signal!" Applejack ordered.

"Right!" the yellow pony said as she lit up her horn, which emitted a loud alarm that echoed through the tunnels.

…

Fire, Fluttershy, and Moondancer made their way through the tunnels. They ran for what felt like forever when they suddenly ran into Twilight and Spike.

"No luck?" Fire asked.

"No," Twilight said. "We just don't know where they are keeping them and this place is such a maze!"

But then a sound filled their ears. A loud ringing.

"One of our teams found them!" Fire exclaimed. "Follow the ring!"

They did so. The rings became louder and louder as they followed the sound. Hopefully they or one of the other teams would reach it before-

It faded. Fortunately, there were some distant sounds of battle. They continued following those and soon saw… Pinkie Pie, Minuette, Lyra, and Bonbon, all with an armored dog on their back.

"We got more work horses!" one of the dogs said. "Lord Brutus will reward us!"

"Maybe we'll get some good bones tonight!" another suggested.

"Get off of me!" Bonbon said as she bucked the dog on her back off.

The others followed her example and threw the dogs off. The canines retreated further into the tunnels.

"Well, that's everypony here!" Fire said looking around. "Except for Applejack and Lemon Hearts! They must have found Rarity and Twinkleshine! Come on let's follow those dogs!"

He ran after them.

Spike frowned. "Hurry up Twilight! Or Fire's gonna beat me to saving Rarity!"

"What does it matter?" Twilight asked as she ran after Fire.

"Then he could win her instead!" Spike said before looking ahead. "I will save you first Rarity! I swear it! Giddy up Twilight!"

He kicked her side, causing her to grit her teeth. Still, she ran forward with all haste to save her friend.

They soon came upon the sight of Lemon Hearts and Applejack fighting the three main Diamond Dogs. Lemon Hearts used her magic to put up a shield that was the same shade of lavender as Twilight's. It blocked the big dog's strikes while Applejack kicked the smaller one away. He yelped as he hit the ground but then the middle sized knocked the Earth Pony off her hooves.

"Take this!" Lemon Hearts said with determination as she lowered her shield to attack.

But the big dog smacked her away and she grunted as she landed next to Applejack.

The two dogs still standing advanced on the ponies on the ground who looked up in fright.

"Hey!" Fire called as he shot a beam of magic at them.

His red colored attack hit the big one and he moved it to the medium one as well. Both of them yelped as they received mild burns on their fur. That gave Applejack and Lemon Hearts the chance to get back up and kick with their hooves or shoot magic from their horn. That took them down.

At that moment, the others caught up.

"Ah man! Fire beat me to it!" Spike lamented.

"The battle's not over yet Spike!" Twilight informed him as her eyes widened in fear at what lay ahead. "Or maybe it is!"

The black diamond dog, Brutus, had Rarity and Twinkleshine both held on chains that were around their necks and he held the tip of his spear to Rarity's throat.

"All of you puny ponies surrender!" Brutus demanded. "Or I end your friends right now!"

Fire gritted his teeth. The others were likewise worried as well as they saw their two friends being held at weapon point. Twinkleshine shook in a fragile manner while Rarity eyed the spear. There was fear in her eyes but it was quickly replaced with resolve and she used her magic to redirect the weapon away from her face. Then she aimed a kick… right between Brutus' legs.

A loud howl of pain filled the tunnels and Brutus dropped the chains.

"Run Twinkleshine!" Rarity said to her fellow captive.

They both ran to their friends who put themselves in front of the two. The other dogs got up and more scurried in. Fire counted a total of eighteen against their eleven.

"Uh… that's a lot of ponies," Fido said fearfully. "And a little dragon!"

Brutus growled. "Shut up Fido! We still have more and we're bigger than them!"

"Bigger yes!" another voice suddenly sounded. "You have more? No!"

Rainbow Dash had finally arrived with Fire's six guards. That brought the pony numbers up to eighteen as well. Now it was an even fight. Fire looked at the dogs who all shook.

"Okay, looks like they have a few more and…" Brutus looked around. "Its just as many as us! Uh… dig!"

The dogs all burrowed underground and vanished from sight.

"We'll be back ponies!" Brutus' voice called.

Fire glared down into the holes, not seeing any sign of them. He thought for a moment then decided it was best to let them go. They'd face the dogs if they came back. Fire looked over his shoulder at Rarity and Twinkleshine.

"Are you two okay?" he asked in concern.

"Yes," Rarity assured him.

Twinkleshine nodded. "I was really scared by the whole thing. But Rarity kept me together for a while! She practically had them wrapped around her hoof until the big leader stepped in!"

"Well, I'll be! And here I thought you might be super scared and helpless!" Applejack said to Rarity.

"I was scared," Rarity admitted. "But I didn't let it get to me!"

"Oh Rarity!" Spike said as he ran over and hugged her. "I'm so glad you're okay!"

Rarity smiled at him and returned the hug. "Thank you Spike."

Spike then looked at Twinkleshine who was glaring at him. "Oh and I'm glad you're okay too Twinkle!"

Her gaze softened at that. "Thank you."

Rarity then looked around and saw something intriguing. "Well, the dogs left behind all the gems Twinkleshine and I found! Mind helping me move them?"

Fire's guards were able to handle that while they made their way out of the tunnel.

"You did pretty good Rarity," Fire said.

"Yeah, I think we all thought that you would probably be helpless," Twilight said. "I think I have a letter to write to the Princess. Just because somepony is ladylike doesn't mean she's helpless."

"Like I was," Twinkleshine lamented.

"That's okay Twinkleshine!" Minuette put a hoof on her friend to comfort her. "We all have room to grow."

"And I think we'll have a shot to grow!" Lemon Hearts said.

"Provided someone doesn't forget about you guys!" Pinkie whispered as she winked ahead at the fourth wall. "So write this story good won't you?"

The others didn't hear or just ignored her.

"And now you have plenty of gems for Sapphire Shores!" Spike said as he nibbled on a ruby.

"Not if you eat them all Spike!" Rarity said as she took the ruby from him.

They laughed at that as they made their way back to Ponyville.

Chapter 36: Missing Mares Part 1

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 1: Friendship is Magic Part 1

Author's Note

This fanfic was largely inspired by A New Hero by Alexthelonewolf. It will feature a seventh element of harmony like the story from which inspired it. But a different name as you can probably tell by the title, and instead of a son of Luna, it will be a son of Celestia that is actually raised by her. Let me know what you think of this first chapter and the ones that come after in the comments/reviews please. I had thought that maybe it would only go up to Canterlot Wedding but we’ll see. I may not go completely by the canon episodes and make my own. Just wait and see.

Chapter 1: Friendship is Magic Part 1

Princess Celestia grunted as she lay in the infirmary of her castle. Finally, the pain passed. A cry filled the room and the castle nurse wrapped a blanket around the newborn foal.

“Congratulations Princess!” the nurse said. “You have a son!”

Celestia managed a weak smile as she looked down at her foal. He had the same white coat as her, but his mane was a brilliant mixture of orange and yellow like fire. To her utter surprise though, she saw he was not a unicorn, Pegasus, or Earth Pony. He was a mixture of all three, an alicorn… just like herself.

Her mouth fell open. “He’s an alicorn like me!”

That had not ever happened in Equestria. But she smiled though as the shock soon wore off. She had a son, and he would have a destiny to fulfill.

“Welcome, Fire Sword,” she said as she touched snouts with her son.

She’d spent a good deal of time thinking of possible names ever since she’d learned she was pregnant after that night with a certain stallion. Celestia smiled down at her son. He would become a strong pony, she was sure of it.

…

Years passed and a certain lavender unicorn sat beneath a tree reading a book.

“Once upon a time in the magical land of Equestria, there were two regal sisters. The eldest used her unicorn powers to raise the sun while the youngest raised the moon. Together they maintained the balance in Equestria. But over time, the younger sister grew resentful. The ponies played and frolicked in the day her elder sister brought, while shunning and sleeping through her beautiful night. Eventually the resentment turned her into a fierce pony of darkness, Nightmare Moon. She declared that she would not lower moon to make way for the sun. Forced to take action, the elder sister had to fight her beloved younger sibling. Only by using the Elements of Harmony was she able to defeat her, and banish her to the moon where she became known as the Mare in the Moon.”

Twilight Sparkle looked at the book showing the pictures of the mare in the moon.

“Hmm. Elements of Harmony, I’m sure I’ve read about those before. But where?”

She began running off but soon ran into some unicorns she knew.

“There you are, Twilight!” one of them, an ivory unicorn with a pink mane said. “Moondancer is having a little get together in the courtyard later! We’re all invited!”

“Oh sorry, girls,” Twilight politely declined. “I’ve got a lot of studying to do.”

She ran off to do her much-needed research.

“Does that pony do anything besides study?” the unicorn who’d spoken before, Twinkleshine said.

“I think she’s more interested in books then friends,” another unicorn, who had a yellow coat with a blue mane, Lemon Hearts, said.

“Well, we haven’t asked Fire Sword to come yet!” the last unicorn, a blue one said.

“You sure Moondancer won’t mind having a stallion come to her party?” Lemon Hearts asked.

“She didn’t say anything about it being for mares only,” Twinkleshine said. “Besides, she and Fire are pretty close friends. I’m sure he’d be welcome.”

They headed up to the palace.

…

Prince Fire Sword sat on his throne next to his mother’s. She was the pony who raised the sun, therefore her throne was sun themed. His was likewise fire themed. He had grown into a pony of above average height for his age. He now had a cutie mark of a flaming sword on his flank, and a gold crown lined with rubies on his head. Matching armor and shoes covered his chest and hooves. But on his mouth, he wore a worried expression.

“You sure everything is alright, Mother?” he asked.

“Everything’s fine,” Celestia said.

“But that scroll we just got from Twilight said that Nightmare Moon will return,” he said. “You told me that it would happen last year and that we had to be ready!”

“And we will be!” Celestia said as she began writing her reply quickly to her greatest student. “What we need is for Twilight to stop spending so much time reading those dusty old books and start making friends.”

Fire Sword frowned. “Uh, in case you haven’t noticed she isn’t exactly interested in that. I’ve watched her when I’ve been at the school of magic.”

Though he was a prince he did need to be educated. He’d attended his mother’s School for Gifted Unicorns and knew Twilight Sparkle as well as a number of other ponies. Most of which were girls. Of course, Fire Sword preferred the company of girls anyway. They were pretty and gentle.

“I know,” Celestia said. “But I have a plan to deal with that. I’m going to send her to ponyville and have her supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration. She’ll meet a particularly special group of ponies there.”

“But how is that going to help us against Nightmare Moon? Can’t you just defeat her like last time, even without the… Elements?” Fire Sword asked.

“I could, but I don’t want to repeat history,” Celestia said.

The way Fire saw it, it seemed history would repeat itself regardless. But before he could question his mother further the door to the throne room opened.

“Your highness!” a guard said.

“Yes?” Celestia asked.

“Oh, um I meant Prince Fire Sword!” the guard said. “There are some mares from the School of Magic here to see you.”

“Send them in,” the prince said.

The guard opened the door further and three mares entered. Twinkleshine, Minuette, and Lemon Hearts. They bowed as they approached the thrones.

“Princess Celestia,” they greeted the head monarch first before turning their attention to the younger pony beside her. “Prince Fire Sword.”

“Girls, you don’t have to be formal with me, we are classmates after all. We don’t need the titles,” Fire Sword said warmly. “Just Fire will do.”

“We were wondering if you would be willing to attend a party that Moondancer is throwing tonight?” Lemon Hearts said.

“Umm…” Fire Sword hesitated.

He tended to spend most of his time alone practicing magic, similar to Twilight Sparkle from what he’d seen and heard. But at least he did occasionally spend time with his classmates and friends and family. But the circumstances for today might require special attention.

“I don’t know if I can…”

“You should go, I have everything under control, my son!” Celestia said.

Fire Sword looked at his mother with uncertainty. But he soon decided to follow her orders like the good son he tried to be. Of course that was more of a suggestion then an order.

“If you say so, Mom,” He said before turning to his friends. “I’ll see you all there.”

They grinned and bowed their heads before leaving.

“You should bring something from the royal chefs when you go,” Celestia told her son.

They waited until their time on the throne was over. Then it would usually be dinner time at around sunset. But since there was the party, Fire would go there instead. Though he did pay a visit to the royal kitchen where the chefs made him a large batch of celery and peanut butter to bring to the party. Those were his favorite vegetable snacks.

“Later Mom,” he said as he levitated the plate holding his contribution to the party with his red magic.

She nodded with a soft smile. “I will see you on the top floor of the Town Hall in Ponyville tomorrow morning for the Summer Sun Celebration.”

“Right Mom!” Fire Sword said.

They nuzzled then he headed down to the courtyard where Moondancer, a yellow unicorn with a red and purple mane and glasses over her eyes, was holding the party. She stood at a table filled with apples, pies, cakes and other sweets. Night had already fallen on Canterlot as Celestia set the sun, tomorrow would be another day. Fire just hoped his mother was right and that everything was under control. He got there just in time as the other three arrived carrying presents on their backs. It wasn’t really a birthday party but they had wanted to do something nice for their friend.

“Hey Moondancer!” Minuette said before looking at the table. “Look at this spread huh?”

“Thank you so much for coming!” Moondancer said.

“Of course," Twinkleshine said. “We wouldn’t miss one of our best friend's parties.”

“Thanks, and I’m glad you could make it as well, Fire Sword,” Moondancer said looking at the only male at her party. “I’m honored to have royalty here. I’m sure this probably won’t be like any fancy party you have with the nobility though.”

“Oh, that’s okay,” Fire Sword said. “I prefer the company of you girls anyday.”

“Ah, you’re so sweet!” Twinkleshine said.

“Is Twilight coming?” Moondancer asked eagerly.

There was silence as the other girls looked away, Minuette rubbed her head nervously.

Moondancer soon figured it out and looked down. “Oh. Okay.”

“Hey, we’ll still have fun, right?” Minuette tried to put on an air of positivity and laughing while still obviously nervous.

“Sure,” Moondancer said.

Fire Sword and the others watched in dismay as she began to walk away. She had been close to Twilight, at least from her perspective. She’d told Fire Sword that working with Twilight had caused her to come out of her shell and start interacting with him and the other ponies in the class. This whole party had been for Twilight.

“Moondancer, wait!” Fire Sword said as he blocked her path and put a hoof on her shoulder. “I know you really wanted Twilight to come since she was the pony that caused you to open up and not be so shy. She's just never understood how important friendship is. But my mom has a plan to get her to see it for what it is worth it! Don’t give up! She may not come to this party, but if everything goes as planned, she WILL come to the next one.”

The prince’s words caused the unicorn to smile faintly after a moment, a glimmer of hope relighting. “Thanks, Fire Sword,” she said.

“Of course, anything for a friend,” he said before hugging her.

She blushed but slowly hugged him back. When he released her, she smiled at him.

“Thanks Fire Sword, I needed that,” she said. “I was just thinking that maybe friendship is only gonna cause me heartache and not solve anything. But that felt good. You’re… warm.”

He smiled at her as the mares smiled and giggled around them lowly. Then it was time to get the party in full swing! The five friends danced, ate cakes and hit the piñata one of them had brought. It was fun, but after a long time the party ended.

“That was fun!” Fire Sword said. “But I should probably be getting to bed. I’m heading to Ponyville tomorrow for the Summer Sun Celebration. My mom is supposed to be there this year.”

“Well, good luck,” Twinkleshine said. “Hope to see you again soon. We were actually planning to go there ourselves after this. Lyra’s there already since she went to visit a pal she has there. She’s actually planning to move to Ponyville, I heard.”

“Oh, why don’t you all come with me then? When was the last time you saw my mother performing the Summer Sun Celebration?” Fire Sword asked.

“Hmm, I think it’s been a couple years actually,” Twinkleshine said. “And I’ve never been to Ponyville before.”

“It could be a fun trip!” Minuette said. “Why don’t we all go?”

“Alright,” Moondancer said. “But… I’m not sure about going to a place I’ve never been before.”

“There’s nothing to be afraid of, Moondancer,” Fire Sword said as he flew over to her. “Haven’t you ever been outside Canterlot before?”

“No,” she admitted.

“It will be fine,” Twinkleshine said. “We can catch the train and head off in… wait! Look at the time!”

They looked and saw it was already way past midnight!

“We must have partied harder than we thought!” Minuette exclaimed.

“The Summer Sun celebration is only a few hours away! We need to get on the train as soon as possible!” Twinkleshine said.

“But the trains don’t operate at this time of night!” Lemon Hearts said.

