The Professional Traveler in Canterlot
NELL: The Start of Longball
RandomExpert781
Chapter 1: The Professional Traveler in Canterlot
Mid-morning; Thursday, April 22, Canterlot
Karcsi loved the smell of fresh air and tree sap in the morning. As a traveler of kindoms, it was something he was accustomed to, something he thought he was born to do - and he loved it. The land of Equestria offered the best natural scenery, and it was a place he loved to travel to. He knew he could fly, but the scenery on the ground was so much better.
The cream-coated, deep steel blue-maned pegasus a came from a distant kingdom, called Andrija. Andrija and Equestria were on friendly terms; actually, they were allies. So it's not like he was making this journey in any danger. In fact, he personally knew Princess Celestia from previous trips to Equestria - shocking, right? In fact, Canterlot was his first stopping point.
Celestia had sent him a letter telling the story of Princess Luna's return from the moon as Nightmare Moon and the Elements of Harmony, which he honestly felt was quite unnecessary. But when the Princess had finally gotten to the point that Luna was in a little need of friends, including ones from distant lands, Karcsi had wasted no time packing up for the journey, including bringing a few items from his hometown. It's was an excuse for a journey back to Equestria - besides, he always wanted to meet Princess Luna.
Walking through the streets of Canterlot, you would think that a rugged, traveling pony would be shunned by such high-class ponies of the city. In fact, sometimes it was even the opposite. Folk from around the city had gotten used to seeing him, and he was greeted warmly by all the ponies and businesses in the area. It was a nice feeling to know that he was considered part of a community that was tidy and high-class. Finally, after many greetings and stops, he made it to his destination.
The Royal Castle of the Princesses always stunned him with it's complexity and beauty every time he came here. Towers so high, doors and hallways so big - it was paradise even for royalty. And he was going in the magnificent building again in his lifetime.
It's amazing how life can be so forgiving and nice when it wants to be.
As always, there were two pegasi guards guarding the door to the castle (what else would they be doing?), staring straight ahead into the distance. As Karsci approached the doors, both guards outstrtched their wings in the blink of an eye, the wings clanging like metal to metal.
"Stop!" one proclaimed loudly.
"Who goes there?" the other asked loudly. Both eyes were suddenly averted to the traveler.
Karsci was able to keep staring straight ahead and keep a straight face. He had been through this situation with the guards on previous trips, and he had found it mildly amusing. Of course, chuckling did not help in a situation like this, so staying unemotional was necessary. He said only one word, calmly and slowly. "Karsci."
Immediately the wings folded back to their original spots. "Good day," the second guard proclaimed. "The Princess has been waiting for you."
"You should've recognized me," Karsci said flatly as he walked in, turning both guards' faces red in embarrassment. He he, he chuckled to himself. I should try that more often.
He walked his way into the open room, where Princess Celestia was patiently sitting on her throne. She could look pretty stern when she wanted to be, he thought warily. He did one of those awkward bows to the Princess. "Princess, sorry to keep you waiting," he apologized.
Celestia's stern look soon turned to one of happiness. "What took you so long?" she asked wisely, her voice smooth as silk. Of course, she already knew the answer; she just wanted to hear it straight from the source.
Karsci knew what she was up to, and cocked his head in confusion. "You don't know?" he asked, trying to face a look of shock, before bursting into laughter. "Everyone seems to like me here," he said. "I keep getting redirected towards other things. And I think I embarrassed two of your guards."
The Princess could only sigh and shake her head. "Sometimes I wonder what goes on in your brain . . . Ready to meet Luna?" Before her guest could even react, she called out to the hallway. "LUNA! Come here for a second!"
"Comin' 'Tia!" came the response. A few seconds later a dark blue Alicorn rushed in the room. "What do you nee-" She hesitated as she noticed Karsci sitting in front of her sister. She raised an eyebrow. "Who . . . ?"
"This," Celestia said, walking up to me and placing a hoof on my shoulder. "This is the traveler from Andrija I was telling you about." She pushed Karsci closer to her sister. "Karsci, I would like you to meet my sister, Princess Luna."
Luna gave a small grin. "Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too, Luna."
Luna's grin turned to a frown, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "Luna? What happened to the title 'Princess Luna?'"
A long bead of sweat appeared on Karsci's face. "Uh, well, *gulp*, you seem like the t-type of pony that d-doesn't like - uh, how should I put it - formality."
Luna's eyes narrowed into slits, glaring at him menacingly. Karsci looked nervous, sweating like crazy. Luna turned to her sister, her frown turning back into a smirk. "This colt's good," she complimented. Karsci breathed a sigh of relief, wiping his forehead and giving a small hoof-pump for another nailed response. Luna turned back to the relieved traveler. "So, Karsci, what do you want to do?"
Karsci gave a small shrug. "Whatever you want to do. It is your castle, anyways." He shifted nervously. "Though a room to put my stuff in would be nice."
"Lead him to a guest room, Luna," Celestia asked politely. "I think our guest might stay for the night."
Karsci's jaw dropped. In all his visits to the Castle, he had never been invited to stay for the night. "Really?" he asked in soft surprise. "I-I-I'm not sure . . ."
"Oh, c'mon," Luna persisted. "Please?" Luna looked into his eyes, pleading. Karsci couldn't say no to a baby face like that.
"Sure, why not?" He turned to Luna. "Lead the way!"
Luna squeaked in glee. "Follow me!" Luna ran off, Karsci closely behind.
Celestia heard giggles in the distant rooms of the castle. She could only shake her head. "Yep," she said aloud to herself. "They'll get along just fine."
4:25 PM, Thursday, April 22, Canterlot Royal Castle
Karsci finally had some time to relax. Not that he wanted relaxation - the last few hours spent with Luna had most certainly been some of the best hours of his life. He never knew he shared so many things with the Princess of the Moon - astronomy (obviously), painting, reading, hoofball (also known as soccer), and most surprisingly, pillow fights and pranks. After what had seemed like an eternity of fun, Luna had plopped on a couch, thoroughly exhausted, and had promptly fell asleep. Karsci, however, wasn't much of a napper, so he went back to his room, deciding to unpack.
Karsci approached his packs, kneeling down and lifting the leather that protected his precious items from the elements. He slowly and carefully pulled out the star treasure of his treasures: a longball, signed by famous Andrijan quarterback Yuudai Katsuo. The football itself was in a plastic box, protected from dust and dirt that could ruin it.
