Twilight, Fluttershy, Spike, and Rainbow Dash trot into the main room of Golden Oaks. Today will be the last day they are snowed in until the Pegasi remove the snow clouds. At least, for today, Winter Wrap-Up is still months away. The girls and Spike reenter the main room where Twilight opens and turns the Foundation terminal on. The screen comes to life and displays the SCP Foundation logo, just like yesterday and Aris appears. He has a stoic, friendly smile on his face.

“Good even, Mrs. Sparkle,” Aris greets before peering to look at the others. “And friends.”

“Good even to you too, Aris.” Twilight replies as her friends smile back at him.

“Are we ready to review another file?” Aris asks.

“Yes, we are.” Twilight nods before turning to face her friends; Rainbow Dash, Spike, and even Fluttershy nod.

Aris disappears from the screen as the larger screen connected to the terminal reappears on the wall. Aris then reappears on the terminal’s projection podium as the girls sit down just like they did yesterday, Twilight pulling out her notebook while Spike lounges with his arms behind his head. Fluttershy sits next to Rainbow Dash, but not as close as she was yesterday.

“So, what SCP will we look at today?” asks Fluttershy. She looked to be feeling much better today after the intense lecture on SCP-096 last night. “I mean, you said this one would be friendlier than the last two.”

“Yes, I did. Today we will be looking at SCP-131, a Safe-class object,” says Aris as he folds his arms behind his back.

The four friends smile at this. After reading up on two dangerous Euclid-class SCPs, a Safe-class anomaly feels like a good change of pace.

“Now, before we begin, I would like to mention that some SCPs consist of more than a single anomaly.” Aris explains as he prepares the file. “For example, SCP-131 are actually two anomalous creatures instead of one.”

“Really?” Twilight asks as she pulls out a notebook.

“Yes,” Aris replies before snapping his fingers, and the audio file plays.

Item #: SCP-131

Object Class: Safe

Special Containment Procedures: No special safety procedures are to be taken with SCP-131-A and SCP-131-B. They are free to travel about Site-19 so long as they do not attempt to enter any restricted areas or attempt to leave the facility. Casual contact with the subjects is permitted, but it is recommended that such contact be kept to a minimum to prevent the creatures from forming an attachment to personnel.

“People aren’t allowed to form attachments with the SCP-131s? Why?” Spike questions.

“To avoid causing distractions during dangerous experiments and site operations.” Aris simply answers. “Site-19 houses more anomalies than any other facility, and given that some of them are very dangerous,

Hourly tabs are to be kept on subjects at all times; failure to account for their presence at these times constitutes a level one lockdown situation. Any report of abuse or mistreatment of the subjects will result in a harsh reprimand.

Fluttershy gave a sigh of relief, a soft smile on her lips. Glad to know that some of the friendlier anomalies are treated a lot better.

Description: SCP-131-A and SCP-131-B (affectionately nicknamed the "Eye Pods" by personnel) are a pair of teardrop-shaped creatures roughly 30 cm (1 ft) in height, with a single blue eye in the middle of their bodies. SCP-131-A is burnt orange in color while SCP-131-B is mustard yellow. At the base of each creature is a wheel-like protrusion which allows for locomotion, suggesting that the creatures may be biomechanical in origin.

An image of both SCP-131-A and SCP-131-B appears on the screen. Twilight uses her magic to sketch a quick drawing of both instances down on her notepad.

“They look kinda cute.” Fluttershy says, brushing a bit of her mane out of her face.

“And weird.” Spike adds with a slight cringe, noting the large, unblinking eyes.

The subjects can move surprisingly fast, covering over 60 m (200 ft) in a matter of seconds. The subjects, however, lack a braking system, which has led to some rather spectacular, if not overly amusing, mishaps involving the creatures. The subjects have also shown the ability to climb sheer surfaces, and have gotten lost in the air vents on more than one occasion.

The baby dragon and the three ponies snicker at this. “They probably don’t have a good sense of directions.” Rainbow Dash remarks.

“Not anymore, though,” says Aris, having heard of a staff member helping the two SCPs before he was sent to Equestria.

“If they don’t have any appendages, how are SCP-131-A and -B able to scale solid surfaces? Do they have magnets in their spherical protrusions?” asks Twilight, earning a nod from Aris.