“The royal chariots do though!” Fire said.

“But only royals and those that are hoof picked by them to be- oh!” Minuette realized.

“Come on!” Fire said.

He led the four of them to the barracks around Canterlot Castle. As he approached, he saw he saw several guards still manning the area where the chariots were kept.

“Prince Fire Sword!” one of them said as he saw the son of Celestia approaching. “We’ve been waiting for you.”

“And for several hours, I see,” Fire Sword said. “I’m going to need a large carriage for my friends as well.”

He gestured to the four mares accompanying him. The guards saluted him and without question got another two pairs of their fellows then procured a large guest carriage. Moondancer, Twinkleshine, Minuette and Lemon Hearts all climbed in.

“Has my mother left yet?” Fire Sword asked as he climbed into his personal carriage that was adorned with his cutie mark.

“We haven’t seen her, but I presume so,” the main guard said.

“Good,” Fire Sword said before looking up at the castle. “I presume Princess Cadance will be in charge here for the time being?”

“Yes, she and the rest of your cousins are here.”

Fire Sword frowned as he thought of one cousin, Prince Blueblood was deemed an eligible bachelor but he was vain and snobbish. At least Cadance was kind and cared about others. Ah well, Fire was sure she and her special somepony in the royal guard would be able to handle anything that came up. Well, maybe petty crime at least.

“Well, fly on!” Fire commanded.

The group of guards pulling both carriages with Fire Sword and his classmates were off. They flew through the air toward Ponyville and arrived just in time. It was a small town but nice looking. They arrived in the town square just in time.

Fire Sword climbed out of the carriage and looked back at his friends. “I’ll see you girls in there. My mother is expecting me by her side.”

“Bye Fire!” Moondancer said. “And… thanks for cheering me up when I was ready to call it quits!”

“No problem,” Fire Sword said. “I maybe a bit of a loner, but I know what friends are for.”

They smiled at him, with Moondancer blushing slightly. Then they headed inside. Fire then flew up to the top floor of the town hall where his mother had told him to go. But stepping inside he saw a curtain blocking view of the other side but Celestia was not there. He did however hear a voice beyond the curtains.

"Fillies and gentlecolts, as Mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!" The Mayor announced.

Everypony cheered at this.

"In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise and celebrate this, the longest day of the year, and now… it is my great pleasure to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony that gives us the sun and the moon, each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria, Princess Celestia! And her warm-hearted and strong son, Prince Fire Sword!"

The curtains opened and Fire saw many ponies looking up at him. He saw Twilight Sparkle in the crowd below. Also there on the balcony overlooking the hall was the pony who had opened the curtains. Fire's mouth fell open as he saw her. She was a particularly beautiful white unicorn with an elegantly styled purple mane. He looked into her blue eyes that were just as beautiful as the rest of her. Those eyes seemed to light up with stars as she saw him. He felt his cheeks light up as he looked back.

“Prince Fire Sword!” she exclaimed before bowing. Looking next to him, however, she saw he was alone. “Huh?”

Fire Sword shook to snap himself out of his distraction. He looked around thoroughly, but no sign of her.

“Where is my mother!?” he asked looking down at the ponies, his warm heart lighting up with a spark of anger. “Where is Princess Celestia?”

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry, your highness!” said a light brown pony with a gray mane whose voice matched the mayor who had been speaking earlier. “We were expecting your mother the princess to be here with you!”

She then turned to her citizens. “No pony panic! I’m sure there is a reasonable explanation for all this!”

Fire Sword frowned, anger beginning to fester within him as his feelings told him something was wrong. He began flapping his wings and looked down below.

“Guards!” he called as he hovered over the crowd.

The royal guards in the Town Hall came forward.

“Was my mother with any of you?” he asked.

“No, Prince Fire Sword,” one of them said as the rest shook their heads.

Fire Sword growled. His mane began to flicker with flames slightly. While he tried to act warm and welcoming, as well as provide ponies with new hope when it was about to die, something like this could cause him to get all fired up. Several ponies backed up at the sight.

“Find her!” he ordered under his breath.

There was suddenly a gasp from the crowd and the air seemed to grow colder.

Blue smoke suddenly materialized on the balcony that he had been standing on earlier. Seeing the white unicorn was still there and the smoke approaching her, Fire flew at her and seized her in his hooves.

“Oh!” she exclaimed as he carried her safely to the floor below.

He then looked up to face the smoke which took on the form of a large dark pony wearing armor and moving and sparkling blue mane similar to Celestia's.

"Oh. My beloved subjects, it's been so long since I've seen your oh so precious sun loving faces…" the pony said.

"What did you do with our princess?" A pony with a rainbow mane asked angrily.

She made to charge in but was restrained by an orange Earth Pony who bit her tail.

The black pony laughed and said, "Why? Am I not royal enough for you?" Her tone immediately shifted. "Don't you know who I am?"

A loud talkative pink pony spoke now, "Ooh. Ooh! A guessing game! Ummmm… HOKEY SMOKES! How bout QUEEN MEANNIE? No. BLACK SNOOTY!"

“I know who you are!” Fire Sword said pointing his hoof. “You’re my mother’s sister that she banished to the moon! Aunt Luna!”

Many ponies gasped.

She looked at him with narrowed eyes. “Well well, I didn’t expect this! My sister actually had a foal? Hmm, I’m afraid you’re only half right! I was once your dear Aunt Luna, but she is gone now! Surely the legacy of who I am now remains? Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?”

"I did!” Twilight Sparkle said. “And I know who you are now! You're the mare of the moon! Nightmare Moon!"

Every pony gasped again.

"Well well well!" Nightmare Moon said. "Some pony who remembers me! Then you also know why I am here!"

Twilight shivered as she spoke, "You're here to…" She hesitated. "to…" She gulped.

Nightmare Moon laughed once again and announced, "Remember this day little ponies, for it is your last… from this moment forth… the night will last FOREVER!" She laughed evilly as thunder sounded and lightning flashed above her.

Chapter 11: Look Before You Sleep

Author's Note

Okay, so I’ve been away for a while longer than I intended. Normally this would have been updated two weeks ago but I had a few things come up. First there was my trip to Fresno forcing me to get my other stories I promised updated as well as some new MLP clop fics. Also I recently watched the Season 7 finale of FIM and I learned that Rockhoof represented strength back in his day, so I may consider changing the name of Fire’s Element from strength to balance or something to incorporate he has the strength of all the other elements to a degree.

Lastly, for this chapter I will be finally moving forward with one (or three in this case) of my planned bonus antagonists in this story, the Earth Pony thugs we saw toward the end of Aurora of Friendship. I admit they slipped my mind for a while. Now to correct that.

Chapter 11: Look Before You Sleep

In Ponyville, the gang of three Earth Pony Stallions eyed Warm Heart Tower.

“We should have struck while he didn’t have guards!” one of them said.

“It was your fault Gray!” another said. “You had to go and visit your mother back in Manehattan!”

“She was sick, Swipe!” Gray countered.

“Enough! We’re all back together again and we need to come up with a plan,” the first one, their leader said. “He has guards, but there’s gotta be some way we can get past them and break into his tower.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll think of something, Bright Wane,” Swipe said.

Bright Wane was a yellow stallion with a dark brown mane. His cutie mark was of a solar eclipse. He was the brains and leader of the thugs. Gray had a similarly colored coat to match his own name and a lighter silver mane with an oval cutie mark that was of a darker shade then the rest of his body with edges of light and dark on either side of it. Lastly, Swipe was blue and had the cutie mark of a fox tail. His talent was being sly like a fox.

“We’ll see what happens tonight, since the Pegasus ponies are scheduling a downpour,” Bright said. “That will mean few ponies will be out tonight. It could be good for us.”

Swipe smiled. “I have an idea then.”
…

A couple hours later the ponies in town were hard at work preparing for the upcoming storm tonight. It started out as a sunny day, but soon began getting blocked out as the Pegasi shifted clouds over the town and blocked out the sun. Below, Earth Ponies and a handful of Pegasi also worked as Fire watched with his guards and Mayor Mare.

“We need to prune the trees for the upcoming storm, or they might fall down on someponies house,” the mare explained. “I hope you don’t mind doing this sort of work?”

“Not at all,” Fire said with a sincere smile. “If it's to help ponies out and make sure nopony gets hurt I’m in.”

He looked at his guards, with Lieutenant Vine Archer saluting him.

“We’ll help however we can, your royal sheriffness sir!” Archer said.

Fire chuckled. Seems Vine Archer still had a sense of humor compared to most guards. That was good. Most of them were kind of boorish the way they just stood by unmoving until given commands.

“Help everypony take down those fallen branches,” Fire ordered.

“Yes sir!” they all said.

The sheriff prince and his guards/deputies got to work. Fire spotted Applejack and Rarity among the crowd working. Applejack used her lasso to pull a branch down while Rarity was a bit further ahead of her using her magic to levitate a branch.

“Howdy Applejack!” Fire greeted in a way similar to the country pony.

“Oh, Howdy Fire!” she greeted back. “Good to see you’re working as well!”

“Don’t expect me to not help out just cause it might be a little dirty?” Fire asked.

“Well, I know Rarity wouldn’t approve,” Applejack looking at the said unicorn and seeing what she was doing. “What in tarnation does she think she’s up to?

Instead of taking a branch down, Rarity had magically reattached it to the tree it came from and then spruced up the leaves to resemble a pair of ponies.

“Perfect!” the unicorn said.

Fire could admire the beauty of her creation, but Applejack didn’t. The Earth Pony took her lasso and grabbed hold of the branch and pulled it back down.

She then rounded on her friend. “Just take the broken limbs down, Rarity. Don't y'all care about nothin' other than prettifyin'?”

“Somepony has to,” Rarity countered with narrowed eyes. “You were making an absolute mess of the town square, Applejack.”

She gestured to the many branches on the ground.

“Yeah, well, the storm's gonna make an even bigger mess if we don't prune all these loose branches so they don't tumble down on anypony,” Applejack said.

Rarity looked up at the sky in annoyance. “I simply cannot imagine why the Pegasus ponies would schedule a dreadful downpour this evening and ruin what could have been a glorious sunny day."

Applejack sighed. “Think more practical-like, will ya? They accidentally skipped a scheduled sprinkle last week, so we need a doozy of a downpour to make up for it, is all.

At that moment rain began to sprinkle, much to Rarity’s horror.

“Oh no!” she exclaimed. “My wonderfully styled mane shall be ruined!”

“Ya shoulda hurried up and finished the job already,” Applejack told her.

Rarity began running around trying to get out of the rain. “Oh! Ah! Oh! Ph! It's coming down too fast! Ah! Oh! Oh! Ah! Help me!”

Applejack looked around and spotted a bench nearby. "Uh, there. Hunker down to yer heart's content whilst I finish things.

Rarity ran over to the bench but as soon as she looked under it, she went, “Oh, no, no, no!”

Fire who had followed her with Applejack saw the problem. Under the bench it was very muddy.

Applejack however didn’t get it. “What now?”

“I prefer not to get my hooves muddy,” Rarity pointed.

Fire could sympathize, he also liked to look his best. Of course, there were times when things demanded he make a small sacrifice.

Applejack was getting more irritated though. “Guh. There is just no pleasin' ya, is there? Everything's got to be just so."

Rarity scoffed. “Well, and how does muddying my hooves serve any useful purpose?”

Applejack put her hoof down. “Y'all wouldn't know useful if it came up and bit'cha.”

Rarity laughed. “That doesn't even make any sense.”

“Does so,” Applejack said.

“Does not,” Rarity said back and a bicker began.

“Does so.”

“Does not.”

Fire listened to the argument going back and forth and his mane began to light up in flames, causing a little steam as he was also hit by the rain.

“Enough!” he shouted.

He conjured up a rain shield like he had during the rain when Twilight and he had gotten the tickets for the Grand Galloping Gala. His red magic formed a layer above him that warded off the drops.

“Here Rarity, get under here with me!” he called to her.

She trotted over and gave him a grateful smile as she no longer felt the rain hitting her and she wasn’t getting dirty either. “Thank you, Prince Fire, your highness. Surely you agree with me on this whole mess thing?”

“Actually, I’m kinda with Applejack,” he said sincerely. “We need rain order to drink and sustain ourselves and our crops like she has. You can’t always have beauty, Rarity.”

The fashionista sighed, unable to come up with a counter.

“Prince Fire!” Vine Archer called. “We’re all done with what we can do for the town! We’d best head back to Warm Heart Tower!”

“I’ll meet you there!” Fire shouted. “Just need to make sure my friends get home safely!”

Vine bowed and began to walk off.

“Come on Applejack!” Fire said. “We should get going! The storm is gonna get worse!”

The Earth Pony glared in his direction, though it was meant for Rarity.

The unicorn returned the look. “What say we go our separate ways before one of us says something she will regret?”

“I reckon y'all are gonna say something you'll regret first,” Applejack said.

Rarity rolled her eyes in a ladylike manner. “On the contrary, I believe it shall most certainly be you who says something you will regret first.”

“I'm not sayin' anythin',” Applejack said.

“Nor am I,” Rarity said.

“Okay, we need to stop arguing and get a move on here!” Fire said impatiently. “If you aren’t gonna let me walk you both home peacefully I’m going home alone!”

“You wouldn’t abandon a lady to fend for herself, would you?” Rarity asked worriedly as he spread his wings.

“Not usually but when the lady is acting unrefined then yes,” Fire said.

“Me unrefined?” Rarity took offense at this.

“Yes, you two are just standing here fighting like a pair of fillies!” Fire said as he flapped his wings.

Both of them gave regretful looks for a moment but then glared at each other.

Applejack gave a shooing motion with her hoof to Rarity. "Y'all just be on yer way, then.”

“After you!” Rarity shouted.

Fire began to fly in the direction of his home while the two mares began to walk backwards while still glaring at each other. Then thunder crackled, causing the two to yelp and hug each other in fright.

“Perhaps we should stick together for now and find some shelter,” Rarity suggested.

Applejack nodded frightfully. “Uh-huh, perhaps we should. And fast.”

The wind was picking up fast. Fire sighed and was about to fly off when a powerful gust suddenly sent him flying backwards head over heels.

"Whoa! Whoa! Uh-"

He hit a tree right wing first and-

“Aah!” he cried out in pain before hitting the ground.

“Fire!” Applejack and Rarity both exclaimed.

They ran over and helped him up.

“You okay Fire?” Applejack asked.

Fire gritted his teeth. “I think I sprained my wing.”

At least he could still walk and use his horn. If only he knew teleportation magic, he could get them all home in a few flashes.

“Guess I’ll have to stick with you after all,” Fire said.

“Alright y’all. We need to get out of this rain!” Applejack said.

She immediately went under the bench she’d directed Rarity towards a moment ago.

“Heh. Nice and dry under here, sorta,” Applejack said looking down at the mud which was covering her hooves.

Rarity paced nearby and looked at the Earth Pony’s makeshift shelter in disgust. “Oh! Unacceptable!” she exclaimed

Fire sighed irritably as he stood under his shield.

Then a voice in the distance drew their attention. “Fire! Applejack! Rarity!”

It came again as Applejack slowly got out from under the bench and walked up beside them. “Fire! Applejack! Rarity!”

They looked for the source and saw Twilight looking out from the library nearby.

“Twilight?” the two mares asked.

Twilight beckoned them with a wave of her hoof. “Come inside, quick.”

They ran over with Fire’s shield still above them. Fire and Rarity both went in right away but Applejack stopped at the door.

“Whoa, nelly,” she said. “Is inside a tree really the best place to be in a lightning storm?”

“It is if you have a magical lightning rod protecting your home like I do. Come on in!” Twilight said cheerfully.

Rarity was relieved. “Hah! We are most grateful for your invitation.”

“Yes, we are.” Fire agreed.

Applejack also was in the same mood as she began to walk in. “Thank ya kindly for yer hospitality.”

Rarity, however stopped her and gestured to her muddy hooves. “Uh, do be a polite house guest and go wash up please, won't you?”

Applejack grumbled as she turned back outside. “If I gotta spend one more second with that fussbudget Rarity today, I can't
be held responsible for what I'm gonna do.”

Fire heard this and sighed as well. Things had been pretty tense just a few minutes ago. Hopefully it would smooth out. He followed Applejack outside briefly.

“Hey, don’t get too worked up about it,” he said. “I know Rarity is a lot more fancy smancy then you, but she is right. You really think Twilight would appreciate it if you got mud all over her home?”

She looked back. “I guess not. Alright guess this is one thing Rarity is right about today.”