Yuudai Greenbolt Katsuo was a very weird colt. He had a particular way of signing things, almost graffiti-styled - how a colt could make such a stylized signature in a few seconds bewildered Karsci. Yet he held records like the most throws into a touchdown zone in a game (6), and the most runs into the touchdown zone in a game (4). Karsci had always wanted to play in the professional league. Longball was one of his favorite sports. Unfortunately for him, Andrija was the only kingdom that played the game, so every pony he met didn't know what it was. But that didn't stop him from thinking about it.
He had also brought along a rainbow-colored longball, (for somepony) an ordinary, official-sized Klash longball (Klash is a longball producer) with the customary brown, white stripes at the edge, and a hoof-like lace. He even brought along copies of a personally written Longball Rulebook in hopes that maybe, just maybe, he could teach somepony how to play. Usually it was only a thought - he had never tried to put that thought into action . . . .
An idea popped into his head. He grabbed his Klash longball and ran out the door, only to bump straight into Princess Celestia.
"Oh," she said, taken completely by surprise. "What are you doing?" She leaned into the doorway, trying to take a look inside. "Where's Luna?"
"Sleeping on the couch over there," Karsci replied plainly, jerking a head to a nearby room. "Princess, um, how should I say this . . . Where would the off-duty guards be?"
4:33 PM, Thursday, April 22, Canterlot Royal Castle Training Field
SGM. Red Sword was bored. Being off-duty from any sort of work along with at least another 40 guards, and there was no sort of fun thing to do. Of course, there were the things like cards and charades, but after working on the guard for four years, they weren't fun anymore.
The guards were in a training ground that was at least 120 yds long. It was a nice place for training, but none of the guards here were training right now. They wanted to do something fun.
Red Sword kept pondering the question of things they could do. He wanted something . . . new. Maybe some sort of running game with a ball, or something like that . . .
"Hello, guards!" a voice called out of nowhere. Red Sword looked around, suddenly alert. "Anyone out there?" the voice called out again. Suddenly, a cream-coated pony appeared, holding what looked like a brown ball in a hoof.
Red Sword recognized the stranger, and brightened his mood. "Karsci!" He called. "Over here!" Other guards now began noticing and recognizing the star traveler.
"It's Karsci!"
"Been a long time!"
"Where've you been?"
"Hello, everypony," Karsci said, surprised that he had gotten so much fame over the guards. He turned to Red Sword, a confused look on your face. "Aren't you doing anything? The Princess said this group was off-duty."
Red Sword gave a small sigh. "That doesn't mean were doing anything exciting, now, does it?" He looked around the area, searching for . . . something to do. "There's only cards and charades, and that get's boring after a while. If you know what I mean."
Karsci gave a small nod of complete understanding. He looked around, looking at each guard, before his eyes settled on one unicorn in particular. "Hey. Hey, Jidan!"
PFC Jidan looked up from his position at the back of the crowd of guards. A smile broke on his face when he realized that Karsci had known him. "Yeah?" he asked nervously.
Karsci pointed down the field. "Go long," he said simply. He motioned for the rest of the crowd of guards to get to the side, out of the way. Jidan broke off into a sprint, running down the field for at least 40 yards before stopping and turning around. Karsci held out the longball for Jidan and the other guards to see. "Catch this!" he called to Jidan. With that said, he stood on his back legs, holding the ball in his left hoof, and threw it.
Jidan realized that the ball was pretty far to the left than expected. He took off in a sprint towards the landing spot. He could almost hear the guards hold their breath in anticipation. The ball was dropping lower, lower . . . when at the last moment, when it seemed he wouldn't make it, he made one final leap, hooves outstretched. To everypony's fascination, the ball nicely plopped into his outstretched arms. He instinctively pulled the ball into his chest as he took a small tumble in the ground.
Jidan stood up, holding the ball high in his hoof. "I caught it!" he shouted proudly. The guards clapped and whistled at the feat.
"Good job!" Karsci complemented. He meant it; that was supposed to be a hard pass to catch. "Throw it back to me!"
Jidan started to get nervous and sweaty. What if I do it wrong, he thought to himself. Shaking his head and getting the thought out, he called back, "Wait a moment! Let me figure something out!" He proceeded to do fake throws, first with his left hoof, then with his right.
"What's he doing?" a guard whispered to Karsci.
"I'd bet he's figuring out if he's a lefty or a righty," Karsci explained. "Like, which hoof feels more comfortable throwing in."
"Ready!" came the call down the field. Jidan was holding the ball in a righty position. Without any further conversation, he leaned back, and threw it. Hard.
Karsci's eyes widened in surprise as the ball came down the field like a bullet, a little high. But he knew what to do. Without any hesitation, he took a few steps back, and went on his back legs. Jumping almost impossibly high, he caught the ball, did a backflip, and landed on 3 hooves, his front-right arm tucking the longball in close. "And that, my students," he concluded, turning to the audience pretending to be a teacher. "That is how you catch a longball."
The guards on the sidelines erupted into whoops and cheers. "That . . . was . . . AWESOME!" Red Sword breathed, after things had finally calmed down. "How did you do that? That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen a pony physically do. What is that thing, anyways?"
Karsci shrugged. "This thing? It's called a longball." He flipped the ball into the air while he was talking. "Back in my hometown, longball is the most popular sport there is. As for that flip I just did . . . Eh, it's something that came to me naturally." Suddenly stopping, he looked at the rest of the guards, a smirk growing on his face. "Anypony interested in learning how to play the real thing?" A resounding chorus of "YES!" came from the audience.
And he did just that. Within 30 minutes, Karsci had explained the basics of the game, including positions, the goal, penalties, and other stuff. Explaining the concepts of tackle football and the two-hoof variation, he broke the guards into teams and gave a few pointers to the quarterbacks, wide receivers, and running backs. Finally, one more thing remained: equipment. "Do you know where we can find things like jerseys and cones?" Karsci asked Red Sword.
"Sure!" he responded cheerily. "I know exactly where it is. Let me go get it." Red Sword promptly ran off. Probably in the direction of some sort of supply closet, Karsci thought to himself.
"Okay, everypony," he shouted, bringing all the off-duty guards into a huddle. "You know what to do. Let's get this game started!"
Afternoon, Thursday, April 22, Canterlot Royal Castle
Princess Celestia watched in fascination at the sport the off-duty guards were playing from the balcony of the Castle. She had never seen a sport so fast-paced, dirty, and . . . fun. She found it hard for herself to believe. A rough-and-tumble sport like that - fun? However, it seems as though the guards were enjoying themselves, and she wasn't going to interrupt it anytime soon.