The subjects seem to have the intelligence of common house cats and are insatiably curious. Most of the time they simply roll around the facility, observing personnel at work and catching peeks at other Safe class SCPs.

“Hey, Aris,” Rainbow Dash speaks up, prompting the Foundation A.I. to pause the video. “Didn’t you say Site-19 harbors hundreds of anomalies?”

Aris nods his head. “Yes, Mrs. Dash. Site-19 is the largest Foundation facility we have on record.”

“How large is this Site-19?” Twilight asks, looking up from her notepad.

Aris only shakes his head. “I’m sorry, I cannot share the specifics with any of you. All I will say is that Site-19 is a critical facility.” He answers, playing the video again before the quartet can even ask. Twilight feels a bit upset and a twinge of annoyance at the A.I. brushing off her question, but goes back to writing in her notepad so as not to miss any details.

The subjects seem to be able to communicate with each other via an untranslatable high-pitched babbling. The subjects have never been observed to blink, even in laboratories when the subjects have been videotaped for over 18 consecutive hours.

“Hm, I wonder if I could be able to understand them.” Fluttershy says to herself quietly.

The subjects seem to respond well to any affection given to them and will quickly bond to the giver of said affection, much in the same way a puppy bonds with a human being. They will follow anyone or anything they've made a bond with anywhere, even into normally restricted areas.

Twilight and Fluttershy both coo at this. The yellow pegasus even placing her hoof to her chest, genuinely finding both 131 A and B to be more and more adorable. Part of her is really starting to wish she could have the chance to meet them. She doesn’t care about the rule of not showing affection to them, all she wants is to hug them.

Twilight, however, is imagining them as little miniature assistants. Spike is her number one, Owlowiscious is her number two, and these Eye Pods as her number three and four. If they respond positively to affection, they could probably then be trained. She smiles wide at the thought, adding her thoughts as a side note on her notepad.

Although curious, the subjects can sense danger in their general vicinity, and if the object of their bond begins to approach something they register as dangerous (e.g., Euclid or Keter class objects) they will swarm around their bonded companion's feet (or appropriate extremities) while babbling in a panicked tone, as if to warn them. Because of the daily dangers faced by Site-19 staff in dealing with Euclid and Keter-class objects, it is recommended that staff avoid making attempts to bond with the subjects, as it can pose a distraction during delicate operations and experiments and may pose a danger to the subjects themselves (see Addendum 131-1).

Twilight sighs while frowning. ‘I guess I can understand why the Foundation forbids anypony—er, anyone—from bonding with these little guys.’ She says in her head. If Owlowiscious acted this way, flapping around frantically if the unicorn mare were practicing a rather dangerous spell, it could throw off her concentration. Twilight could hurt herself, or somepony else if she messed up the spell. She knows for a fact she would either have to get rid of Owlowiscious or retire him as her nighttime assistant. She goes back to her side note about the Eye Pods potentially being assistants and draws a big X over it.

If the subjects are ignored by their bonded target long enough, they will eventually lose interest and return to their normal activities.

It should be noted that the subjects require no real care or maintenance from the site staff. They do not eat, leave droppings, or even sleep. It would seem that the only sustenance they require is visual stimulation (although this requires further study to verify).

SCP-131-A and SCP-131-B were found in a cornfield outside ████████████ in the year 19██. They were promptly transported to Site-19 via [DATA EXPUNGED] and were then downgraded to Safe class and given free rein across the site once it became clear they were not broadcasting what they saw to any hostile foreign powers.

“What were they doing in the middle of a cornfield?” asks Rainbow Dash, turning to look at her friends, half of whom shrug.

“The poor things must’ve gotten lost.” says Fluttershy, pouting out her lower lip.

Addendum 131-1: During an incident that took place on ██/██/████, SCP-131-A and B followed one of the cleaning staff on routine cleaning of the container of SCP-173. After their normal attempts to warn the cleaner of the danger were ignored, the creatures rushed into the container in front of him and the other two personnel on duty. Once inside, the staff members observed the subjects sitting in front of SCP-173 and watching it intently, as if aware that it could only move if unobserved.