Fire nodded and turned back inside. He was surprised to find Moondancer inside.

“Fire!” she exclaimed.

“Hey!” Fire said with a wave and a grin at his soon to be date. “What are you doing here?”

“Twilight invited me to have a slumber party!” Moondancer said.

“Yeah!” Twilight said before looking out the window. “Some storm, huh? The Pegasus ponies sure have outdone themselves this time. I hope you, Rarity, and Applejack don't have any trouble getting home.”

“It may indeed be a problem,” Rarity stated.

“Well, you're welcome to stay if need be. Spike is away in Canterlot on royal business so it was just gonna be me and Moondancer. You three should totally sleep over! We'll have a bigger slumber party! I always wanted one of those!”

Fire looked at her with a smirk. “Oh really, then how come you never invited anypony over before?”

“Oh, I was always too focused on studying,” Twilight said. “I did want too but whenever I was at school it slipped my mind.”

Fire nodded. That made sense. Though he was a little nervous being the only stallion with a group of four mares.

Rarity was likewise uncertain and blinked. “Oh! Uh, goodness. Uh, I do believe I have another engagement scheduled for this evening that completely slipped my mind until just now.” She laughed nervously. “Ah, silly me, I can't possibly stay here all night-“ She then spoke at a level where nopony would hear her. “-with Applejack.”

Twilight seemed to not hear her in her excitement. She levitated a book from the shelf above.

Rarity read its title page. “Slumber 101: All You've Ever Wanted to Know About Slumber Parties But Were Afraid to Ask.”

Twilight put a hoof to her heart. “My own personal copy. It's a fantastic reference guide. You should see the table of contents,” she then flailed her hooves excitedly and grew sparkling eyes. “I've been waiting for a chance to use it, and today is the day! This is gonna be so great!”

“Yeah!” Moondancer agreed with a smile.

Rarity once more laughed nervously. “Yes, uh, great.”

She looked out the window where Applejack was about to wash her hooves.

“Uh, your book happen to mention anything about including ponies of the opposite… gender?” Fire asked.

“Oh yeah,” Twilight said. “It talks about how couples have their own slumber special slumber parties and… well… you know.”

She blushed, as did all the others. Fire’s mind wandered back to the night of his birthday a couple years ago where he’d had a special time with Cadance.

“None of us are couples though so we just treat this as another slumber party.”

They all sighed in relief. The girls prepared makeovers as Fire read a book.

Applejack sooner entered the library with her hooves freshly cleaned. She gasped at what she saw. “What in tarnation?! Now wait just a goll-darn minute! Ya make me wash the mud off my hooves, but it's okay for y'all to have mud all over yer faces?

Rarity waved her hoof. “Silly! This is called a mud mask. It's to refresh and rejuvenate your complexion.”

“We're giving each other makeovers! Eee-hee!” Twilight giggled. “We have to do it, it says so in the book.”

“You and your books,” Fire said as he read one himself.

“What was that?” Twilight asked frowning at him.

Fire looked back at her. “Nothing. Its just that like I told you before, you can’t learn everything from books. I know you love them but some things are better learnt by doing.”

“Hmph!” Twilight huffed. “Maybe so but this is my slumber party and I’ll do it as I like it!”

“That’s fine,” Fire said.

Applejack saw the title. Slumber 101: Everything You... Oh hey, heh, would'ja look at the time. I gotta skidaddle on home quick. I'm powerful late for, uh, fer somethin'. Uh, g'night.”

The lightning crackled and canceled her plan of escape. “Or maybe I'll sit here for a spell.”

“Hurray slumber party!” Twilight clapped her hooves together. “And a big one too!”

Moondancer smiled at Fire through her mudmask. “How do I look, Fire?”

He looked. “I think I need to be asked that when your face is clean.”

She giggled. “Yeah you’re right. But how do you think I normally look?”

“Uh…” Fire hesitated, not sure how to respond without hurting her feelings. “Nice.”

That was true at least. She wasn’t bad looking in any sense, same with Applejack. Twilight was kind of pretty, but Rarity… oh she was gorgeous. Of course, Fire knew that beauty on the outside was one thing, but the real beauty came from inside. And they were all wonderful in that regard. Not perfect, but hey nopony was. Not even Fire’s mother.

Applejack then got the face mask put on by Rarity, much to her disgust. Cucumbers were then put over her eyes. “Blahch. What in the world is this for?”

Rarity sighed as she explained. “To reduce the puffiness around one's eyes, of course. You sure you don’t want to join us, Fire? A prince should take care of his looks after all.”

“Thanks, but I think this is more of a mare thing,” Fire said. “Now if I get puffy eyes right now I’d probably change my mind.”

“Understood,” Rarity said understandingly. “You stallions can do your thing.”

Fire wished he had another stallion here. Still needed to find one to hang with.

“I’m with Fire! Puffiness-schmuffiness!” Appleljack exclaimed. “That's good eatin'!” She then took the cucumbers off her eyes and ate them loudly.

Twilight giggled. “Hee-hee! Isn't this exciting? We'll do everything by the book, and that will make my slumber party officially fun! You’ll see Fire!”

The prince shrugged. “We’ll see. How bad could it really be… as long as we can all get along.”

He meant that for Rarity and Applejack as he looked over at them. They seemed to be making a little progress as he heard what they said.

“You certainly would not want to do anything that would ruin Twilight's very first slumber party, would you?” Rarity asked.

“Of course not,” Applejack said. “N you wouldn't either, I reckon?”

“So do we have an agreement?” Rarity asked, signaling for a truce.

Fire let out breath of relief while Moondancer was confused next to him.

“You betcha.” Applejack said before spitting in her hooves and extending it shake Rarity’s.

The unicorn looked at the spit trailing down the hoof in disgust. “Oh! Gross! You know, there's messy and there's just plain rude.”

Applejack got in her face, angered. “You know, there's fussy, 'n there's just plain gettin' on my nerves.”

“ Fortunately, I can get along with anypony, no matter how difficult she may be,” Rarity stated.

“Oh yeah? Well, I'm the "get-alongin-est" pony you're ever gonna meet,” Applejack stated back.

“That's not even a word,” Rarity said.

Twilight appeared between them, still clueless to the tension as she wrapped her hooves around them. “This is going to be the bestest slumber party ever! Yay!”

“Yay.” The two mares said together.

Fire sighed and Moondancer leaned toward him.

“What’s going on between them?” she asked.

“They’ve been fighting since late this afternoon,” he told her.

“Oh boy. Hopefully they can get along and not ruin this slumber party,” Moondancer said.

Fire could only hope. They went about their slumber party. Since Fire was the only stallion he let them do their girly things which soon included put their manes and tails in wraps.

Rarity was pleased with the results. “So, how are you getting along over there, Applejack?”

Applejack frowned. “Just fine, Rarity.”

Twilight was still unaware of the tension. “This is so awesome!” She giggled then levitated her list. “Makeovers, check!”

She checked it off and then the hair wraps (or whatever those things were called that they used to wrap their mane and tails in) vanished. Fire didn’t know as he wasn’t a mare.

Twilight then looked at the next activity. “Ooh, it says here we have to tell ghost stories. Who wants to go first?”

“Ooh, that sounds like something I’d like!” Fire said as he put his book down.

“Me!” Applejack said with enthusiasm. “I'd like to tell y'all the terrifying tale of the prissy ghost who drove everypony crazy with her unnecessary neatness. Oo-oo! I'm sure y'all are familiar with that one?” She raised her hooves and made ghost sounds as she said it.

That sounded more like Rarity then a ghost. Great, Applejack was still upset.

Rarity shook her head. “Never heard of it, but I have a much better one. It's the horrifying story of the messy, inconsiderate ghost who irritated everypony within a hundred miles! Oo-oo!”

“That's not a real story. You made it up!” Applejack accused.

“It is a ghost story, they're all made up,” Rarity said.

Then the lights went out and all of them screamed at the unexpected turn.

Twilight then appeared between the two mares holding a flashlight.

“I've got one!” She said. “This story is called The Legend of The Headless Horse. It was a dark and stormy night, just like this one. And three ponies were having a slumber party! Just like us! Except we have five of course! And just when the last pony thought she was safe, there, standing right behind her, just inches away was... the Headless Horse!”

All the other mares gasped and held onto Fire who was a little shaken as well.

“Okay that’s a good one Twilight!” Fire said. “Now I think I’ll tell one.”

He shined his horn brightly so that the red magic shined through the library, giving it a bloody look. “It was just a decade after Canterlot Castle was first built. Back when… capital punishment was used fairly often in Medieval Equestria! My mother the now beneviolent Princess Celestia had to make examples of those that committed the most heinous crimes. The execution wing of the castle was the most feared place. It was said that is floors were forever stained with the blood of those were beheaded! But more terrifying still was the spirits of the executed criminals that haunted the wing. It was so bad my mother had to close it down and… trap the ghosts in there… forever!”

The mares screamed.

“Until they eventually escape and run amok across Canterlot as revenge!” Fire said before giving an evil laugh. “Wahahahaha!”

They were all shaking in their hooves.

“Ooh that was a good one Fire!” Moodancer said with a smile, though her ears were drooped in fear.

Twilight did another check off the list. “Ghost story, check. Now, who wants s'mores?”

They made them in the library fireplace. Applejack roasted her marshmallows while Rarity told Twilight and the others how to make ‘perfect’ smores.

“Then you place one marshmallow on the top of the chocolate and be sure it's centered—that's critical—and then carefully put another perfectly square graham cracker on the top. And done. Ta-da!”

It did indeed look perfect.

“Ooo!” Twilight exclaimed as she looked at the snack.

“Looks good, Rarity,” Fire said.

“Just good?” she asked blinking her eyes at him.

Fire chuckled. “Okay, it looks perfect.”

She blushed from that.

“Thank you, I hope these prove to be smores fit for royalty!”

Applejack, however, wasn’t impressed. “Nah, ya just eat 'em.” She popped the s’more into her mouth and made a delighted, “Mmm-mmm!” while also showing her chewing teeth covered in the food then belched.

Rarity sighed at the show of bad manners, and Fire frowned as well. “You could at least say excuse me.”

“Aw, I was just about to, but you interrupted me,” Applejack excused. “Pardon.”

Fire sighed again. Things were not going well at this slumber party.

Twilight, ever clueless of the tension, checked off the list again. “S'mores, check. Now the next item of fun we have to do is Truth or Dare.”

Rarity seized on the opportunity. “I dare Applejack to do something carefully and neatly for a change.”

Applejack was quick to respond. “Oh yeah? Well I dare Rarity ta lighten up and stop obsessin' over every last little detail, for a change.”

Fire shook his head in frustration. “Girls come on! Can’t you try and get along?”

He spoke in a low voice that only he could hear.

“I think the truth of the matter is that somepony could stand to pay a little more attention to details,” Rarity pressed.

“And I think the truth is somepony oughta quit with her fussin' so the rest of us can get things done,” Applejack countered.

“Um, I don't think this is how the game's supposed to work,” Twilight said as she went back over to the book, again her and her books. “You have to give an honest answer to any question or do whatever anypony dares you to do.”

Applejack quickly got an idea. “I dares you to step outside and let your precious, tidy mane get ruined again.”

Rarity gasped at this.

“You have to. It's the rule,” Twilight told her.

“Ha!” Applejack laughed.

“Fine!” Rarity said as she stepped outside.

They heard a faint crying outside and Rarity soon returned soaking wetting and her mane dripping. Applejack snicked and laughed. Fire quickly got a towel and wrapped it around Rarity who managed a smile.

“Oh, thank you Fire,” she said as she dried herself off. “At least somepony knows how to be sophisticated around here. But it will take me around five minutes of combing to get my mane back to my usual style!”

She then walked toward Applejack and backed her into a corner, a slight glimmer of vengeance in her eyes. “Okay. I dare Applejack to play dress-up in a frou-frou, glittery, lacey outfit.”

Applejack gasped and clenched her teeth before returning in a princess style outfit complete with a hat. “Happy?”

Rarity smirked. “Very.”

“Um, do I ever get a turn?” Twilight asked.

Fire sighed, unable to take it anymore. “Twilight seriously? Can’t you see that they are having a bad time?”

“What?” Twilight exclaimed, her eyes glistening. “Is my slumber party bad?”

“No!” Fire quickly told her. “This is good, its just… they’ve been having problems since this afternoon!”

Twilight’s mouth fell open. “Oh, I didn’t know.”

Fire took a breath. “Of course not. You weren’t there when they started arguing in the town square over prettiness and neatness.”

Applejack and Rarity were still too engrossed in their arguing to listen.

“I dare ya to enter the next rodeo when it comes to town,” Applejack said.

“I dare you not to enter the next rodeo that comes to town,” Rarity said.

“I dare ya to not comb your mane a hundred times before bed.”

“And I dare you to comb yours just once.”

“Oh I was hoping to do one more activity but maybe we should just call it a night and get some sleep?” Twilight suggested.

“That might be a good idea,” Fire agreed. “Maybe we’ll all feel better a good night’s sleep. I wonder how my guards are doing at Warm Heart Tower? Hopefully they’re not out looking for me in this weather!”

…

Vine Archer led his party through Ponyville. When Prince Fire hadn’t returned after a couple hours the guards had immediately assumed something happened. They all divided into groups of two, with four going out to look for him while the last two remained behind. Progress was extremely slow thanks to the storm, even with the aid of unicorn magic it was a struggle to move.

“You sure we should have left Warm Heart Tower?” the silver Pegasus Guard, Wind Strike asked.

“I left three guards, that should be enough in case Prince Fire Sword returns,” Vine Archer said.

…

Back at the tower, the two remaining guards stood in front of the door. Suddenly they saw someone in the window.

“Prince Fire?”

They went over and one of them opened it to find three masked Earth Ponies outside. They were on the guards instantly, pinning them down and tying them up.

…

Fire looked at Moondancer who had been quiet for a while. Twilight was working on getting beds for as many of them as she could.

“You okay, Moondancer?” he asked her.

“Yeah, it’s just so tense in here,” the shyer pony said. “I got nervous.”

Fire put his foreleg around her. “I know.”

Then Twilight came back. “Okay, I’m having Moondancer sleep in my bed then Applejack and Rarity can share the other one.”

She then looked at Fire. “Unfortunately, I don’t have a third bed but I managed create a hammock with a blanket and chair I transformed.”

Fire nodded. “That’ll be fine for tonight, thank you.”

She nodded back.

They all went to bed with Moondancer in Twilight’s bed, while Rarity and Applejack were in the guest bed, and Fire in his transformed hammock. He had a feeling that they should have separated the two arguing mares. And he soon proved right. In no time at all they were back at each other’s throats yet again.

“Keep your muddy hooves on your side of the bed!” Rarity told Applejack.

“My hooves ain't muddy,” Applejack told her.

“They were. There might still be a little on them,” Rarity pressed.

“There ain't. See?” Applejack showed her.

Rarity still saw something she didn’t like. “Eww!”

Fire put his pillow his over his ears in an attempt to mask the noise. They went on as they began fighting over the bedspread once Rarity pulled it over to her side. They continued for several minutes until finally Twilight snapped and sat up.

“Enough! It says right here that the number one thing you're supposed to do at a slumber party is have fun, and thanks to you two I can't check that off!” she said levitating the list once again.

“I've been tryin' my darndest to get along,” Applejack said.

“No, it is I who have been trying my best,” Rarity said.

“No, it was me,” Applejack objected.

“No, it was I!” Rarity stated.

“Me!”

“I!”

“I hope you're happy, both of you,” Twilight said angrily as Moodancer and Fire listened uncomfortably. “You've ruined my very first slumber party. The makeover, the s'mores, Truth or Dare, the pillow fight... I mean, is there anything else that could possibly go wrong? Maybe I should have just stuck with Moodancer who is probably feeling a bit left out!”

Moondancer blushed. It was true Applejack and Rarity being the center of attention… and just tension.

Lightning struck outside, proving something more could go wrong. It struck a treetop right outside, destroying the top wood.

“Sorry I asked,” Twilight said as she and Moodancer hugged each in fright under the covers.

They turned the lights on and looked outside, seeing the treetop swaying back and forth. It could fall any minute, they let out a shared gasp at this realization.

“Ya see?” Applejack said to Rarity. “That's why we needed to take down all those loose branches in town, not spiffy 'em up.”

Rarity looked remorseful. “But I-“

Applejack walked over to the window. “Outta my way, missy! Time's a-wastin'.”

She opened it and grabbed her lasso, spinning it over her head. However, both Fire and Rarity soon realized that if she were
to move the tree this way then-

“Wait! Stop! Don't!” Rarity tried to speak.