"Hello, 'Tia," groaned a tired voice from the background. It was Luna, who had just woken up from her nap. "What'cha watchin'?"
Celestia glanced back to where her sister was standing. Her face turned from curiosity to amusement. "You look like you flew straight through a tornado," she commented, chuckling. It was true; both her mane and coat were a mess, hair everywhere.
Luna pouted. "It's not my fault!" she exclaimed defensively. "Besides, you look worse than me in the morning!"
"Touché," Celestia chuckled. She looked back into the distance, at the training field. "I was watching the guards play a new game they learned. Karsci decided to show them a game from his hometown."
Luna finally saw what Celestia was seeing, and brightened with new interest. "Oh, that? It's called longball. He told me about it, and how it was played. We were gonna play catch with one, but we got distracted."
"With what?"
"Pillow fight."
"Ah, I see." A pillow fight could keep Luna entertained for hours on end. It was the best activity - and most fitting, except for gambling - to do in the middle of the night while she waited for the time to rise the moon. "Luna," Celestia started to ask. "Do you want to go see the game?"
Luna's face brightened even more. "Just give me three minutes to get ready," she cried overexcited, before dashing in to the castle. Celestia only shook her head and sighed. Silly Luna. Still concerned about her looks.
The two princesses walked up to the training area, where the two teams of guards were setting up for another play. It seemed as though the Blue Jersey team, lead by Jidan, had the ball. The Red Jersey team was preparing for some sort of defense. There were a few guards on the sidelines, cheering for their respective team. Karsci was dressed in a black-and-white shirt, with a hat and whistle. Where he got those clothes bewildered the Princesses. But, who cares: It's a game!
"2nd and 7," Karsci shouted out. "78 yard line, Blue side."
"When a team has the ball," Luna explained to her bemused sister, "They have 4 so-called 'downs' or chances to get at least 20 yards. Every time they get a first down, it's more chances to get the ball all the way down to the end zone, usually about 200 yards away, which is called a touchdown. That's how you score points."
"HIKE!" Jidan yelled, bringing the attention of the two-pony crowd. The center quickly threw the ball back to Jidan, who quickly went on his hind legs and caught it. While the action around him was complete chaos, Jidan seemed to have all the time in the world to throw the ball, eyes darting left, right, left- before somepony caught his eye. He winded back, and the ball became airborne . . .
. . . But only for a short time as the bullet pass headed straight for Levesque, who was playing as a wide receiver. He turned and caught the ball, before tucking it in with his front-left hoof and doing an unusual three-hoof run. It didn't take long before a safety finally landed both hooves on the receiver, ending the play.
"First down, Blue! Nice job!" Karsci called out, a wide grin on his face. He had almost completely forgotten how fun the game was. "1st and 20, 91 yard line, Red side."
The game continued for another hour, with Luna occasionally explaining confusing concepts to Celestia. They cheered and booed with the good and bad plays. Finally, the game ended, with Red Sword and his Red Jersey team winning the game 26-18. Red Sword and Jidan met in the middle of the field, shook hooves, and left, returning back to their respective posts as guards. Before the two now-famed quarterbacks and the referee could get away, Princess Celestia came up to the threesome.
"Hello, Princess Celestia! Hi, Luna," Karsci greeted, giving a warm smile. His smile turned to a worried frown, however, when he noticed Celestia staring at them, mouth slightly open in amazement. "Princess? Is something wrong?"
The Princess of the Sun snapped out of her trance and shook her head lightly. "Wha? No, no, I'm fine," she assured, relaxing the guest. "Although, I was thoroughly surprised by your game . . . " She paused for dramatic effect. "I like it."
The faces of the three stallions turned from confusion to pure joy. "Seriously?" Red Sword asked.
"Sure!" Celestia replied, smiling even wider. "I loved watching the game, though I probably couldn't play -" She pointed to her horn. "- 'cause of this thing right here."
"I know you told me about the game," Luna chimed in. "It seems so much better in action."
"I'm sure other ponies in Equestria could play and love the game," Celestia ended.
Karsci realized this was his chance to ask for something he'd been waiting for a long time. "Uh, Princess?" He shifted nervously, looking down at his feet. "Do you think you make this game, you know . . . national? Like, in Equestria?"
The question caught everypony standing there off-guard. "Uh, well, I don't know . . ." Celestia stammered. There were so many questions in her mind. How would they all learn the game? What if the ponies don't like the game?
Luna stepped in. "We'll talk about it," she answered, saving Celestia from almost certain embarrassment.
Karsci nodded in agreement. "Fine by me," he said, walking away. Red Sword and Jidan followed. "Just tell me before I leave, OK?"
"We'll make sure to do that!" Luna called after him.
Luna and Celestia walked into the main hall of the castle. Celestia was criticizing Luna. ". . . How do we know if all the ponies will like the game? I know we like it, but that's two-"
Luna suddenly turned around and put a hoof on her sister's lips, shushing her. "Can you please just shut up for a moment? You can be so much of a chatterbox when you want to. Geez." She started running away towards the bedrooms. "Stay there, I'ma go get somethin'."
Celestia, meanwhile, was still trying to figure out how to react to Luna's reply. "Did she just call me . . . a chatterbox?" She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Either she has it coming for her, or I'm going crazy."
Luna appeared shortly, carrying a book with her magic. "This is a book Karsci wrote," Luna stated, putting the book in front of her.
Celestia raised an eyebrow. Apparently she didn't get it. "So?"
Luna placed the cover in her face. The Complete and Almost Painless Rules of Longball. Almost. "This is a rulebook," Luna explained, "Written by Karsci on the sport of longball. He taught me a little of the sport from this book. I'm pretty sure he could teach others doing the same."
Celestia started to get where her sister was going to. "Oh, so you want . . . "
Luna simply smiled. "Yes. Exactly."
Early Morning, Friday, April 23, Canterlot Royal Castle
When Karsci woke up the next morning, his whole body was completely sore. What did I do last night? Oh, right. 1 hour intense pillow fight. Complete with ammo, pillow forts, and teams. He had to hand it to Luna: When she wanted to organize a pillow fight, she did it right, and she did it good.
He could only think of a few things:
Hungry. So hungry.
Sore, I don't wanna get up.
I'm in the Canterlot Royal Castle!
Will longball go national? I hope it does.
I'm good friends with Luna!
Still hungry. Hunger overcomes soreness.