Twilight and the others smile at this. Since they cannot blink their eyes, the Eye Pods must’ve proven quite helpful in keeping the Sculpture immobile. Twilight jots this down, wondering if the eyepods could be used as permanent observers when 173’s chamber needs to be cleaned. They could add a new level of safety to everyone involved with 173’s containment.

The cleaners ignored the presence of the subjects and continued with the bi-weekly cleaning as per standard procedures. When the cleaning crew left, the subjects did as well, rolling backward slowly and never taking their eyes off of SCP-173.

Current applications of SCP-131-A and SCP-131-B as "wardens" for SCP-173 (and perhaps other SCPs which require constant observation, such as SCP-689) are being considered.

“What’s SCP-689?” Twilight asks, looking up from her notebook.

“SCP-689 is a small green soapstone statue of a skeletal human.” Aris replies. “If a person who directly viewed the anomaly took their eyes off it, SCP-689, it would vanish and the subject would die instantaneously, with the SCP soon reappearing on the subject’s remains.”

The ponies and Spike all react to that statement with a small flinch. A look of both concern and worry on their faces.

“So, this thing is like 173?” asks Rainbow Dash.

“In a way, Mrs. Dash. 689 and 173 do have some similarities, but there are several factors that differentiate the two. But that’s a subject for another possible time.”

The girls and Spike nod as the large screen changes to the idle screen. Twilight wraps up her notes, looking at them one last time.

“So, that was SCP-131. Would any of you like to share your thoughts?” asks Aris. The ponies and dragon think for a second before Twilight raises her hoof. “Yes, Ms. Sparkle?”

“So, if the Eye Pods were given approval to be wardens for SCP-173 and other anomalies, wouldn’t that also cause their classes to be updated?” Twilight asks as she looks over her notes from yesterday.

“That could indeed bring their class status into discussion.” Aris nods. “Potentially updating SCP-131’s classification from Safe to Thaumiel. But as of right now, this is still only being considered.”

Twilight smiles and writes down Aris’s response before setting her notepad down and letting out a relaxed sigh. Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Spike also look a lot more relaxed after this lecture than they did with 173, and 096’s lecture last night.

“It was certainly a great introduction to the Safe classification, Aris,” says Twilight, with Fluttershy nodding in agreement.

“Yes. It was nice to learn about an SCP that’s much nicer and not a big scary monster.” says the butterscotch mare, giving the red AI a friendly smile. Rainbow Dash and Spike also nod in agreement.

“Well, I’m glad you approve of 131.” Aris begins. “Now, unless any of you would like to read to another SCP file, I believe that is all for today.”

Fluttershy, Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and Spike look at each other for a moment, before turning back to Aris and shaking their heads. Aris nods, and with a snap of his fingers, the large screen folds in on itself and disappears. That was all for today’s session.

“Aris, can I ask you something?” Twilight asks.

Aris stops before he can re-enter his terminal. “Yes, Mrs. Twilight?”

“Is it possible I could invite the rest of my friends to listen to the next SCP?” asks the lavender mare.

Aris raises an eyebrow at this request. He knows his priorities, and he can’t just share top-secret information with random civilians, human or otherwise. If they weren’t given anmestics, then it would be a major breach of Foundation secrecy, even in another dimension. However, Twilight Sparkle and her present friends have been very cooperative and genuinely interested in all the files so far. He recalls the three rules he made yesterday and begins heavily pondering his answer.

“And how many friends do you speak of?” He asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Just three.”

Author's Note

Hello, everyone. I hope you all enjoyed our first Safe-class SCP. You all were probably expecting SCP-999, and believe me, I was initially planning on covering the Tickle Monster for this chapter. However, due to outside factors, I decided to go with the Eye Pods. Don’t worry, I will have the girls read 999’s file later in the future, but I still have yet to determine when.

So next time, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack will be joining the party, and we’ll be covering another popular SCP. I won’t be giving any hints as to which SCP is coming up next. Best to keep my readers in the dark for now.

Anyway, SCP-131 was written by Lt Masipag on the SCP Wiki. I hope everybody enjoyed this chapter. I’d like to give a special thanks to my co-author k00l for proofreading an editing this, and I’ll see you all next time. Later.