“No waitin'! No stoppin'! Doin'!” Applejack said as she flung her lasso. “And that, my friends, is what we call gettin' 'er done.”

She puled the lasso back in and-

“Aah!” Rarity cried.

The tree crashing down into the bedroom area. Now they were getting rain, cold wind, and blowing leaves inside as well a big tree in the middle of the room. Twilight and Moondancer both got pinned on the former’s bed. Applejack went down with the tree to main area of the library, swaying back and forth on her lasso.

Rarity was on the other side of the tree, using a book for cover from the rain that came in and trying to clean up the mess that had been caused by the tree. “I tried to tell you it would come crashing down in here.”

Applejack climbed back up to where she could see them. “Well, ya shoulda tried harder.” She then noticed the mess in the bedroom. Twilight managed to get herself and Moodancer out from under the tree on their bed. Her eyes spun and she shook her head.

“I'm mighty sorry, Twilight,” Applejack apologized.

“It's...” She paused and soon grew an angry face. “Well, it's not okay. There's a giant tree branch in the middle of my bedroom, and the book doesn't say anything about having a giant tree branch at your slumber party. Or at least I haven't found that entry yet. Ooh... ah!”

She began to frantically flip through the pages.

Fire sighed. “We don’t need a book to figure this out! Come on! We need to get rid of this tree branch!”

Applejack nodded. “You’re right, Fire!”

He growled as his anger reached a boiling point and he pointed at her. “Actually, this is your mess, so you can clean it up! I’ve had enough of you and Rarity being at each other’s throats today!”

He tried to fly out of the room but the pain still present in his wings caused him to go, “Ow!” and he fell to the floor, got up and retreated to a dryer area. Moondancer also got up and joined him, both of them frowned at the scene.

Rarity was busy trying to clean up the books and broken plant.

“What in tarnation are y'all doin' over there?” Appejack asked.

“Cleaning up this mess somepony made,” Rarity told her. “Who was that again? Oh, right, that's you.”

Applejack looked guilty then said. “We gotta do somethin'!

Twilight looked through the book. “Baking... BFFs... Brothers... There's nothing in here about branches.

“Twilight! You don’t need a book to figure that out!” Fire shouted.

“Then what am I supposed to do?” she asked.

“Simple! Help them get it out of the way!” Fire said. “I could maybe burn it away with a fire spell! But then… that would probably set the library on fire!”

“And it wouldn’t work since the branch is already wet!” Moondancer said. “Maybe we can transfigure it!”

Twilight grinned. “Ha maybe this isn’t the right book for this job then!”

She got out of her bed and went down with Moondancer to look for a book with a spell. Fire sighed again. Hopefully they could fix this. He was too frustrated to do anything but grumble right now.

Applejack tried to move the branch on her own to no avail. “Rarity, for pony's sake, stop sweatin' the small stuff and help me get rid of this thing!”

Rarity didn’t respond.

“I said hussle over here and help me!”

That didn’t work either. Finally, Applejack swallowed her pride and-

“Look, I'm sorry, all right?”

That got Rarity’s attention.

“What was that?” she asked turning around.

“I said I'm sorry!” Applejack said. “I shoulda listened to you when you noticed where this here branch would end up. Yer annoyin' attention to detail would'a saved us from this whole mess. But right now, ya need to stop bein' so dang fussy pickin' up all the little things and help me move the one big thing in here that actually matters! Please!”

Rarity looked at the wet floor. “Uh. Uh, but I'll get all icky.”

“Consarnit! What the... eh... you...” Applejack started to curse then caught herself. “I mean, yes, ickiness is often a side effect of hard work. But y'all need to get over it, on account I just can't fix this mess I made myself. I need your help.”

Rarity let out a frustrated “Oh,” then gave a determined expression. “Let's do this.”

She got closer, lit up her horn with magic and transfigured the branch into a set of pretty smaller branches that came in the shapes of animals and hearts.

“Hey, good one Rarity!” Fire said in approval.

She smiled at his praise then glared at Applejack who was about to kick the remainder of the branch attached to the window out. But seeing as that would likely damage the windowsill from Rarity’s look, she instead took it in her teeth and more gently got it down. This earned a smile from Rarity. Applejack then closed the window safely.

Rarity was happy for a moment then looked at herself. “U-ugh. Oh, I look awful.”

“Yeah, you do,” Fire said stepping forward. “But you also look like a mare that made getting that tree branch out of here much easier. I’m proud of you.”

She managed a smile. Then Applejack took some cucumbers bits and put them over Rarity’s eyes, making it look like she was in another mud mask, or mud bath.

“Better?” Applejack asked.

“Hmph, thanks,” Rarity said gratefully.

She reached out for Applejack blindly, the Earth Pony got closer to allow her to put her hoof on her head. They then hugged and Applejack motioned for Fire to join them. He smiled and put his hooves around them as well. It seemed they’d reconciled thanks to that tree falling in.

Soon Twilight and Moodancer returned.

“Oh, pretty!” Twilight said as she saw the leaf statues Rarity had transformed. “Where did these come from?”

“You use magic to turn the branch into smaller things?” Moondancer asked.

Rarity nodded. “Yes indeed. Now, I think we probably owe Twilight a make-up slumber party! And I need a bath!”

“I think we both do!” Applejack said. “No point sleeping when you’re all icky!”

They all laughed. They cleaned up and then the mares redid their slumber party while Fire went to sleep. He didn’t need a redo of the girly girl stuff they were gonna do with hopefully better results now that AJ and Rarity had gotten over their feud.

He awoke in the morning refreshed and seeing the girls had apparently been up all night.

“Morning mares,” he said. “Were you up all night?”

“Yes indeed. May have missed my beauty sleep but we had so much fun!” Rarity said.

“Kinda a shame you hit the hay,” Applejack said. “But I guess I can’t blame ya since most of what we did was kinda girly. You might have liked twenty questions and follow the leader though!”

“Maybe next time,” Fire said.

“We were thinking of having another one soon!” Moondancer said. “Maybe we can do more gender-neutral activities on that one. But I didn’t feel left out at least!”

“That’s good, Moodancer,” Fire said. “And I’m glad you all got along.”

She blushed at him. “So, you still on for the gala?”

He nodded. “Sure thing.”

“You’re taking her to the gala?” Applejack asked, surprised.

“Yeah,” Fire said.

“Well, I wish you both the most romantic evening,” Rarity said with a smile.

They smiled back. But as they looked away Rarity’s ears drooped. Confusion was in her, why did she feel this way?

Looking out the window, Fire saw the clouds were clearing.

“Now that looks like a glorious sunny day out there!” Fire said.

He made his way out and was surprised when Vine Archer appeared covered in twigs along with a Pegasus member of the Flame Guard.

“Prince Fire Sword there you are! We were looking all night for you!”

“You should have stayed at Warm Heart Tower!” Fire said cheerfully.

“Yeah, maybe we should have… you see… it was broken into.”

“What?” Fire asked.

Chapter 32: Stare Master

Fire walked toward Fluttershy's cottage as today neared its end. He arrived and saw Fluttershy standing just outside her home. She had a brush in her teeth and was running it through a familiar white cat's fur.

Fire approached slowly so as to not startle the shy Pegasus then spoke softly.

"Good morning Fluttershy," he spoke softly.

She looked up and smiled at him. "Oh, hello Fire."

"Grooming Rarity's cat I see," Fire noted.

"Yes," Fluttershy said as she returned to her task of doing so.

Fire smiled at the white cat and extended a hoof. "Hello Opalescence."

The cat hissed at him and he glared while lightning his horn.

"Oh you! Behave yourself!" he scolded.

That cat could be Ms. Hissy Prissy at times. But she shook at the sight of his lit up horn and bowed her head. He then stroked her white coat which was even brighter than her owners. To be color precise, Rarity was whitish silver, while her cat was pure white.

"So, what brings you here Fire?" Fluttershy asked.

"Oh, just wondering if you could groom Smokey soon," Fire told her.

"Of course, I'd be happy too!" Fluttershy said. "For a small fee that is. We may be friends but looking after animals is my job and I have to be paid."

Fire smiled. "No problem, Flutters. Still five bits?"

"Yes," she said.

Fire reached into his saddle bag and pulled out the bits. "There you are, five bits for my favorite Pegasus."

Fluttershy blushed. "Your-your favorite?"

Fire chuckled. "Yeah, just don't tell Rainbow Dash! I mean she's cool and awesome and all that but she can also be… well… egotistical and arrogant. You're just kind and sweet."

Fluttershy smiled. "Thank you, Fire."

She brushed Opalesence a few more times and then-

"Done! Now I just have to bring Opal home to Rarity."

"I can go with you," Fire said. "I can't let a mare walk… or fly around alone."

"Why not?" Fluttershy asked as she brought a fancy looking basket encrusted with jewels out that Opal climbed in. "Ponyville is perfectly safe."

"For the moment," Fire said looking off into the distance. "But who knows when danger will strike again?"

"You're probably right," Fluttershy admitted. "After all we did encounter that hydra a little while ago and then there was Rarity falling. I had a nightmare or two where both of you hit the ground and we lost you."

Her smile wavered at that.

"Its fine, Fluttershy. Both me and her are fine," Fire reminded her as he put a wing around her. "Rainbow Dash and my mother saved us."

She nodded. "Yes, thank Celestia for that."

With that they made their way to Rarity's shop. The sign in the window said open so they headed on in. There was no sign of Rarity downstairs, which meant she was probably upstairs in her workspace/bedroom.

Fluttershy walked up the stairs, carrying Opal in the basket with Fire and his two pets following. They opened the door to Rarity's bedroom, which rung with a doorbell strangely.

"Oh, what now?!" Rarity asked impatiently.

Fluttershy who was first to look into the doorway, quickly became apologetic. "Oh, sorry. I thought the "open" sign meant you were open, but I must have been mistaken."

Rarity gasped. "Fluttershy! Forgive me! I was so wrapped up in my work that I forgot you were bringing Opalescence back from her grooming!"

Fire now appeared in the doorway as well. He saw Sweetie Belle standing in the room with her older sister, though she didn't look like particularly happy.

"Hello Rarity, Sweetie Belle," he greeted.

"Oh, hello Fire!" Rarity said with a smile.

"Hi Fire!" Sweetie Belle greeted as well.

Fire smiled at them as Fluttershy replied to Rarity.

"No worries, Rarity. I've left her there in the basket."

Opalescence jumped out of the basket in front of Fluttershy, her fur shining as she shook herself and purred.

Rarity smiled at the sight. "Oh, she looks great! I just don't understand how you're able to do it! I can't get near her without getting a swipe from her claws."

Opal was currently nuzzling against Fluttershy before looking at Rarity who brought her head down to the cat's level. Opal hissed and swiped at her owner, demonstrating Rarity's point.

"Ahh!" Rarity exclaimed drawing back just enough to avoid a scratch before turning back to Fluttershy and looking worried. "Did you use... the Stare on her?"

Fluttershy shook her head. "Oh, no! I wouldn't! I couldn't! I-I don't really have any control over when that happens. I-It just happens. No, I'm just good with animals. It's my special gift, you know?"

She leaned down as Opal was strangely nuzzling her. Fire wasn't sure what to make of that cat at times. She could be so mean spirited, but she had nuzzled Rarity back when the unicorn had been doing well at the fashion show.

"The stare?" Fire asked.

"It's when I get really assertive," Fluttershy said. "I usually only use it on animals that giving trouble. But that's not too often."

Fire recalled that time when Fluttershy had broken out of her shell to stand up that dragon. Maybe the stare was like that?

"Well, you should have a picture of Opal as a cutie mark instead of those butterflies," Rarity told Fluttershy with a wink.

Sweetie Belle grinned. "Ooh, ooh, oh, oh, oh, oh!" she ran toward Opalescence and turned back to her sister. "Maybe I can be good with animals, too!"

Still looking to get her cutie mark no doubt. But as she turned back to Rarity and suggested that, Opal swiped at her mane, cutting a bit of it off with a devious smile. Boy her claws were razor sharp!

Sweetie Belle looked at the cat as she felt the action and retreated. "Or not."

Fluttershy and Rarity laughed. Fire frowned, he didn't particularly find that funny. He approached Sweetie Belle as the filly took a brush and fixed her mane back to its regularly style.

"You okay Sweetie?" he asked.

"Yeah, that cat just scares me," the filly said.

"She's a nasty little thing at times," Fire agreed. "But you can't let fear run your life. Sometimes you have to be brave."

Sweetie smiled. "Maybe you're right."

Rarity then spoke up. "I'm sorry I can't invite you two to stay and chat. I've bitten off a bit more than I can chew with this order."

Sweetie Belle looked at her sister confused as she stood with Fire near the sewing machine on the desk. "But you're not eating anything."

"No, Sweetie, it's an expression," Rarity said as she walked over to her. "It means that I've taken on more work than I can handle. I've got twenty of these special robes to make tonight! They're due in Trottingham tomorrow morning."

She showed them a sample of bright golden cloth that caused Fluttershy and Fire to gasp.

"See?" Rarity asked. "I've lined them in a special gold silk. It took so long to make, but I think it adds just the right touch, don't you?"

"These are lovely," Fluttershy agreed. "But twenty by tonight? How will you get it all done?"

Rarity hesitated. "Well, I, uh..."

Sweetie Belle then got enthusiastic again. "Oh, oh, oh! Maybe I could..."

She got a glare from Rarity that shut her down. "Just... just stand over here and watch."

"I'll manage."

Fluttershy approached the door slowly. "Well, maybe Fire and I should get out of your mane so you can work."

Before she reached the door though, two others came sprinting in, moving so fast they caused Fluttershy's mane and tail to move with the wind they made. A blur of yellow and orange told Fire it was Apple Bloom and Scootaloo.

"Hi Fluttershy! Hi Rarity! Hi Fire!" the two other fillies greeted.

Rarity's own mane and tail blew with the hyperactive filly wind as well.

"Hello, uh, girls..." she greeted nervously.

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo then approached Sweetie Belle. "Hey, Sweetie Belle!"

Sweetie Belle was looking miserable, but instantly perked up as she saw her two friends. "Scootaloo! Apple Bloom!"

"You ready for tonight?" Scootaloo asked.

"Yup! Cutie mark planning session is a go!" Sweetie Belle agreed with a salute.

"Tonight is the night we each try to find our own special talent," Apple Bloom declared.

"Even if it takes us all night!" Scootaloo agreed.

"I'm ready! You ready?" Apple Bloom asked the young Pegasus.

"Very ready!" Scootaloo said with a wink.

"Cutie Mark Crusader sleepover at Rarity's! Yay!" all three fillies yelled together, giving the three older ponies an earful.

"And... look what I made us!" Sweetie Belle said as she got out a red cape with a blue shield bearing a yellow pony silhouette on it.

"Oh, wow!" the other two fillies said impressed. "That's so cool!"

Fluttershy approached Sweetie Belle to get a closer look. "What does that patch on your cape mean?"

"The Cutie Mark Crusaders! Yay!" the young fillies shouted at the top of their lungs again.

"We're on a crusade, a mission!" Scootaloo said

"To find our cutie marks!" Apple Bloom added.

"Yup. And look. I lined them with this special gold silk," Sweetie Belle said as she showed the back of her cape, which was made from Rarity's special fabric.

Fire gritted his teeth as he saw Rarity's eyes widen as she too realized this.

"It took sooo long to make, but I think it adds just the right touch, don't you?" Sweetie asked, imitating her sister.

"Oooooh!" the other filles said.

Rarity sprinted to her sewing machine and found a bit of gold silk there with three small parts cut out that were the right size for the capes. "Sweetie Belle! What have you done? That was the last of the gold silk! Oh, now I'll have to make more! Oh, I hope I can make more. I'm gonna have to work all night!

She then looked at the girls sadly. "Which means... sorry, girls, I'm afraid the Crusaders sleepover is cancelled."

"What?!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed as her friends also looked sad.

"I just won't have any time to watch you if I want to get these robes delivered on time," Rarity told her.

"But-" Sweetie Belle tried to object.

"No buts this time," Rarity said. "I'm sorry, Sweetie Belle. It's just the way it has to be."

"Awwww." The three fillies looked down in dismay.

Fluttershy came forward. "I, uh, I suppose I could take them for the night."

The three fillies perked up at that.

"I couldn't ask you to do that," Rarity said.

"Oh, it's no problem at all," Fluttershy replied.

"Have you met my sister and her friends? A problem is all it would be," Rarity stated.