Karsci got up and decided to let his nose lead him to where ever that heavenly scent was coming from. Finally, he found the kitchen table, lined with exquisite breakfast: toast, omelete, pancakes, sausage, bacon, and at least 15 different types of cereal. Already sitting at the table were the two Princesses, along with Red Sword and Jidan. There faces showed that this was an unusual treat.
"Welcome, Karsci!" Luna spoke, smiling warmly. "Don't worry, we just got up a few minutes ago." At least the guards did, she thought. "Come on, sit next to me." She patted an empty seat next to her.
Karsci gladly took the seat. Silence took on the room for a few moments before he gave a quizzical look to everypony. "Sooo . . . Can we dig in?"
Celestia nodded. "Yes! Let the feasting begin!"
Luna leaned over to Karsci. "Can you believe her?" she giggled.
"She's listening to you," Karsci noted smugly, pointing behind her.
The two guards were trying not to laugh as Celestia peered over her sister's shoulder. "I see you, young one," she whispered evilly.
Luna gave a small yelp, jumping a full three feet in the air, before sprinting away. Everypony else at the table was laughing their head off. "Oh, she got you there!" Jidan laughed. Red Sword almost fell off the table, he was laughing so hard.
Luna walked back in, her face beet red. She stared at Celestia, eyes narrowed into slits. I'm watching you, she motioned before sitting down and starting to eat.
A few minutes of small chit-chat followed. Yet Karsci was still wondering why the two guards were here. Wait, he thought. Those were the two quarterbacks from the scrimmage yesterday. Could-
His thoughts were interrupted by Princess Celestia. "I'd like to make an announcement," she called. Everypony at the table hushed into silence. She looked at Karsci. "You remember your request to make longball a national sport in Equestria, right?" Karsci gave a small nod. "Well, I think I shall honor that request . . ."
A resounding "YES!" came from the traveler and two guards.
" . . . On one condition."
"Awwwww!"
Celestia smiled. She probably should've seen that coming. "That condition is, Karsci must travel all around Equestria teaching the ponies personally about the game. It's mostly to see if they can play the game, and if they like it."
Karsci's brows furrowed in disappointment. "What about something for me to leave for them to remind them how to play, so they can practice? Say, a rulebook, maybe?"
"Already on that," Luna interrupted. "We're in the process of copying that rulebook you made - you know that rulebook?" A small nod. "We're making copies of it to send to the Libraries in all the towns of Equestria. You'll know what to do when you get there."
"Also, I thought maybe these two-" Celestia points to the two guards at the table, "-would like to join you on your journey, since they've actually played the game."
The excitement was definitely showing on their faces. "Really!?" Jidan said disbelievingly.
Celestia game a small nod. "Certainly. Is that good with you, Karsci?"
"I LOVE IT!" Karsci shouted, giving a small hoof-pump. "Eat quick, so you can pack up and go!"
Breakfast finished, Karsci, Red Sword, and Jidan walked away from the kitchen, ready for the days ahead of them. "Wait, Karsci!" Luna shouted. He turned around to see the Princess running towards him. "These are all the towns. Try to visit all of them." With that, she walked away.
Curious, Karsci opened the scroll. The town names were in a jumbled mess, in no particular order. He took another scroll, and a pen, and soon the towns were in some sort of logical traveling order.
1. Ponyville
2. Cloudsdale
3. Las Pegasus
4. Phoenix
5. Fillydelphia
6. Seaddle
7. Appleoosa
8. Stalliongrad
9. Lunatia
10. Neigh Orleans
11. San Reinsisco
12. Hoofington
13. Manehattan
14. Detrot
15. Sunela
16. Canterlot
First thought: Damn, that's a lot of traveling.
Second thought: I didn't even know Equestria had that many cities!
Third thought: Sunela and Lunatia. So saw that coming.
As he looked over the list, he realized that he had put Ponyville first. Huh, Karsci thought, remembering. That's where the Elements of Harmony live; one of who is Celestia's protégé, another one is the only Pegasus to do the Sonic Rainboom.
This should be interesting.
NELL: The Start of Longball
RandomExpert781
Chapter 2: First Stop is Ponyville
Noon; Saturday, April 24, Ponyville Public Library
"SPIKE!" Twilight Sparkle shouted upstairs. "I need to find something! Get up!" Twilight was in the middle of a chemical experiment, and she needed an extra set of eyes and hands.
Her response was a loud groan from upstairs. "Why can't you get it?" Spike called. He was really getting annoyed with Twilight asking him for everything. And I mean everything.
"Because you're my assistant," Twilight yelled, hoping for him to get down. When there was still no response, she yelled, "SPIKE, GET DOWN HERE NOW!!"
Before she could yell anymore threats, however, a large BURP came from upstairs. Presently Spike came down slowly, a smirk on his face, waving a piece of parchment with a purple band and official golden seal. "It's the Princess," he stated mischievously.
"Read it!" Twilight said excitedly, forgetting about her experiment entirely. Spike cleared his throat, and began to read:
Dear Twilight Sparkle,
How have things been going lately? It's been such a long time since I've seen you. You should come to Canterlot one day so we can talk about your studies on chemistry, astronomy, and friendship.
Anyways, back to business. An associate and old friend of mine (and new friend of Luna's) from another country has requested something involving all of Equestria. I consented to his request, but in order for it to happen, he has to travel all around Equestria. He's traveled all around the world before, so he's in no danger. (Surprising, right?)
His name is Karsci, and he comes from the land of Andrija. He's traveling with two guards, Red Sword and Jidan. The two guards need a place to stay, so I suggested your place. Don't worry about Karsci; he knows what he needs to do.
I hope you like what he brings to the town.
Best Regards,
Princess Celestia.
Twilight jumped up and down with glee. "Yay!" she cried. "Something new! What fun! I wonder when he's gonna come!"
"3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . . ," Spike counted, and as soon as he reached, "0," they both heard a knock on the door. "Called it!" he shouted. "By the way, you just rhymed." He left the blushing Twilight alone and ran for the door.
He opened the door. In front of him stood a cream-coated pegasus; behind him stood two guards, a pegasus and an unicorn. The head pegasus was very peculiar; he had a pencil-thin mustache, he had a dark steel blue mane with a lime green streak. He was clothed in some mysterious green material, and had a pack on his back, probably because of his traveling, Spike thought. He had dark mahogany eyes that seemed to soften upon looking at him.
(Pretend he has a pack on)
"Hello," Spike welcomed warily. "You must be Karsci."
The pony smiled. "And you must be Spike." Karsci reached out with a light-blue hoof and rubbed his head playfully. "You seem like a pretty good guy," he complimented as he walked by. "You'd look pretty good in a moustache." Karsci and his company proceeded to enter the library/house.