"These three are pretty hyperactive," Fire noted. "Maybe you could use an extra hoof? I'd be happy to stick with you for the night Fluttershy. If that's alright with you?"

"I don't think that will be necessary Fire," Fluttershy said kindly. "Did I have a problem with Opal? You've seen how well I handle small creatures!"

"I suppose that's true... and I do have a lot of work to do," Rarity said.

"Come on, it'll be fun."

"I assure you, they're quite a handful."

"These sweet little angels?" Fluttershy asked looking at the fillies who grinned.

Fire could have sworn he saw angel headpieces over them.

"Well... all right," Rarity finally relented. "But I think Fire's right. You should have an extra set of hooves to take care of them."

Fire smiled. "I'll be glad to help."

"Cutie Mark Crusader sleepover at Fluttershy's cottage with her and Fire! Yay!" the crusaders yelled again before taking off.

"So cute," Fluttershy said before seeing how fast they moved. "W-wait for me!"

Fire heard Rarity hum behind him as he made to follow. He turned and gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry Rarity. I'll take good care of your sister and her friends."

The fashion loving unicorn smiled. "I'm sure you will Prince Fire. Of course, I don't know if I would trust any other stallions to take care of my little sister. You never know what ruffian things might lurk beneath a seemingly smooth surface after all."

Fire nodded. "I'd sooner feed myself to Timber Wolves then do anything to hurt them."

"And I believe you," Rarity said with complete faith. "You've never given me any reason to think you would ever take advantage of them. Good luck, you'll need it."

Fire smirked. "You obviously will too if you want to make all that silk. Don't worry. With me and Fluttershy looking after them together they'll be in good hooves."

…

Fire listened to Fluttershy as she thought of plans while flying behind the girls as they made her way to her cottage.

"Oh, won't this be ever so fun? We can have a nice little tea party, and braid each others' tails, and sit quietly and color, and tell each other fairy tales, and-

She broke off as the girls ran ahead, running into Twilight and causing her to spin around. The lavender unicorn looked and saw the young ponies giggling as they played on top of a well.

She then turned to them. "Hello, Fire, Fluttershy."

"Hey, Twilight," Fire greeted.

"Where are you off to?" Fluttershy asked.

"I'm heading to the Everfree Forest to Zecora's to get some of my favorite tea," Twilight told them.

That caused Fire to worry a bit. The Everfree could be dangerous.

Fluttershy had a similar reaction. "Th-The Everfree Forest? Ah, you'll be careful, won't you?"

"Of course," Twilight affirmed. "How about you two? What are you doing with the girls?"

"Rarity has a big order to fill tonight, so I volunteered to take the girls over to my cottage for a sleepover. Fire wanted to help so he'll be staying as well."

"Well, sounds like everypony has their hooves full today. Good thing you have Fire to help, cause taking care of three little fillies by yourself would be a hassle."

"What? These sweet little angels? They'll be no problem at all," Fluttershy gestured to the crusaders who quickly returned to her side with the cutest grins.

Fire then suddenly remembered something. "I need to go and alert my guards that I'll be staying with you tonight."

By the time he finished that it was already getting dark. When he arrived at Fluttershy's cottage, his mother's sun had gone completely down and the three fillies were in the living room with a pile of broken wood on the floor.

"What happened here?" Fire asked.

"Oh, we tried to be Cutie Mark Crusader Creature Catchers," Apple Bloom said. "Pretended we were chasing one of those dangerous creatures through the Everfree Forest, and we messed up Fluttershy's table."

Fire sighed. "Girls, we've told you this before. You can't force a cutie mark to happen. I know you want your marks but you're trying too hard here."

"But how are we going to get our cutie marks if we don't try new things? Apple Bloom asked.

"And we messed up Fluttershy's table!" Sweetie Belle reminded them. "We should at least try to fix it!"

Apple Bloom then got an idea. "I know! We could be Cutie Mark Crusader carpenters!

They got hammers and tried to fix the table as Fire and Fluttershy watched. But the result was…

"Um ... that doesn't look like a table," Sweetie Belle said.

"We were making a table?" Scootaloo asked, seeming to have forgotten already.

"Somepony needs to put this thing out of its misery," Apple Bloom said.

"It's not that bad," Fire tried to encourage. "Kind of looks like it could be a… sign? If you paint it and put writing on it to mean something."

Scootaloo shook her head. "We are definitely not Cutie Mark Carpenters."

"Who wants a picture of a hammer on their flank anyway?" Sweetie asked.

Fluttershy moved the table that had been remade into a blank blue sign. "Well, now that we've gotten that out of the way, how about a game?

"A game?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Yeah, we can play a game!" Fire agreed. "Like Fluttershy and I could give you girls ponyback rides!"

"Oh well, I was going to see if we could play 'Shh'," Fluttershy said.

Fire frowned. "Shh?"

"A game to see who can be quiet the longest," Fluttershy said. "I'm the world Champion."

That sounded like a… dull game.

Fire turned back to the girls. "You ever had a ride through the sky?"

"I just had one with Rainbow Dash a little while ago when we went to Cloudsdale," Scootaloo said.

Sweetie Belle's eyes lit up. "Ooh! I haven't!"

She jumped on Fire's back. "We can get our cutie marks in ponyback riding!"

Fire chuckled. So passionate, yet cute. "I don't think there's a cutie mark for that Sweetie Belle."

"Aww," she lamented.

"But I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun with this," Fire said. "Now hang on tight!"

He went outside and flew around as Sweetie Belle let out whoops of thrill.

"Whoa! Woo! Ahahaha!" She whooped and giggled as Fire moved. "Go faster Fire! Faster!"

Fire cranked it up a notch and flew faster. He then did the same with Apple Bloom.

"This is so fun!" the young Earth Pony said as she felt the wind rush against her.

"Now now I'm sure Fire is already tired. We should probably go to bed," Fluttershy said as Fire landed.

"No way, we got more crusading to do!" Apple Bloom objected.

No rest for the young. "Alright girls you want to go on a crusade? How about we make this a real crusade?"

"What do you mean?" Sweetie Belle asked.

Fire led them back inside and lit up his horn before directing it at the table they'd turned into a sign. With a red light from his horn, he turned it into a set of four wooden swords. He levitated each of them over to himself and the three young ones.

"Let's see if you can get your cutie marks in rescuing!" Fire said.

"Rescuing?" Scootaloo asked. "Rescuing who?"

"Rescuing Fluttershy!" Fire explained.

"Rescue me? But from what?" Fluttershy asked

"From me! The evil warlord!" Fire said as he grabbed her around the waist and gave a false evil laugh. "Wahahaha!"

"Oh no!" Fluttershy said in fright. "My friend Fire has turned evil!"

Fire looked at her and knew he had to clarify. "Fluttershy, I'm just playing! They need to burn some energy before bed!"

"Oh, okay," Fluttershy said, relieved this was just a game then began to play along. "Oh no! Help! Help me! I need somepony to save me!"

"Hang on Princess Fluttershy! The Cutie Mark Crusaders are on their way!" Apple Bloom said as she and the others brandished their toy swords.

"Rescue Cutie Marks here we come!" Sweetie Belle said.

Fire lifted Fluttershy up off the ground with a soft flap of his wings as they advanced.

"Hey no fair!" Scootaloo said as she tried flapping her undergrown wings. "None of us can fly!"

"Villains like me never fight fair!" Fire told them with a pretty convincing villainous glare. "Now you better think of something fast or… you're never see the beautiful Princess Fluttershy again!"

He lifted his own little wooden sword, though it might as well have been a dagger for him. He directed the harmless blade to Fluttershy's throat.

"Ah!" Fluttershy squealed.

"She's about to be sacrificed to Tartarus!" Fire said.

"Unhoof her at once dark alicorn!" Apple Bloom said as she ran.

She climbed up one of the small ladders nearby and leapt at with her wooden sword her mouth. Fire could have easily dodged it but decided to let the filly have the win. Her harmless blade came down and hit Fire on the head. It hurt just a little.

"Oh! You got me! Ah I'm dying!" Fire said as he fell with Fluttershy still his hooves.

"Fire? Fire?" Fluttershy asked in concern.

"He's just playing dead!" Scootaloo reminded her.

Fluttershy sighed in relief. "Well, that was fun. Scary, but fun! Are you girls ready for bed yet?"

"No way! That was just the start!"

Scootaloo raised her sword at Fire as he got up. "I challenge you to a duel! For my sword cutie mark!"

They bashed their blades against each other. For a long time, Fire easily held them off. He blocked them and then rolled Sweetie Belle over on her back and with a hoof began to tickle her.

"Ha ha ha!" she giggled.

Then Scootaloo and Apple Bloom jumped on top of Fire and together they all pinned him to the ground. The four of them laughed. Then the girls looked at their flanks.

"Aww, no marks for rescue or sword fighting," Sweetie Belle said.

They all sighed and Fire got up.

"It was fun though, right?" he asked.

"Yeah," Apple Bloom agreed. "But we really want our cutie marks."

"It will happen someday," Fire assured them. "But now it's late. Definitely time for you three to go to bed."

He yawned as well. "And it's probably the same for me and Fluttershy too."

"But-"

"You've had your fun crusading tonight," Fire told them. "Time for bed."

He and Fluttershy took them up to her bed as it was the only one in the house. She and him would be sleeping on the couch tonight. That would be a first for him.

"How are we gonna find our special talent in our sleep?" Apple Bloom asked as they climbed into bed.

Fire sighed. Their dedication bordered on obsession, maybe even crossed the line.

Fluttershy blew out a candle in the room that somehow provided enough light to light the whole of her bedroom. "Maybe you'll have a lovely little dream about your special talent."

"But we're not even tired!" Scootaloo objected.

Fire was exhausted. Was he ever this hyperactive when he was young? He vaguely recalled one night where he had kept Cadance up till past midnight when she foalsat him. At least he hadn't been worried about getting his cutie mark, of course he'd been younger than them when he got it.

"How about I sing you a lullaby?" Fluttershy suggested.

The three of them nodded in agreement.

Fluttershy began to sing in a lovely voice.

Hush now, quiet now

It's time to lay your sleepy head

Hush now, quiet now

It's time to go to bed

The lullaby seemed to be having the desired effect on two of them. Scootaloo and Applebloom began to close their eyes.

But Sweetie Belle seemed to just be stirred up even more.

"I know this one!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, how wonderful! Why don't you sing it with me?" Fluttershy asked.

Sweetie Belle grinned eagerly and cleared throat her throat. Then she sang in a loud exciting voice that didn't suit the lullaby style.

Hush now! Quiet now!

It's time to lay your sleepy head!

Said hush now! Quiet now!

It's time to go to bed!

"Okay Sweetie, that was..." Fluttershy tried to speak but Sweetie Belle continued singing loudly.

Driftin' off to sleep!

The exciting day behind you!

Driftin' (driftin') off to sleep!

Let the joy of dream land find you!

"Thank you, Sweetie, um..." Fluttershy continued to attempt to talk to the young filly to no avail.

Hush now! Quiet now!

Lay your sleepy head!

Said hush now! Quiet now!

It's time to go to bed!

Ow!

Her voice carried out the open window, its rhythm had even been enough to knock down some of the things in Fluttershy's room like her clock. Then outside Fire heard chicken sounds.

Scootaloo was drawn to the sound as well. "What is that?"

Fire spotted them making a break for the stairs.

"Girls come back here!" he galloped after them.

Boy they were fast. Fire was already tired from all this running around and playing with them.

Fluttershy, meanwhile was busy putting the things that had been knocked over by Sweetie's singing. She soon noticed they were gone and looked out the window.

"Girls!" She called.

The three fillies were all out front with Fire just getting through the doorway with heavy pants.

"Fluttershy, your chickens are on the loose!" Apple Bloom told her looking up.

"I wonder what could have caused that," Sweetie said innocently, surprised or unaware she was the reason.

"Don't worry, Fluttershy, the Cutie Mark Crusaders will handle this!" Scootaloo looked up at the Pegasus as she looked down at them through the window.

"Cutie Mark Crusader chicken herders! Yay!" Sweetie said enthusiastically.

"No, I don't think that's a— ah, come back! Please!"

Fluttershy's words fell on deaf ears as the girls tried to round up the chickens. But they weren't having much luck, simply chasing them around. Fluttershy flew in and one landed on her head and she finally had enough.

"Girls!"

That caused both the chickens and fillies to freeze.

Fluttershy then gestured the chickens to the coop nearby. "Come on, in you go."

They didn't obey right away, so Fluttershy stared at them fiercely. That was a new one, Fire hadn't seen her do that before, it was intimidating. Slowly the chickens made their way in as Fluttershy continued to stare after them.

"There's some good chickens," she said with a pleasant smile before turning to her three young guests. Okay, you three. Isn't it about time you got into bed?"

"But-" they all spoke together.

"No more buts girls!" Fire told them. "You need your rest. Your cutie marks will come when they're supposed to. You're not gonna do help yourselves with all this fuss."

Fluttershy nodded. "Fire's right."

They brought the girls back inside and Fire rested on the couch while she led them upstairs. Soon she was back down with him.

"I just tucked them in," she told Fire as she took one side of the green couch while he was on the other.

"Good, those fillies are a hoofull!" he exclaimed.

"Yes, and I'm very grateful for your assistance," Fluttershy said before blushing as she noticed the minimal space between them on the couch. "Um… I think we actually better come up with a better accommodation for you. This couch isn't exactly made to have two ponies sleeping on it unless they're… well… a couple."

She blushed. Fire did as well.

"You're a great mare Fluttershy," he told her. "Any stallion would be lucky to be with you."

"Thank you," Fluttershy said with her own blush. "So, um… how is your love life going?"

"Honestly not that great," Fire admitted. "You know I asked Moondancer to the Grand Galloping Gala and it's coming up. Every day it gets closer. But, I just don't know if I feel… attracted to her. And…"

"You like Rarity," Fluttershy guessed.

"Yeah," Fire admitted. "She's just so beautiful! I mean, I know there's more important things then physical beauty but that's one of the main motivators for attraction isn't it?"

"Yes," Fluttershy agreed. "She is also very generous, sophisticated, and ambitious."

Fire nodded. "She is. But Moondancer is a great mare too. She's smart, hardworking, and kind. For a long time she was shy, like you. But ever since the Nightmare Moon thing she's been coming out of her shell more and more, coming to Ponyville to see me and Twilight."

Fluttershy looked at him with uncertain eyes. "Well, I'm… I'm sure it will all work out between you. She isn't bad looking at all! Maybe a little fashion touch from Rarity and you could be over the moon for her!"

"Maybe," Fire said. "I'm hoping that will be the case at least."

Fluttershy nodded. "Well, we should probably get you something else to sleep on, or I should lay on the floor."

"A gentlecolt would not let a mare go through that for him," Fire insisted.

"Well, I'm sure I can come up with something," Fluttershy said as she went for her closet. "Ah! Here it is! My sleeping bag!"

She drew out a green sleeping bag with flowers on it which she spread across the floor.

Fire smiled. "I've never gone camping before."

"I sometimes do it just outside my cottage," Fluttershy admitted. "But I've never done it in an actual forest. Too scary for me."

Fire sniggered. "I'd probably love to do that."

"Yes, you being such a daring pony like Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy said before yawning. "Well, I'm tired."

"No surprise after dealing with those three," Fire looked up at the stairs to where the younger ponies were sleeping.

Fluttershy sighed. "It really wasn't that hard ... I mean, all I needed to do was just show them who's in charge. Nothing's gonna get past Fluttershy! Good with animals, good with kids. Good night, Fire."

"Night Fluttershy."

They closed their eyes and prepared to drift off into the world of dreams. For a while there was silence.

"Mmm, peace and quiet," Fluttershy muttered before gasping. "Too quiet."

She was right. They should have heard faint echoes of the fillies speaking or snoring. Fire got up from the couch and made his way back up the stairs to the bed.

"They're gone!" he exclaimed.

"Oh no!"

They looked around the house, and soon went outside when they didn't find the girls there.

"Girls?" Fluttershy as they went out.

No sign of the fillies out here either, at least at first glance.

"Girls?" Fluttershy asked as she looked in the chicken coop. But then she noticed something.

"Elizabeak! She's missing!"

Fire looked in the coop and saw there was a vacant spot inside.

"Girls?!" Fluttershy exclaimed more frantically before gasping as she spotted chicken tracks along with filly hoofprints. "Oh, no! They must have gone looking for my missing chicken! Which means... they must have gone into...

She looked after the two different sets of tracks then gasped and gulped. "The Everfree Forest!"

"Don't worry Fluttershy," Fire said as he lit up his horn and offered his hoof. "We'll get them back safe and sound."

Fluttershy smiled and took his hoof. "Thank you, Fire. I know I can count on you to keep me safe. You even the odds after all. Just please try not to get injured like you did with the hydra?"

"I'll try," Fire said.

No way to be sure he could succeed. But all he could do was try.

They headed into the forest.

"Girls," Fluttershy called softly.

Fire frowned. "I think this definitely qualifies as a time where shouting is needed. Apple Bloom! Sweetie Belle! Scootaloo!"

He yelled their names and it echoed through the forest.

They continued, Fluttershy still gripping Fire's hoof, grateful for it and the light on his horn that illuminated their surroundings. and then there was a snapping sound beneath them.

"Ahh! What was that?" Fluttershy exclaimed taking a step back.

Fire kept a grip on her hoof, preventing her from backing into a tree behind her. "It's okay, Fluttershy. You just stepped on a branch."

He looked down at it, it was visible thanks to the red light of his horn.

"Oh," she giggled. "Silly me."

"We should probably hurry though," Fire told her. "Wouldn't want something else to find those fillies before we do. Especially if its not very friendly."

"You're right! They might run into that hydra or some other monster," Fluttershy said before looking fearfully into the dark forest ahead of them.

"Come on!" Fire said as he led her by the hoof on a low flight.

They moved at a good speed. But as they continued along the path they saw a silhouette of a pony up ahead. It wasn't one of the girls, but a more grown pony and it looked like…

"Twilight?" Fire asked.

She didn't respond. And as they got closer and Fire's horn light shined on her they both gasped. It was a statue of Twilight Sparkle, her face frozen in horror.

"Twilight! Oh! What's happened to you?" Fluttershy asked as she tapped the statue with a hoof, causing it to lose its balance and fall over. "Oh, no! If you've been turned to stone, it must mean- oh!"

Fire knew of at least one creature that had the ability to turn ponies or anything else into stone. Of course, there were pony spells for that but this was monster territory. It had to be a…

"Cockatrice!" he guessed aloud.

"Yes! Oh no, the girls!" Fluttershy said before taking suddenly letting go of Fire and taking off.

She then quickly remembered the petrified Twilight. "Don't move. We'll be back for you. Girls!"

Fluttershy took off again.

"Hey wait up!" Fire called.

She was flying at near Rainbow Dash level speed! Fire could just barely keep up.

They got up high and called as they flew. "Girls? Girls?"

"Girls!" Fire called as well.

"Fluttershy? Fire Sword?" Sweetie Belle called up at them.

The two-winged ponies landed in front of the young ones.

"Girls! Thank goodness we found you!" Fluttershy said.

"We are going back now!" Fire said as he took all three of them in his magic to make sure they couldn't get away. "This forest is not safe!"

"Hey! Put us down!" Apple Bloom said as she squirmed in Fire's red aura.

"Yeah, we haven't found the chicken yet!" Sweetie Belle said.

"There's no time for that," Fluttershy told them. "There's a cockatrice on the loose!"

"A cocka-what now?" Apple Bloom asked.

"A cockatrice!" Fluttershy said. "It's a frightening creature with the head of a chicken and the body of a snake."

"The head of a chicken and the body of a snake? That doesn't sound scary, that sounds silly!" Scootaloo said.

Apple Bloom agreed as she said. "Why, if I ever saw one of them cockathingies face-to-face, I'd laugh at how silly it was."

"No! Never look one in the eye!" Fluttershy said.

"They won't be able to," Fire said with a triumphant grin. "I've got them all trapped."

"Good," Fluttershy said in relief. "Give me one of them and we'll head back."

Fire passed her Scootaloo while putting Sweetie Belle on his back and taking Apple Bloom in his hooves. The two teenage ponies were about to head back to Fluttershy's cottage when they heard a clucking sound nearby. Then a chicken appeared out of the bushes.

"The chicken!" Sweetie Belle said as she jumped off Fire's back.

Scootaloo did the same with Fluttershy and Apple Boom managed to squirm herself free. They ran toward the chicken. But then another appeared out of the bushes next to the first one.

"Two chickens?" Scootaloo wondered aloud.

"I thought only one escaped!" Apple Bloom said.

"Grab them both!" Sweetie Belle told them.

They lunged for the two. But the second chicken rose up out of the bushes, showing its long snake like body that also came with scaled wings. The crusaders froze in fear, silently taking back their earlier comment about such a combination being silly.

The cockatrice roared and leapt out in front of the escaped chicken who ran around in fright. The monster looked into the chicken's eyes and turned it to stone. It fell into the ground headfirst with a thud.

The crusaders screamed and began running back along the path. The cockatrice chased after them, going past the two older ponies.

"Fluttershy lead them back!" Fire ordered. "I'll hold that thing off!"

"Okay," Fluttershy nodded. "Just don't look it in the eye! Or kill it! If you kill it we might never get Twilight or Elizabeak back!"

"Noted!" Fire said nervously.

He flew up behind the cockatrice as it chased the girls who tripped. Fire reached the cockatrice just in time and bit its tail before swinging it against a tree. It gave a pained squawk and opened its eyes.

Fire closed his own eyes. He heard the ugly thing emitting its sounds, alternating between chicken clucks and monster growls, he also heard the girls screaming up ahead. This was a bit of a predicament. How was he going to fight something he couldn't look at?

"Unless you want to be roast cockatrice tonight, you turn my friend and that chicken back to normal!" Fire told the foe nearby that he could not see through the darkness of his closed eyes.

He heard it squawk and then felt a sharp peck at his foreleg.

"Ow!"

He opened his eyes in response to the pain and looked into the cockatrice's eyes. It glared at him as he gritted his teeth in fear and felt his body harden.

…

Fluttershy saw Fire get turned to stone as she tried to calm the girls down.

"Oh no!" she exclaimed as she turned to the cockatrice. The snake bodied chicken turned to her as well and she covered her eyes. "Girls! Behind me, now!"

They finally started listening to her and did as she said. She heard the cockatrice roaring in front of her. She glanced behind her at Fire, and then back at Fire who stood frozen. He'd tried so bravely to protect them, but now it was her turn.

From somewhere deep down, a burst of courage came into the shy mare and she advanced.

"You!" she yelled at the cockatrice as she opened her eyes and stared at him. "Just who do you think you are, going around turning others into stone?"

The cockatrice looked at her in surprise but glared at her.

Fluttershy slowly began to turn to stone, it wasn't working as fast as it had on Elizabeak or Fire it seemed.

"You should be ashamed of yourself," Fluttershy went on she continued to stare at the monster. "I have a mind to find your mother and tell her what you've been up to, young man."

The cockatrice began to lose his will at the words and the stare in her eyes which scared him. He lost his flight and fell to the ground, his petrifying stare still active as half of Fluttershy's body was now turned to stone. But it was weakening with every second.

"Now you go over there, and turn Elizabeak and my friend Twilight back to normal, and don't ever let me catch you doing this again," Fluttershy said getting in the monster's face.

He lost his will to fight and the petrification spreading over Fluttershy's body stopped, then shattered, leaving bits of cement like debris around the Pegasus.

"Do you understand me?" Fluttershy asked.

The cockatrice nodded fearfully and ran ahead to release Twilight while Fluttershy checked on the young ones.

…

Fire felt drowsy as he came to.

"Uh!" he shook his head. "What happened. Uh must have been frozen by that thing," he said.

"Fire! You're alright!" Fluttershy said as she ran over and hugged him.

Twilight was confused about the whole thing as she followed. "Somepony wanna fill me in?"

"Probably in the morning, we've all been up supper late," Fluttershy said.

They headed back home, or at least two of them did. Fire, Fluttershy and the young ponies crashed in her cottage while Twilight went back to the Golden Oaks library. Morning came and Twilight knocked on the door. Fluttershy sat with her and Fire at a table outside and explained the whole story. The young ponies laughed and frolicked near the chicken coop.

"And that's when it brought you back from stone."

Twilight was writing a scroll to Celestia as she heard this. "This is gonna make quite a letter to the princess. I was wrong about you. You certainly do know how to handle those girls.

"Well, I had some help with Fire," Fluttershy admitted. "And a good thing as well. I assumed that I'd be just as good with kids as I am with animals. Boy, was I wrong. I really learned the hard way not to bite off more than I could chew."

"You and Rarity both," Twilight agreed.

Speak of the pony, there was Rarity looking tired.

"Good morning, Rarity," Twilight greeted.

"Did you finish all those capes?" Fluttershy asked.

Rarity sighed in relief. "Just delivered them. I have to admit, if you two hadn't come along, I might not have. Thanks again."

"Not a problem Rarity," Fire said as he took a sip of tea.

"Won't you stay for some tea?" Fluttershy asked.

Rarity smiled at the offer. "I really must get back to the shop and clean up. Girls! Get your

things. Time to go. Girls!"

She looked at the younger ponies who continued to run and laugh. Rarity continued to try to get them to listen to no avail.

Fluttershy took the initiative and stood beside Rarity. "Allow me."

She cleared her throat then addressed them softly. "Girls?"

They all heard her and despite the low volume assembled in front of her.

"Yes, Fluttershy?" Apple Bloom asked cooperatively.

"You called?" Scootaloo noted.

"Go and get your things. Rarity is here to see you home," Fluttershy told them.

"Of course, Fluttershy, right away!" Sweetie Belle obliged and all three of them ran to do as they were told.

Rarity stammered at what she just saw. "Ah, huh, ah, how did you... how did you do that?"

Fluttershy looked back at Twilight and Fire, winking at them. "I guess I'm just as good with kids as I am with animals."

"With a little practice," Fire admitted.

"Thank you, Fluttershy! Bye! Thank you, Stare Master!" All the girls said as they ran ahead to go home.

"Ah, uh, speaking of which, I could use your help with Opal," Rarity said.

"Of course. How about later today?" Fluttershy asked.

They suddenly heard a yowl and Rarity turned to reveal her was clinging to her by the claws. Had she followed Rarity and just clung to her or had she been there the whole time?

"How about now?" Rarity asked before shivering.

Fluttershy and Twilight laughed. That cat was a hooful.

Author's Note

Another chapter down. Bit less then the last couple ones but that's fine with me. Found more I could take out this time I guess. Up next, the show stoppers in the canon episodes. But I'm not really sure what to do with Fire there. Maybe I should skip that one and go to a Dog and Pony Show? Then Green Isn't Your Color, which in this au will set up the stage for another set of new villains original to this work. Let me know your thoughts please on Show Stoppers and whether you think I can incorporate it somehow.

Chapter 35: Green Isn't Your Color

Fire looked at his mail one morning and got some pleasing results.

Dear Prince Fire Sword,

Your information proved to be quite useful. The mare trafficking operation in Manehattan has been effectively disbanded.

Fire smirked. After the Diamond Dogs incident a little while ago, his guards had gone through the rest of the tunnels and eventually stumbled on some papers that involved a contact of Brutus' that dealt with the trade of mares for gems in Manehattan. Fire had written to the local police and given this information.

He continued reading the letter.

Over twenty mares were freed from being abused in the most heinous ways. All of the members there we could find are rounded up and being sent to our local prison. Though a few managed to evade capture and escape, including the Pegasus leader Stalpride Soar. We don't know where he might have gone but we hope to catch him and any working with him soon.

Our thanks and those of the mares we rescued,

Manehattan Police Department

Well, it was good news. Mostly. Unfortunately, a few mare traffickers were still at large and might come for other mares in time. Fire shivered in disgust at the thought of mares being sold like property and violated. In times before Celestia's rule, it was said that stallions ruled, but after a great battle it was decided mares would more often assume the leadership roles since they were less violent. Fire sometimes wondered if that had been the right decision. Stallions were stronger, they made up the vast majority of the Royal Guard as there were very few mares among those ranks. But Fire's mother had ruled wisely for a thousand years of peace, so it seemed a mare rulership had not failed in the slightest.

Fire sighed in relief, glad that those mares were safe and hoping fewer would suffer at the hooves of those monstrous stallions. He looked at Swift Cuisine.

"Have a feast prepared for tonight," he told the Pegasus cook before turning to Vine Archer. "And make certain all guards are present, they did a good job finding those papers after we got Rarity and Twinkleshine out. The operation in Manehattan has been dealt a major blow."

"Yes, my prince!" Vine Archer saluted. "Thank you, my prince!"

Fire then smiled. "You know, I think we should summon them now! They've earned a day of celebration for their service, I think. Let's all go to the spa."

Vine Archer smiled. He gathered the other five guards and the seven of them headed out to the Ponyville Spa. As they walked over, Fire was greeted by a welcome sight. Rarity walking down the street toward the spa as well. She wore a blue and green peacock feathered hat today.

"Well, good afternoon, Rarity," Fire greeted.

"Oh um…Prince Fire!" Rarity exclaimed. "I wasn't expecting to see you and all your guards! Are you putting on some sort of march?"

"No," Fire shook his head. "We just decided to the spa to celebrate."

"Well, what a coincidence I was just headed there myself. Flutterhsy and I meet here every week this time."

"Oh, I didn't know," Fire answered honestly.

"Well, seems I'll have another friend to talk to!" Rarity said happily. "You said you were celebrating?"

Fire nodded and was about to tell her-

"Don't tell me!" she put up a hoof. "Let us share our news when we're all nice and relaxed.

"Very well," Fire agreed.

He led her and his guards the rest of the way toward the spa then used his red magic to open the door then stepped aside.

"Ladies first!" he said gesturing to the opening.

"What a gentlecolt," Rarity said kindly as she stepped in.

Fire followed and they both found Fluttershy sitting in the lobby reading a magazine.

"So sorry, Fluttershy. I hate being late for our weekly get-together," Rarity said as she levitated her headdress off. "But Fire and his guards will be joining as well."

"Oh, how nice," Fluttershy replied.

Rarity then turned to the spa ponies. "The usual!

The spa ponies quickly got 'the usual' for Rarity up and running. Rarity was a regular customer so they knew her well. Hot water was poured over stones, all the ponies were dressed in robes provided by the spa. Rarity also wrapped her mane in a towel.

"So, Fire what happened to make you wish to celebrate?" Rarity asked.

"Well, the police in Manehattan put a stop to that big Mare Trafficking Operation my guards uncovered," Fire told them.

"Oh, that is wonderful," Fluttershy said. "The less cruelty there is in the world, the more kindness can shine!"

"Good news indeed! Those kinds of ruffians are the worst!" Rarity agreed. "It's actually even better than my good news!"

"And what is that?" Fire asked.

"Well, I was on my way here, wearing my latest hat creation," Rarity said, referring to the hat she'd had on when they crossed paths. "When who should stop me on the street but Photo Finish!?"

"Photo Finish?" Fluttershy repeated.

The steam poured again.

"Five-minute silence for relaxation!" Rarity declared as she let herself relax.

They all soon received mud masks of various sizes. Rarity's covered her entire face while Fluttershy's was minimal and only on her cheeks. Fire meanwhile got a moderate amount on his face that was just right he felt. The other stallions passed, but Fire knew that mud masks had good benefits for skin. He could do it now and then.

Rarity then told them about Photo Finish. "She is the most famous fashion photographer in all of Equestria."

The spa ponies put cucumbers over her eyes. "Anywho, she saw my hat and said it was absolutely marvelous!"

"What a lovely compliment," Fluttershy said.

"She was so impressed that she wants to take some pictures of my shop featuring some of my clothes!" Rarity exclaimed as one of the spa ponies took a filing instrument to her horn to smooth it out.

Fire raised his hoof at the other spa pony who was just politely turned down by Fluttershy. She made her way over and smoothed out his hooves instead.

"That's wonderful," Fluttershy replied.

"Yeah."

After their smoothing treatments, they got massages, Rarity and Fire receiving a heavy pounding massage while Fluttershy a calm light one. Half of Fire's guards had to wait as there were only so many workers in the spa at a time.

"Do you know what this could mean for my fashion career?" Rarity asked with a vibrating voice as she was massaged.

"It will be really good that's what," Fire said.

"Exactly," Rarity agreed.

"Oh, Rarity, I'm so happy for you," Fluttershy said.

Rarity was then wrapped in seaweed wrap before entering a literal mud bath. "But I'm going to need somepony fabulous to model for me. Somepony with beauty. Somepony with grace. Somepony... like you?"

Fluttershy stammered at that. She took some time to think about and didn't reply until she cleaned off the mud.

"Oh, goodness. I don't know."

"Oh, this is such a huge opportunity. And it would mean so much to me!" Rarity said.

"Rarity-" Fire tried to say.