Spike was taken aback by the statement. "What type?" he asked slowly.
Karsci turned around to face the baby dragon. "A fu manchu," he replied casually.
"What am I thinking of?" Spike asked quickly.
"Tacos," Karsci shot back. After a moment, he added, "and sleeping."
Silence filled the room as Spike eyed the newcomer suspiciously. Finally, he gave a small nod and looked at Twilight, a grin creeping over her face. "This guy's good," he approved, ending the small amount of suspense in the room as Karsci gave a little hoof-pump.
"That was weird," Twilight mumbled under her breath. "Spike," she said, "take the two guards up to their rooms, then go into your own room." Twilight turned to the visitor. "Karsci, right?"
"That's my name, straight from Andrija," he stated proudly, putting a hoof to his chest. "And you must be the beautiful Twilight Sparkle, the one and only protégé of Princess Celestia."
Twilight blushed scarlet at the complement. "Well, yeah, I guess." She patted the ground nervously. "So . . . What did you want to show all of Equestria?"
Karsci pondered for a moment, wondering how to phrase the next sentence. "It's a sport," he said slowly, "a very competitive sport that was very popular back in my home country. It's called longball."
Twilight sighed. "Unfortunately, I'm not the sporty type. But I can lead you to Sweet Apple Acres. The farm pony there, Applejack, is very competitive in sports." Turning toward the stairs, she called, "SPIKE! When you're done, lead the guests to Sweet Apple Acres." She turned away and started walking toward the door. "First I need to go by the house of a friend of mine, and then we can go. Sound good?"
"Sure," Karsci agreed, thought before he left, something on Twilight table caught her eye. It was the chemical experiment Twilight was working on before he came. Karsci walked over and examined it for a moment. "You know when you put these two chemicals together, it'll have a violent reaction, right?"
Twilight turned around to see Karsci near her experiment. She walked back over to join the traveler. "You seem to know your chemistry." Twilight proceeded to take one of the containers and put a few drops into the other solution. As it fizzled, Twilight continued to defend her experiment. "But I know, for a fact, that these to chemicals, when put together, will not -"
BOOM! Twilight whizzed around just in time to see a small dark mushroom cloud come from the test tube. Her tail was so close to the tube, it caught on fire. Karsci just watched in slight amusement, trying to keep a straight face as Twilight yelped and ran off to the kitchen. A few moments later, Twilight came back into the room, completely soaked with a look of relief.
Karsci couldn't keep his straight face any longer. He burst out laughing, rolling on the floor uncontrollably. Meanwhile, Twilight's face was turning scarlet at the embarrassing predicament she was in. She grabbed a towel and started to dry off.
Karsci had finally been able to control himself. Pulling himself up, he spoke, "Explode. Right. You know, the Princess told me to be careful near your experiments."
Twilight chuckled. "You have no idea." She walked out the door, grabbing a dress that was on a nearby hanger, and the letter nearby. Karsci following close behind.
"She also said," Karsci continued, "That every time you conduct an experiment, you almost blow yourself up or burn yourself severely." Twilight slowed her pace, listening to what this visitor said intently. "She said that if it weren't for your friends, you would be dead from a failed experiment. She called you, 'The Destroyer'."
At that point Twilight Sparkle stopped cold. She almost didn't believe it. She said that? she wondered. Then again, she could picture her saying it. "She is soooooo going to pay for that," she huffed. Her voice had a slight edge to it.
"At the end of today," Karsci comforted. "C'mon, I wanna get to this Sweet Acres place sooner rather than later."
Early Afternoon; Saturday, April 24, Carousel Boutique
Rarity was bored inside her room. The Carousel Boutique was very slow on Saturdays. Rarity personally found that very confusing. Usually in business, it's the Saturdays that are busier than the Sundays. Yet, in the Boutique, Saturdays were extremely slow, and Sundays were extremely packed. Well, she thought, at least I might be able to spend some time with Sweetie Belle.
A ring at the door signified that somepony - finally - was coming into the shop. Rarity bounced down the stairs. "Welcome to the Carou-" It didn't take her long, however, that this was not a customer. "Oh. Hello, Twilight."
"Hello, Rarity." Twilight magically whisked the dress onto the counter, where Rarity could see it. "I have a dress that's in real terrible condition. And I know nothing - well, almost nothing - about dresses." Rarity took a closer look.
Twilight was right: This dress was so messed up. It was completely wrinkled, it had plenty of rips in it - Even the color was fading. Can I restore something like this? Rarity wondered. Of course I can! It's my job, anyways.
"It may take awhile," Rarity responded truthfully, still observing the dress. "You are right - it is a big mess of cloth as of right now." She looked up at Twilight. "When do you need this?"
"Uh, by the latest?" Twilight shrugged. "I dunno, two weeks, maybe?"
"In that case, consider it as good as done." Rarity finalized that decision by taking the dress and hanging it on her 'Work on These' hangar.
"Thank you, so much," Twilight said, grinning.
Rarity waved it off dismissively with a wave of her hoof. "Don't thank me. It is my job, remember?"
The door rang again as Karsci entered, looking around. He spotted Twilight. "C'mon, Twilight," he called frustratingly. "How long does it take to give a dress to get fixed?"
"Longer than you think," Twilight retorted. She turned back around to see a confused Rarity looking at her with an eyebrow raised. "Oh," she said. "I haven't introduced you to Ponyville's visitor today!" Twilight quickly dragged Rarity in the front of the now-confused Karsci. "Rarity, this is Karsci. Karsci, Rarity."
"Wait a minute, Rarity?" Karsci said in amazement. He remembered that name from somewhere in Canterlot. If only he could remember it . . . "You know Fancypants, right?"
Rarity's face lit up in surprise and excitement, though it was quickly covered by her lady-like habits. "Yeah, I know - I mean, uh, yes, I met him during a visit to Canterlot. Nice stallion."
Karsci had finally found some common ground - hey, a rhyme! - between them. "You know who I don't like?"
"Who?"
"Those ponies who follow him around just to be cool."
Rarity gave a small snort of distaste. "Them? They're preposterously ignorant; they have no thoughts whatsoever. Do you know that I made a very simple dress for Twilight here-" she gave a small wave to the unicorn, who just watched the conversation unfold "- for her birthday party in Canterlot Palace. What I didn't know was that Fancypants was having a party on the garden below . . ."
"Oh, boy, I see disaster," Karsci observed.
"Disaster is right," Rarity agreed. "Not only that, but I had gained a bit of social status with the town and him, so he had invited me to the party."
"Uh, sorry for interrupting," Twilight said, stepping in between them. "But we actually need to get Karsci to Sweet Apple Acres."
Rarity gasped. "I almost forgot! I need to go to Sweet Apple Acres, to talk to Fluttershy. I saw her pass by going there, and I need to talk to her."
"C'mon, then!" Karsci said hurriedly. "I want to get there ASAP!"
Rarity, who was walking away, suddenly stopped. She turned around, eyebrow raised. "What?" she said.
Karsci shook his head. "Oh, never mind." He waved a hoof quickly. "Just hurry up, please."
Afternoon; Saturday, April 24, Sweet Apple Acres
"Hey, A-A-Applejack," Fluttershy mumbled, "Um, . . . "
Fluttershy was at the barn of Sweet Apple Acres. She needed to talk to Applejack for an emergency.
Oh no, oh no, oh no! she thought to herself. I need more apple juice for a sick patient, and I can't, just can't use water, and it needs to come straight from apples, but - oh, I just came here a few hours ago! She'll be so mad at me! She took a deep breath.
"Yeah, 'Shy?" Applejack asked softly.
Fluttershy took another deep breath. "W-well, I, um-"
Applejack cut Fluttershy short by lifting a basket and skidding it right in front of her hooves. "Ya need more apples for ya sick animal friend a' home?"
Fluttershy's eyes widened in amazement. "Wha . . . wha . . . how . . . ?"
Applejack gave a smirk back to her friend. "Last time ya'll came around a few hours ago, ya'll were mumblin' thangs. I caught the words 'patient' and 'juice'. I knew right then it was a real emergency for one of your friends, and that's all there was to it."
Fluttershy gave a soft smile. "Thanks." She took the basket and quickly took off.
Applejack watched as the pegasus took off quickly in the direction of her house. She gave a small sigh. "She loves her animals, doesn't she? Wait a minute - wow, she can really fly when she wants to, can't she?" She kept observing until the yellow-and-pink pony was out of sight. Well, now back to-
Applejack stopped. Something was telling her to . . . look up. She did so, hesitantly- and then gasped in horror at what she saw.
She only had time to se a big, pony-shaped pink body, just jumping off the roof. It was heading straight towards . . . HER!
Her eyes widened in complete shock. "WHOA, NELLY!!" she screamed, before taking a wild dive in a direction - any direction, as long as she wasn't smashed into the ground. Less than half a second later, a big POOF! of dust exploded from where she was just standing. The next few seconds were a mixed jumble to her, but somehow, in the end, she found Pinkie Pie sitting on top of her with her characteristic smile, as manic and crazy as ever.
Nevertheless, Applejack was completely taken aback by the set of events that happened in less than ten seconds. She shook her head in complete shock. "What . . . what just happened?"
* * * ↔Meanwhile↔ * * *
"Ok, Karsci, we're here!" Twilight sighed, pointing to the orchards. "Sweet Apple Acres!"
"Karsci," Rarity ventured hesitantly. "If you're a traveler, wouldn't you have already been here at one point?"
Karsci gave a small, slow nod. "I was here once, but it was only for a short time, so I didn't get much of a tour as you beautiful mares are giving me."
Twilight and Rarity both blushed some, before Twilight gave a small shout and pointed towards the barn. "Hey, look, it's Applejack and . . . and . . . uh oh."
Applejack looks angry, Karsci thought. No, that's an understatement. She looked pissed. Angry at Pinkie Pie, no less. Both were obvious to their friends and unknown visitor as Applejack continued to protest.
"What in tarnation is wrong with you, gal!?" Applejack almost yelled. Her face was as red as an apple - that was ironic. "You could've darn near para- . . . paral- . . . killed me!"
Pinkie Pie was still wearing her manic smile as she tried to explain - speedily - what she was doing to the country mare. "You silly! I saw Rainbow Dash doing this amazing trick where she was flying really really really really fast, and then she curled into a ball, then - well, it looked really cool, and I wanted to do the same trick that she did, so I needed a high roof to do it from, and I couldn't do in town, 'cause that would scare everypony there, so I thought, 'Oh, Applejack has a nice barn that I could jump off of-" She turned her head to the bystanders, "Hey Twilight, Karsci, Rarity. So I came here to-"
She stopped, her hyperized smile disappearing into confusion as she actually took in what she said. Her wild smile reappeared when she realized she wasn't seeing things. "KARSCI!" she screamed, rushing toward the traveler in a pink blur.
What happened next shocked everyone: Karsci took a few steps backwards, as if was preparing to run away; which, if you don't know already, is a hopeless option. He waited until Pinkie was only a few feet away. Then, without warning, he pivoted and leaned on his outside front hoof, sending him into a quick spin.
He timed it perfectly. His back legs collided with Pinkie Pie, sending her flying. Karsci followed suit, making a quick flap of his wings through his gear. What followed was unclear in the cloud of dust that covered them, but in the end, Pinkie Pie was pinned to the ground to a now-smug Karsci. "Easy there, girl," he soothed. "Don't hurt me, okay? Got it?"
Three jaws hit the ground in amazement. "W-w-w-wha . . . ?" Twilight stammered, trying to understand the event that just broke the laws of physics. "H-h-h-h-ho-ow . . . ?"
"Twilight, just don't even try." Karsci brought the amazed Pinkie to her feet and gave her a quick hug before giving a doubting look at the scholar. "You'll never understand what happened just now."
A small chuckle came from Applejack, only to be silenced by Twilight's withering glare. "So, Karsci, do you-"
"Karsci?" a soft voice called. All the ponies turned around to see Fluttershy, eyes wide as she recognized the cream-colored visitor standing some 30 feet away.
"Hey, 'Shy!" Karsci called. In almost the blink of an eye, Fluttershy was hugging Karsci tightly, and he was whispering something in her ear.
Twilight blinked in disbelief. She turned to Rarity, whose face was blank. "Did she . . . Did she just-"
"-Sprint thirty feet in less than two seconds?" Rarity finished the sentence for her. "Yes, she did."
Twilight shook her head, trying to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. Whatever, she thought dismissively. "Karsci, you were going to show them something?"
Karsci stopped hugging Fluttershy and started curiously looking around. "Well, then where are the guards?"
"Ah think ah see 'em!" Applejack shouted, pointing toward the direction of Ponyville. "That must be them!" She was right; in the distance, Spike was riding Red Sword, and both guards were sprinting towards the group of ponies.