Fluttershy, meanwhile, tried to get out of it. "I'm flattered, really."

"Nopony is going to have your elegance and poise."

Fluttershy continued to try and object. "But...

"Rarity you have-

"Nopony!" Rarity insisted.

Fluttershy looked down. "There has to be somepony more quali-"

"Please!" Rarity begged.

"Somepony more into fashion."

"Please!"

"Somepony more comfortable in the spotlight."

Rarity looked desperate now and drew out the big guns, or big begs. "Please, please, pleeease!"

Fluttershy finally relented. "Oh, if it's that important to you, of course I'll do it."

Rarity was relieved. "Oh, thank you thank you thank you thank you! You are the best friend a pony could ever have!"

Fire frowned. "You know Rarity, you have beauty, grace, and poise. I'm sure you could do it yourself."

Rarity smiled at him. "Thank you, Prince Fire. But Fluttershy just has more of it!"

Fluttershy sighed in relief when they left the spa. "What a wonderful way to spend an afternoon."

"Isn't it?" Rarity asked cheerfully. "Though I was so afraid you wouldn't agree to model for me that I felt completely frazzled. I think I feel a pimple coming on. Oh! Only one solution!"

She went back to the spa.

"She was just there," Fire said.

"Rarity can be a bit dramatic at times," Fluttershy said.

Fire nodded. "You sure you're okay with modeling? I mean, I know you're shy and don't really want to be in the spotlight."

"I'll be okay," Fluttershy said. "It's just once. I can do that for a friend."

Fire smiled. "I'm sure you can."

He returned to Warm Heart Tower where he and his guards enjoyed a fine dinner.

Fire raised his golden goblet. "To the mares you all helped save when you searched the Diamond Dog's tunnels! To happiness and friendship in Equestria! To all of you! All for one!"

"And one for all!" the guards finished.

They drank their cups.

"I'm glad we finally got to do something, even if we missed the fight with the Diamond Dogs," Silver Javelin said.

"But the police in Manehattan will get the real glory," Vine Archer said.

"Doesn't matter," Fire said. "We helped save those mares in our way as well. It was a group effort."

…

The next day he joined Rarity, Twilight, Pinkie and Spike at Rarity's boutique to help with the preparations for Photo Finish. Fluttershy was being put into a black and pink dress with a ribbon covered in feathers on her head.

"Hm..." Rarity hummed as she looked at the Pegasus standing on the table. "She's going to want to see attitude and pizzazz."

"A-a-attitude and, um... pizzazz," Fluttershy repeated.

"More light!" Rarity demanded. "It has to catch the sequins just so or the whole outfit is just a disaster."

Twilight who was in charge of the light for the spotlight, shined more on Fluttershy with a glow of her horn.

"Oh, and the headdress needs more feathers. Pinkie Pie! More feathers!"

Pinkie Pie brought over a basket full of pink feathers which Rarity added.

"And sequins! More sequins!" Rarity demanded.

Spike skipped over with another basket full of sequins. Rarity added that to Fluttershy then demanded more ribbon. For a moment she changed her mind but then went back to the ribbon.

The unicorn examined her work as Fluttershy stood on the center table. Rarity narrowed her eyes as she looked at the back of Fluttershy's dress. "Oh, this hem is completely off. Pincushion!"

Spike ran off and returned a moment later using himself as a pin cushion. He looked like he was in pain, but Rarity didn't seem to see it as she took the pins.

At least she soon thanked them. "Thank you all for helping me. I'm sorry to be so short with you, but I'm... I'm just so nervous."

Spike crawled backwards toward the other three ponies. He didn't take his eyes off Rarity but the pin cushions were still in his back.

Twilight looked at him in concern. "Oh, doesn't that hurt?"

Spike got up and smiled. "Thick scales. Can't feel a thing."

He continued to look at Rarity with a lovestruck set of eyes. "And even if I could, there is no pain that would keep me from assisting the most beautiful creature in the world."

Twilight groaned while Fire rolled his eyes. That dragon was so lovesick. Too bad she'd never date him, or Fire for that matter.

Spike then turned to them. "I'm gonna tell you three a secret. Well, you already know, Fire. But you have to promise not to tell anyone."

"Uh okay."

"I promise," Twilight grinned.

Pinkie Pie made her own version of a promise. "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.

Spike waited till they were all super close and whispered, "I have a crush on Rarity!"

Pinkie Pie gasped while Fire and Twilight just frowned in annoyance.

"We won't say a word!" Pinkie promised on their behalf after covering her mouth to prevent herself from saying anything.

"Give me a break," Twilight grumbled. "Everypony already knows how you-

Pinkie got up in her face. "Twilight! You promised Spike you wouldn't say anything. He trusts you. And losing a friend's trust is the fastest way to lose a friend forever!"

She pointed at Spike who looked at them with puppy dog eyes.

"But-" Twilight tried to object.

"Forever!" Pinkie repeated with a glare.

Fire stood between Twilight and Pinkie. "Well, I didn't promise anything. So, I'm gonna say this promise is pointless Spike! Everypony already knows it!"

"Well, at least don't tell Rarity!" Spike begged.

"I think I can manage that," Fire relented.

Twilight could agree. "My lips are sealed. Though I'm pretty sure Rarity is gonna pick up on your feelings."

She gestured to a shirt Spike was suddenly wearing out of the blue, it was white with a red heart that featured Rarity in the center. Before any of them could talk further, the bell rung as somepony came in.

The new arrival was a blue pony with a silver mane wearing a black and white dress and glasses over her eyes. "I, Photo Finish... have arrived."

She spoke in a heavy accent while doing poses and flicking her tail.

Rarity approached the photographer pony. "Let me just say, what an honor!"

Photo Finish merely walked past her and looked at Fluttershy on the top table. But then she noticed Fire.

"Well, the Prince of Equestria himself!" Photo finished greeted. "This could work even better."

"We begin... now!"

One of her attending ponies put her suitcase in front of her and Photo pressed a button on it to reveal it was actually her large camera which sprang to life for her to take pictures.

Rarity rushed over to Fluttershy who looked nervous. "Attitude and pizzazz!" she directed.

Photo took a photo, which was so bright it forced Fluttershy to close her eyes. She took more pictures and Fluttershy made various nervous expressions with each click of the camera.

The photographer looked quite pleased. "Yes! Show Photo Finish something!"

Fluttershy stood up on her hind legs in an elegant pose.

"No!"

Fluttershy stood down in a shy pose and Photo Finish gave a prolonged, "Yeees."

Fluttershy tried to follow Rarity's poses which she gave from beside Photo. They looked elegant, but Photo Finish merely said no for every pose Fluttershy copied and receded to a shy pose which was instantly approved.

"Enough!" Photo put a hoof up and closed her camera which was quickly picked up by her attendant.

As Photo walked past them, Twilight muttered. "She hardly took any pictures."

"I'm so sorry. I tried my best," Fluttershy apologized as Rarity took off her headdress.

"Well, the headdress is too big for you and cape had too much sparkle," Rarity voiced. "I can't believe I ever thought I could impress her."

Photo Finish suddenly appeared back in front of them in a flash. "It seems that I, Photo Finish, have found the next fashion star here in Ponyville!"

Rarity's eyes lit up. "Really?"

"Yes. Really. And I, Photo Finish, am going to help her to shine all over Eqvestria," the photographer spread a hoof as she spoke.

Rarity was pleased to hear that.

"Tomorrow, a photo shoot in ze park," Photo Finish said with a dramatic pause before finishing with, "I go!"

And she was out of there as quickly as she came back, her attendants following.

Rarity watched her go through the open door of her shop. "Did you hear that? I am going to "shine all over Equestria".

Fluttershy was relieved. "Oh, Rarity. I was so worried I'd ruined everything."

"Oh, never. I knew you'd be perfect," Rarity assured as she giggled excitedly.

"Uh… Rarity?" Fire said.

"Yes Fire?" Rarity asked.

"You realize that-

"This is the best of my life? Yes!" Rarity said while bouncing up and down like Pinkie.

She didn't notice she was bouncing on Spike's tail, causing him to alternate between pained expressions and happy eyes for Rarity.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I must prepare!"

She shoved Fire, Twilight, Pinkie and Spike out. They landed in a pile outside the shop.

Fire grunted from the bottom of the pile. "I was gonna say if Fluttershy is the one modeling then she'll be the one picked to shine across all of Equestria."

"Oh, don't kid yourself, Fire!" Spike dismissed. "Rarity is twice as pretty as Fluttershy! Photo Finish will pick her no problem."

Fire rolled his eyes at the dragon's obliviousness.

…

The next morning, Fire went out on his patrol and saw Rarity and Fluttershy in the park. Rarity had Fluttershy in a white outfit lined with sapphires. Photo Finish then arrived, carried by two mopey looking Pegasi on a carrier like royalty.

She took one look at Fluttershy's outfit and said, "Oh, no no no no no no no. The model should be in something simple!"

She turned around and walked towards the trees which she looked at as she said. "Something inspired by... the nature!"

Rarity nodded. "That's just what I was thinking. Um... give me a moment and I'll, uh, put a little something together."

"Yes... that will not be necessary," Photo Finish said.

"But... but... how are you going to help me "shine across Equestria" if I don't design something new for these pictures?" Rarity asked in dismay.

Photo Finish looked at her. "I am not going to help you shine across Equestria."

She then pointed to Fluttershy. "I am going to help her shine. She is my star."

The attendants pushed Fluttershy toward Photo Finish as the Pegasus was frozen in shock.

Photo then turned toward Fire. "Your highness, it would very much help her to rise if you would be so kind as to put on a show of her being your marefriend!"

Fire gritted his teeth. "Me?"

"Yes you! You are royalty! Having a prince pose as her coltfriend would boost her popularity even more I daresay!"

"I uh-"Fire stammered.

Photo didn't wait for an answer as she turned to Rarity. "You! Go!"

Rarity gasped as she heard this.

Fire walked over. "I tried to tell you. If Fluttershy was the one modeling Photo Finish would be helping her shine not you."

"Oh, how could I have been so short sighted?" Rarity lamented. "I should have volunteered myself. But Fluttershy just has so much grace and beauty."

"So do you!" Fire reminded her.

"Yet whenever I tried to give Fluttershy pointers it was rejected," Rarity reminded him.

"Because those don't suit her," Fire told her. "She's shy, and that suits her. Elegance suits you most of all. Now you've probably…"

"Blown the opportunity… I know," Rarity said before walking after Fluttershy.

"I was gonna say put Fluttershy in a position she might not like," Fire said.

"Oh, don't be silly, how could she not like it?" Rarity asked.

Fire hoofplanted. Fluttershy was… shy. Fire couldn't see her enjoying this occupation. Rarity got her outfit back from Fluttershy who was put into a new green dress lined with flowers. It had a slight resemblance to the dress Rarity had made for the Grand Galloping Gala and suited her better.

Fluttershy approached Rarity and Fire to tell them, "I can't."

Rarity looked at her. "Oh, but you must, Fluttershy. Photo Finish wants to make you a star."

"Fluttershy-" Fire started.

"This is the opportunity of a lifetime. I know we were both hoping it would be my lifetime, but nonetheless you can't throw away this chance. You must do this for me. You must. You must! You must!"

"Rarity!" Fire exclaimed.

"Floottershy!" Photo Finish called, mispronouncing the mare's name. "It is time to make... the magics!"

She then turned to Fire. "Have you made up your mind on whether you will pose as her coltfriend or not?"

Fire looked at the two mares.

"Please do it, Fire!" Rarity told him. "It will surely help her views!"

Fluttershy hesitated. "Um… I think I could use some support Fire. This is so very nerve wracking."

Fire sighed. He couldn't leave her to face this alone. "Alright."

He nodded to Photo Finish.

"Very good!" she said. "But we need something more suited for you to wear. Something… royal-like!"

Fire got his armor and crown on and returned. "Will this do?"

"Very good! A proper prince of Equestria!" Photo said with a nod. "That suits you much more than a simple Sheriff's uniform! Now Flootershy, come to your prince!"

Fluttershy walked over nervously.

"Oh, wunderbar! You are like a delicate flower. So much more alluring without all those sparkles und feathers."

She took her place by Fire's side.

"Now your highness! If you would please put your wing around her! You are her devoted protector!" Photo exclaimed.

She was less ordering toward him and made her commands out to be a request, thanks to his royal status. Fire complied and put a wing around Fluttershy.

"Lean closer! Like you are nuzzling!" Photo commanded.

They did so, blushing at the close contact.

"Magnifico!" Photo said with a smile. "That should be enough to get her started, your highness! I won't take up any more of your time today! She and I on the other hoof have much work to do! I will send word when I require your aid again."

Fire looked at Fluttershy. "You sure you're okay with this? You shouldn't force yourself!"

"I have to do it for Rarity," Fluttershy said.

"I know just what to call this latest headline!" Photo Finished declared. "The Prince and his Pretty Pegasus!"

Fire sighed. "Now everyponies gonna think we're dating."

"I say she is quite worthy of you, your highness!" Photo said. "So simple, yet perfect! And she counters you perfectly, delicate on strong!"

Fire rolled his eyes. Seemed everypony was shipping him with one of his friends. First his mother had shipped him with Twilight, then Scootaloo wanted him with Rainbow Dash, now Photo Finish was shipping him with Fluttershy. What was next? Pinkie? Applejack? Well, at least she had a coltfriend.

He walked Rarity back to her shop and asked. "Are you okay?"

She shook her head. "No, I am not!"

Fire sighed. "I know this didn't go according to plan."

"No, it didn't. Why couldn't I see I needed to be the one to model and not Fluttershy? It was such a simple thing. I just felt I needed perfection and Fluttershy seemed to qualify."

"Rarity, you are beautiful, graceful, and generous," Fire encouraged.

Rarity sighed. "Thank you, Fire. But this doesn't change the fact that I was not chosen."

She went back to her shop and dropped off her dresses then made her way back up to her room where she had her sewing machine and began quickly sewing a piece of all black fabric as Fire watched.

"So, you think sewing is gonna make you feel better?" Fire asked.

"Maybe not," she admitted. "But I feel I should have something sad to wear since I'm in mourning."

Fire sighed and was about to try something when the door opened and Pinkie, Spike, and Twilight entered.

"How'd it go? How'd it go?" Pinkie asked as she bounced excitedly.

Rarity looked at them as she grabbed her new mourning outfit and put it on. "It didn't. Photo Finish wanted to work with Fluttershy, not me."

They looked at her in sadness.

"Oh, Rarity. I'm so sorry," Twilight said before asking. "Is there anything we can do?"

"I just vant to be alone right now," Rarity told them with a noticeable v in the word want as she pulled up the black hood.

Fire approached her. "Rarity, I think that's the last thing you need right now."

"Yeah, we're here for you Rarity," Twilight said as she, Pinkie and Spike approached.

They all hugged Rarity as a group and she managed a smile.

"Oh, thank you all, this does make me feel a bit better," Rarity said as she leaned into Fire's embrace, causing him to blush and smile.

Spike threw a frown up at that, wish she had leaned into him instead.

Over the next few days, things were all about Fluttershy. She showed up in front of town hall in a fancy carriage and walked on a red carpet. Merchandise like the apples at Sweet Apple Acres was sold in her image, and Rainbow Dash even flew a Fluttershy banner through the sky.

Fire also got an earful later on.

"YOU ARE DATING FLUTTERHY?" Moondancer yelled at him as she asked.

She'd not paid much attention to the magazines in Canterlot but Twinkleshine, being the fashionable pony of the unicorn mares that lived there, eventually showed her the magazine titled "The Prince and the Prettiest Pegasus."

"No!" Fire denied. "Photo Finish just made that up to make her look even more fabulous!"

Moondancer frowned. "I want to hear that from her!"

They went and searched for Fluttershy. They didn't have to search long as they spotted her fleeing from a mob of admirers looking to take pictures both on the ground and in the sky. Fire flew after her.

"Fluttershy!" he called.

She didn't hear him as she fled and went inside Carousel Boutique where Rarity was working. Fire tried to get in but it was such a big crowd and he couldn't force his way in. Well, he could but he'd rather not.

Fire sighed. "Well, can't verify it right now."

"She didn't look to happy about it," Moondancer noted, apparently putting their earlier quarrel aside.

"No, she didn't," Fire agreed. "Rarity and Fluttershy are due for a time at the spa soon. They do it every week. We'll meet them there and she can tell you there's nothing going on."

Moondancer nodded. "Alright, but you're lucky you're handsome and are always there for me. Otherwise, I might not have given you the benefit of the doubt."