They both slowed down to a trot as they approached, before stopping altogether. "Good afternoon," Red Sword greeted warmly. "Spike, get off my back, please."
All the mares just stared in fascination. "Wait just a darn minute," Applejack said, gears turning in her head. "So, this Kasci guy has relations with the Princess?"
Karsci nodded. "I've known the princess longer than her." - he pointed at Twilight, who nodded in subtle agreement. "Only by a few years, but still. Oh, speaking of the Princesses," he paused a moment, getting his longball out of his bag, "They're mostly the reason I'm here. I asked a request of something involving all of Equestria. They consented, but-" Karsci paused for dramatic effect, "-I'm the one that'll have to travel around and teach all the ponies about it."
"Um, Karsci?" Fluttershy said softly. "Well, um, w-what is this . . . thing?"
Karsci nodded slowly, as if considering the question. He suddenly raised the longball he held in his hooves. "It's a sport," he stated. "It's called longball."
The ponies were obviously intrigued by this new sport. "Oh! Oh!" Pinkie Pie cried in excitement, bouncing all around. "How do you play! How do you-"
Karsci stuffed a hoof in Pinkie's mouth, effectively ending Pinkie's overreaction. "I'll show you," he simply said. "You may wanna back up a bit." Turning towards the guards and getting into a short huddle, he gave instructions. "Jidan, you're on offence; Red Sword, defense. I'm quarterback. No plan in particular, but try to give Jidan a few chances to get open. Ok, 1, 2, 3,-" The threesome joined into a unanimous "LONGBALL!" which surprised everypony watching - except for Pinkie Pie, who was, as usual, unfazed.
"Can you at least give us some sort of . . . brief intro?" Twilight asked nervously, unsure about all the unpredictable possibilities of what could happen.
"That I can do." Karsci thought for a moment, thinking how he should phrase this next description. "Imagine a 200-yard-long field, about 85-yards wide,. Now imagine a 20 x 85 zone at the end of this . . . common ground. This area at the end is called the end zone. The goal of the game is to score points by catching or running the ball into the team's respective end zone. I am going to demonstrate an example of this right now." The ponies gave a small nod of understanding and approval. Turning back to the two guards, who were set up on the left side of him already, he gave a small nod, and put a hoof on the ball. He took a deep breath. "HIKE!"
And the play began.
Karsci snapped the ball, falling back from the original point. Jidan broke into a sprint across the farm, Red Sword guarding him efficiently. Almost as soon as Jidan started running, he took a quick L-cut towards the center, losing Red Sword and leaving him open. To everypony's amazement, Karsci threw the ball like a dart down the field, which Jidan caught. "Okay, Jidan, that's enough." Karsci called to the young guard. "If he kept running, and no one tackled him, it would be a touchdown, which is 6 points."
Applejack looked very confused. "It's that simple?" she asked.
"Hell, if it was that simple, anypony could do it," Karsci scoffed. "In a real game, there are a lot more players, more positions, more pressure, more ways to get points, and more penalties. In a word: complicated."
"Ohh, OHH!" Pinkie cried out, surprising everypony - again. "What you need is a book! Twilight can help you make one, yessir, she can!"
"Or," Karsci was smiling smugly; he couldn't wait to see her reaction to this. "Or, she could read a rulebook I already created." With that said, and a new layer of confusion built, Karsci promptly took out his book and threw it behind his back, right into the forelegs of the surprised scholar.
"Wha . . . why . . . who . . . ?" Twilight stammered, taken aback by the sudden turn of events.
"Consider it," Karsci said, "an extremely special job from Princess Celestia." Twilight's eyes widened slightly in recognition of the famous name. Without any further hesitation, she sprinted off into the direction of Ponyville to read her new-found treasure in peace.
Rarity suddenly felt uncomfortable. "Um, I need to do some work," she lied. "I'll see you all tomorrow." She dashed off right behind Twilight.
Red Sword gave a small laugh as he and Jidan approached the remaining ponies. "I so saw that coming," he chuckled. He gestured towards the awaiting three mares. "Would any of you like to try a little bit?"
"Um," Fluttershy said softly. "I-I-I t-think so."
"I wanna play, too!" Pinkie Pie shouted, causing an "eep!" from Fluttershy and a chuckle from the others.
"Wow," Applejack said, shaking her head disbelievingly. "If only Rainbow was here. She'd probably be a natural."
Karsci's ears perked up at the name; his jaw dropped in disbelief. "Wait, Rainbow Dash? She's here? IN PONYVILLE!?"
Applejack gave a slow nod. "Yeah. She lives in Ponyville, ya' know. She has this big-"
"-Awesome cloud house with a rainbow, I know," Karsci interrupted. "Is she coming over here anytime today?"
"Well, what time is it?"
"4:22."
"Actually," she said, looking at the sky. "She promised she'd come over to help me a' the farm a little. What, she your friend?"
"That's an understatement," he replied blantly. "I want to surprise her that I'm here. Where can I hide?"
Rainbow Dash groaned loudly as she approached the farm. She was in a particularly bad mood today; she hadn't been able to take her nap, because the Cutie Mark Crusaders had kept waking her every time she tried. And when she didn't take her nap, she was in a bad mood for the rest of the day.
Rainbow Dash landed in front of Applejack, who was grinning profusely. "You ready to do some work?" she asked proudly. Rainbow only mumbled in distaste. "Ah, girl, don't worry. It's not that bad. It's just-"
"No," Rainbow Dash interrupted. "No, no, it's not that." She looked at the ground, shuffling nervously. "I'm just in a bad mood today. I didn't take my usual nap, and that gets me in a bad mood."
"Well, why would that be?"
"Crusading."
"Ah." Now Applejack understood. The Crusaders could get on even the most patient of ponies, as Applejack and Rarity already knew. A lesson Fluttershy had to learn the hard way. She cringed at the memory. She almost couldn't believe Rarity would do such a thing, but then again, she couldn't blame her. She rubbed the back of her hat. "Can I try an' help you feel better?"
Rainbow Dash moaned. "It won't work, I promise you."
"Oh, I'm sure, ya'll be pretty happy by the end of today."
Karsci watched from atop the barn roof. Miraculously, Rainbow had not seen him when she landed at the farm. All there was to do was wait. Wait for the signal . . .
Rainbow and Applejack were talking. She seemed like she was sulking, down about something. She probably didn't get her nap, he reasoned.
The two mares were talking a little more. Applejack nodded, looked around, rubbed the back of her hat - wait, that's the signal!