They headed to the spa and asked what time Fluttershy and Rarity usually arrived. It wasn't too long so they waited. Rarity soon arrived but Fluttershy didn't.

"Oh Rarity, I guess you'll do," Fire said.

Rarity looked at him with a frown on her face. "I'll do? What do you mean?"

"You were there when Photo Finish suggested I take a picture with Fluttershy to make it look like we were dating," Fire told her.

"Is it true?" Moondancer asked.

"Yes," Rarity said nervously.

"Oh, good. When Twinkleshine showed me the paper with Fluttershy and Fire on the front page I thought he'd decided to leave me for her," Moondancer said before adding. "I know we're not really together yet but we have gone out a couple times, right?"

"Yeah," Fire acknowledged. "But we can probably call it official after the Grand Galloping Gala… maybe?"

She nodded. "Sounds good to me!"

"Well, I'm going to wait for Fluttershy to come," Rarity said.

They all soaked in the hot water relaxing. But Fluttershy did not come for a long while. Twilight did however.

"Oh, hey Twilight," Fire said as she entered the bath chamber.

"Hey, enjoying yourselves?" Twilight asked as she approached.

Rarity looked at her in dismay. "My hooves are getting positively pruney, I've been waiting here so long."

She showed them her hooves which were indeed very pruney. Fire and Moondancer both checked theirs as well and found them in a similar state.

"Obviously Fluttershy's just too busy with her new career to spend time with her best friend," Rarity lamented.

"I'm sure she just got tied up," Twilight tried to reason.

"Of course she did," Rarity agreed crossly before raising her hooves. "She's a big bright shining star! I wish that star would burn out."

"Rarity! Fluttershy is your friend!" Twilight exclaimed pointing at her.

"I know, I know," Rarity said in regret. "And I should be happy for her, but instead I'm just... jealous! Oh, please promise you all won't tell her I feel this way. Please, please, please please please!"

"Sure Rarity," Fire said reluctantly.

"You have my word. Losing a friend's trust is the fastest way to lose a friend," Twilight said, repeating what Pinkie had told them a while ago.

Coincidentally, Pinkie Pie appeared there out of nowhere. Her head appeared out of a bucket of sponges nearby and she cried, "Forever!"

Rarity climbed out of the spa, as did Fire and Moondancer. They dried themselves off behind concealing structures and then came out nice and refreshed. Though Rarity took it a step further by appearing in a lovely red and white dress with a peach hem adorned with red flowers.

"Wow! You look great!" Twilight complimented.

"Yes, very lovely," Fire said.

"Uh, yeah," Moondancer agreed with a small frown as she looked from Fire to Rarity.

"Fluttershy may be the one who's famous, but that doesn't mean I have to stop looking fabulous," Rarity said patting her mane before walking out elegantly.

Twilight relaxed in the water as Moondancer turned to Fire. "Well, now that the misunderstanding is up I suppose I should go and see the others from Canterlot."

"See you later," Fire said. "I'm gonna stay just a little longer and see if Fluttershy-

At that moment, Fluttershy flew in looking frantic. "Rarity! I'm so sorry I'm..."

She didn't see the white unicorn and realized aloud, "Oh no. She's already gone, isn't she?"

"Sorry," Twilight confirmed.

"Oh, I can't believe this. I am so frustrated, I could just scream," Fluttershy said as she took a deep breath and let out a… very low-pitched scream that was more like a mere squeak.

"Feel better?" Twilight asked.

Fluttershy sighed and said, "No."

She looked around at the three of them. "Can I tell you all something?"

"Of course," Twilight said.

"What is it, Fluttershy?" Fire asked.

"Just promise not to tell Rarity?" Fluttershy asked.

"Why? Is it to do with your modeling?" Fire asked.

"Yes," Fluttershy confessed.

"I can keep a secret, Fluttershy," Moondancer promised.

"I can too," Fire said.

"I swear," Twilight agreed.

"Pinkie Pie Swear?" Fluttershy asked to be sure.

Twilight did the motions as she spoke. "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my… ow!"

She'd poked herself in the eye as she did the cupcake in the eye part.

Fluttershy then told them. "I don't like being a model. No, I hate being a model. All this attention is awful, just awful. And I'm only doing it because Rarity told me I must. I must! I must!"

She sighed then looked down and gave one last. "I must."

Twilight's eyes widened. "Oh, really?"

She then gestured for Fluttershy to lean in closer. "Well... If you wanna know the truth, Rarity...

Pinkie Pie suddenly popped out from the bowl of sponges once again, glaring at Twlight then shaking her head and running a hoof across her mouth to say 'keep quiet'. It was a clear warning not to break a pinkie promise. Both mares looked at her in shock before she retreated back into the bowl and vanishing.

"How does she do that?" Moondancer asked.

"No idea," Fire said. "Pinkie is an odd pony. I don't think even the most intelligent mind can figure her out. She throws away all logic."

Fluttershy turned to Twilight. "Oh, what were you about to say?

Pinkie Pie popped back out and mouthed. "Forever!"

"Nothing!" Twilight said.

Fire put a hoof to his chin in thought, then an idea clicked. "Fluttershy, if you hate being a model you should tell Rarity the truth."

"Oh, I could never do such a thing. Rarity would be devastated," Fluttershy said.

"Rarity would not want you to do something she knew you hated!" Fire objected. "Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself and your feelings. I'll be right by your side."

"Really?" Fluttershy asked.

Fire nodded. Fluttershy hugged him. "Oh, thank you! Thank you! I could just kiss you right now, Fire!"

Fire blushed at that before Moondancer grabbed him by the hoof.

"Don't even think about it!" she said as she dragged Fire off.

"Hey wait, I need to help her!" Fire said.

Moondancer let him go. "I suppose! But don't let her kiss you. Promise me that."

"I won't," Fire said with a nervous grin as he recalled that had happened during Hearth's Warming when Rainbow Dash and Pinkie had tried to prank him and Rarity only for it to backfire and him kissing Fluttershy first.

Fire waited for the yellow Pegasus and then walked her to Carousel Boutique. She had to wear a hat and glasses to avoid being recognized. They knocked on the door and Rarity soon answered.

"Oh, Fire, Fluttershy," the unicorn greeted.

Fire cleared his throat. "Fluttershy has something she needs to tell you."

Fluttershy walked forward and Rarity looked at her.

"Rarity…" the Pegasus started slowly.

She hesitated and looked at Fire who nodded. That gave her the courage to stand up for herself.

"I don't like being a model! I hate it!"

"What?" Rarity exclaimed. "But-but I thought you loved the idea of it!"

"No Rarity!" Fire yelled. "You love the idea of it! But Fluttershy is not you! She is shy! She doesn't like being in the spotlight and the attention that comes with it."

Rarity gasped. "Oh, Fluttershy! Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was afraid you would be mad," Fluttershy answered. "You kept begging and-

"You shouldn't force somepony to be what you want them to be," Fire told Rarity. "You begged Fluttershy to do it and you know she can't stand to let anypony down!"

"Oh, Fluttershy I'm so sorry! I should never have forced you to do that!" Rarity exclaimed. "I was so blind by the fact that I wanted to be a model that I didn't think of how you might feel. I also should have modeled myself rather than ask you to do it. Though given Photo Finish's reaction to your appearances perhaps she would not have liked my poses either."

"Your poses are yours," Fire said. "Maybe she would have liked them coming from you."

"Well, I'm glad you understand. I should have been honest with you about my feelings," Fluttershy said.

"You know I was feeling jealous about it!" Rarity said. "But now I don't have to be."

"Now I can just tell Photo Finish I don't want to model anymore. I'm sure she'll understand," Fluttershy said.

…

"Nooooo!" Photo Finish screamed when they all went to see her in the inn she was staying at. "I already scheduled one final show here in Ponyville! Then I was going to take you on a tour all around Equestria!"

"That's um… very kind of you, Miss Finish," Fluttershy replied kindly. "But I don't like being a model. I'm shy, all this attention is just too much."

"Oh," Photo Finish said looking down. "I see. Well, I have no desire to make a model that would be an unhappy pony while doing it. I can cancel the tour of Equestria, but everypony knows that you are to make a final show here tomorrow! They've paid and everything! It will be such a letdown when you do not show up. Will you not consider doing one final show? We can make it a farewell performance."

Fluttershy hesitated and looked at Fire and Rarity. "Well, I don't want to let anypony down."

"You do what makes you happy, Fluttershy," Rarity insisted. "And we will support you no matter what. Although, I would like to see you give a final performance as I didn't get to see the last few."

"Yeah, your friends are right here with you," Fire said.

She smiled. "Thank you, I suppose one more performance won't kill me."

"Not at all, my dear," Photo Finish said. "I'll even let you speak to the audience and voice your feelings. I'm sure they will understand."

Fluttershy lay on her belly in fright. "Oh, I can't speak to a crowd!"

Fire put a hoof on her. "Leave that to me."

He helped her up as she smiled. "Thank you, Fire."

"He certainly is protective of you, I see," Photo Finish noted.

"I care about all my friends," Fire told her. "Though she needs a little extra help every so often."

"And you provide help whenever things turn against us," Rarity said.

"Well, I must prepare your last performance, and then find a new mare to take your place," Photo Finish said.

"Ooh! Would you consider me?" Rarity raised her hoof.

"We have enough unicorns like you! They are everywhere in Canterlot!" Photo Finish said. "I must have something rare!"

Rarity scowled. "Rare? I'll have you know I am a Rarity myself!"

"Don't mind her Rarity," Fire said. "We see you for the Rarity you are."

"Oh," Rarity blushed and put a hoof to her heart. "Thank you, Fire."

Fire turned to Fluttershy. "We'll be there at the final show. Just do your best."

"I don't really have to do anything," Fluttershy said. "They just like me for being me. Oh, what if they want me to continue."

"I'll just tell them you aren't comfortable. If they like you for you, they are true fans and will accept your decision."

Fluttershy smiled.

…

Fire walked to Carousel Boutique the next day and Rarity emerged in a lovely brand-new outfit. It was a three-layered cape that was primarily reddish purple with a blue periwinkle collar, the second layer matched the collar, and the last layer was a bright pink. They all added a nice contrast to each other were adorned with both diamond shaped embroidery and gemstones. Rarity also wore a matching pink feathered headdress on her head with her mane tied in a high loop.

Fire's mouth fell open at the sight of Rarity. "Wow, is that your latest creation?"

She nodded. "I made it once I recovered from my sadness over Fluttershy being picked over me. I wanted something to help me really shine like a diamond."

Fire smiled. "Well, I think it certainly does, might suit you the best out of all your outfits. Very beautiful, as always."

Rarity blushed. "Oh, thank you, Fire. I can always count on you to cheer me up or give a lovely compliment."

"Well, shall we go see Fluttershy's last performance?" Fire asked extending his hoof.

"We shall, my prince," Rarity agreed taking his hoof. "Oh, um, sorry. You aren't exactly my prince since you're going out with Moondancer! Not me."

"It's alright," Fire said.

He led her to the building where Fluttershy was doing her last show. As they walked, Fire looked at her.

"Um... I wanted to apologize for blowing up at you yesterday," Fire said.

She looked at him. "Oh, it's alright. You were just helping Fluttershy after all. And it was very unfair of me to put her in such a position I should have realized she would not enjoy. I was thinking of my business and what I wanted rather than my friend's feelings. I should apologize as well. If I'd just listened to you this whole mess might have been avoided and Fluttershy wouldn't have had to go through that. I also encouraged you to pose as her coltfriend and got you in trouble with Moondancer. I'm sorry."

"It's alright, everything is fine now. I suppose when it's something we're passionate about we can be blind to other things," Fire said. "You have a lot of big dreams Rarity, being a model, fashion designer for my mother, or princess yourself. But don't let those big dreams take precedence over your friendship."

"And what do you want out of life Fire Sword?" Rarity asked.

Fire sighed. "Well, you know I've always been a warrior. I imagine I'll one day rule a part of Equestria. This is probably a stepping-stone for that. But I also wouldn't mind becoming a champion of Equestria who protects it from threats."

"Very noble of you," Rarity said.

"And eventually I want to find the right mare and have foals of my own."

"Well, I'm sure it will work out between you and Moondancer," Rarity told him.

"Maybe," Fire said uncertainly. "We're not exactly living in a fairy tale where everything's perfect you know."

"Perhaps not, but a mare can dream," Rarity said.

Fire just hoped her dreams weren't crushed when she met Blueblood. He opened the door for her as they arrived at the show and stood in the back of the crowd as Fluttershy stepped out on stage. Photo Finish took pictures with a sad look and Fluttershy just reacted naturally, squinting eyes every time a picture was taken.

"Oh, what perfect grace," Photo Finish muttered sadly. "Pity it will not last."

She took several more pictures and then stepped onto the stage with Fluttershy.

"Everypony, I hope you enjoyed Flootershy's performance. But I'm afraid I have news."

Everpony looked at her expectantly, eager to hear what the Pegasus had to say. Fluttershy shook as she looked at the crowd and turned away as Fire flew up to speak on her behalf.

"She is quitting being a model!" he said once faced the crowd.

They all gasped.

"But she is so wonderful and fabulous!" one of the mares said.

"Graceful and beautiful."

"She's perfect!"

Other ponies were likewise disappointed. Fire felt a little nervous, it never felt good to let everypony down. But as his mother had taught him when she let him listen in on her speeches.

"Listen everypony, Fluttershy is probably the prettiest and definitely the kindest pegasus I know. But she is shy! She doesn't like being the center of attention, no offense to all of you! But she would never be happy as model."

"Aww!" the ponies lamented.

"Well, we certainly wouldn't want her to pursue a career where she is uncomfortable," one of the stallions said.

Fire suddenly felt Fluttershy take his hoof, and he looked at her. She smiled at him before facing the crowd, with a burst of determination.

"I am sorry to disappoint you all but it's true! I don't like being a model and all the attention that comes with it," she told them before adding. "But you all have been a wonderful audience, so I suppose I should thank you all for being my fans in this brief career."

Fire nodded in approval.

"And I must also thank my dear friend Prince Fire Sword for standing up for me when I can't do it myself," Fluttershy said as she nuzzled him.

"You're welcome, Fluttershy," Fire said wrapping a hoof around her. "You are probably the prettiest Pegasus I know, and just as kind. I'll always be there for you my dear friend."

"Thank you," Fluttershy said with a blush.

"Dear friend? I thought you were dating?" one of the attending mares asked.

"That was just something I made up to boost her attention," Photo Finish admitted.

"So, she's single?" a stallion asked, intrigued before asking Fluttershy directly. "Are you?"

"Um, yes," Fluttershy replied.

"Would you go out with me?" he asked eagerly. "You don't have to be a model! You just have to be a great mare! And you sound like one of the best!"

"Uh, let's take this one step at a time," Fire said putting a wing around Fluttershy. "I think she's been through enough this past week."

He then looked at the photographer pony, "Photo Finish, good luck finding another star to shine across Equestria."

"Oh, um... thank you, your highness!" She replied. "It will be quite a task, I daresay!"

Fire nodded, agreeing it would be hard to find somepony like Fluttershy.

He turned to her, "Come Fluttershy, we don't need you to spend any more time in front of a crowd then necessary."

"Oh, it's not so bad when I have a supporting friend by my side," Fluttershy said as he flew her off the stage. "But I'm glad it's over now. No more modeling for me."

"How about we have a feast at my place tonight to celebrate?" Fire suggested.

"Oh, and a spa treatment!" Rarity said as she joined them on the way out.

"I could go for that," Fire agreed as he led the two well-dressed mares out.

…

Little did they know, a certain group of stallions were watching them as they made their way out from the crowd.

"That Fluttershy is quite attractive," one of them, an chestnut Earth Pony with the cutie mark of a cracked doorknob said. "Don't you think so, Charm Sin?"

"Oh yes Rough Handle," Charm Sin, a grayish brown unicorn who had a black charm mark on his flank said. "Very attractive indeed. But that other one with the prince is pretty breathtaking too. Don't you think, Stalpride?"

The Pegasus member of their group, their leader, Stalpride Soar, smiled sinisterly. He was a dark brown Pegasus with a cutie mark of a pair of wings on either side of a blue arrow that represented the male gender. Currently he had a blue hat and dark glasses over his silver mane and eyes.

"Yes. My operation in Manehattan was busted, but getting a couple mares like them could really turn things around. They'll learn their rightful place is beneath us stallions. As will all one day. We will see the ancient power of the male ponies restored! Those soft mares are too kind hearted and weak. Celestia has been in power for far too long, and we'll put a new ruler on the throne. Then every mare will be our slaves!"