Time to surprise her.
"Follow me," Applejack said simply. She started to walk toward the apple trees.
Rainbow Dash was still trying to process the last thing Applejack had said. How would she know that? What is she planning? Maybe she's just trying to comfort me. Her thoughts were interrupted by a tap on her shoulder.
"Yeah?" Rainbow said, turning around - and was taken aback by the familiar face she saw. The cream color, the pencil-thin dark blue mustache . . .
"Hey, girl. Know me?"
A wide grin flashed onto her face. "KARSCI!" She cried, making a big lunge and tackling him to the ground. They engaged in a passionate kiss, hugging and embracing tightly.
To Rainbow, the moment seemed to last for eternity. When they finally broke the kiss and got up, she was utterly speechless. "I . . . wha . . . when . . . a . . . shou . . . "
"Shhh," Karsci comforted, putting an arm over her shoulder. "It's okay." Turning his head toward the closed barn, he yelled, "WE'RE GOOD, YOU CAN COME OUT NOW!" The giant doors opened, and Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Red Sword, and Jidan stepped out.
Karsci gave an introduction to the two guards. During the whole thing, Rainbow just stood there, flabbergasted. "I thought you . . . had forgotten about me," Rainbow finally croaked.
Karsci shook his head fiercely. "I would never forget about you," he said. A set of "awwwww!"s came from the ponies.
Rainbow smiled. "How . . . did you get here?" she asked.
Karsci gave a small chuckle. "Well, Princess Celestia sent me here on royal business." His heart fell as Rainbow started sulking again. "It's not that bad. It's actually a declaration that has to do with, uh, how should I put this? . . . athletic entertainment."
Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, athletic entertainment?"
Applejack tried taking over. "Well, he's travelin' all across Equestria, supposedly trying to teach all the ponies in all the towns this new sport."
Rainbow didn't get it. "Yeah? So?"
"Dash," Karsci said excitedly, "Longball's going national in Equestria."
Dash's eyes widened. Did he really mean that? "Seriously!?" she almost screamed. "You're not joking with me; the Princesses approved it, it's going national?"
"It's going national."
"HOLY CRAP YES!" she cried, dashing into the air gleefully.
Jidan looked at Karsci, a quizzical expression on his face. "Yes, she knows what longball is," Karsci said, answering the unasked question. Jidan gave a small nod, as everypony else continued to watch in slight amusement as Rainbow Dash celebrated in the sky.
"Dash, girl," Karsci called. "You can come down now." Finally Rainbow consented, landing on the ground, her face slightly red in embarrassment.
"Did I celebrate a little too much?" she asked innocently, making everypony else chuckle.
"No, of course not," her stallion-friend comforted. "Celebrate all you want."
"AWWW YEEAAH!"
"Just not right now."
"C'mon!" Dash pouted. "Why not?"
Karsci glanced at Applejack, "Well, 'cause we actually need your help," Applejack continued. ""Ya know how to play this thingamajig of a sport, right?"
"It's called longball, and yeah, I know about it. Why?"
"Well, Karsci here-" Applejack motioned towards the traveler "-is tryin' to teach us that new sport, eh, whatever it's called, but he needs more . . . demonstrators to do a right good job at it."
"Speaking of teaching ponies," Rainbow interjected, looking around. "Where are Twilight and Rarity?"
"Rarity had to do some, uh, 'business', as she calls it," Applejack explained, causing a few laughs. "As for Twilight-"
"I know!" Pinkie Pie appeared out of nowhere, suddenly in Rainbow's face. "Karsci gave Twilight this huge book to read that's, like, 223 pages, that Karsci wrote himself! He told Twilight to read it and learn everything that's in it. Karsci calls it a longball rulebook; I don't know what a rulebook is, but it doesn't sound fun, 'cause rules usually aren't fun-"
"PINKIE PIE!!!" Rainbow screamed, effectively quieting the hyperactive pony. "Pinkie Pie, you're so random." She paused for a moment. "But for once, I actually caught on to what you were saying." Pinkie beamed proudly. Rainbow turned to Karsci. "What do want me to do?"
Evening; Saturday, April 24, Rainbow Dash's Cloud House
"Ugh," Rainbow Dash groaned as she and Karsci entered her house. "My legs are sooo sore."
Soon after Rainbow Dash showed up, Twilight and Rarity returned from their seperate business (and were very surprised by the Karsci and Dash relationship). After plenty of demonstrating, questions, and sore muscles, Karsci had taught the sport for a total of three and a half hours. Everypony ended eating at Sweet Apple Acres before going home, since Applejack was the only one left with enough energy to cook at all.
"I'm pretty sure everypony who was there today has a few sore muscles," Karsci commented, dropping his packs on the floor. It's true: Karsci had insisted that all the ponies try out the game; he said, "You have to try it to get a good feel for the game itself." Even Fluttershy and Rarity, two ponies who were not usually into rough-and tumble, were joining along, and having a pretty good time with it.
Rainbow gave a small chuckle before plopping on a cloud couch. "I never in a million years thought Fluttershy would play that game," Rainbow said. "Never."
"She caught on quick, didn't she?" Karsci agreed, sitting down on the same couch. He paused, looking at the cloud ground thoughtfully. He looked back into the eyes of his marefriend. "Maybe it's a pegasus thing."
Rainbow gave him a playful punch. "Oh, c'mon," she laughed.
"I'm dead serious," he said, though is face didn't say so. "You know, I learned the whole game, with penalties, plays, positions and everything in two days."
"Really?"
"No."
"Oh. Darn."
"It was actually one day."
Rainbow fell over in a fit of laughter. "Oh, dear Celestia, HAHAHAHA!"
Karsci's eyes lit up. "Oh, I almost forgot," he said, before walking to his pack, opening it, and scrimmaging through his pack. Rainbow watched him curiously, wondering what he would grab out of his pack.
Karsci came back a moment later, hiding something behind his back. "I got something for you."
There was a moment of silence. "Kill the suspense," Rainbow said impatiently, still grinning. "C'mon, I wanna see!"
Karsci revealed what he was holding. It was a rainbow-colored ball exactly like her mane. On it were two signatures: One with the famous quarterback, Yuudai Greenbolt Katsuo, and one with Karsci's full name, Karsci Greenbolt Katsuo.
Rainbow's eyes lit up when she saw the treasure. "Oh, wow!" she said, completely amazed and taken aback. "It's amazing. No, it's AWESOME! But-" she looked in Karsci's eyes. "-What about a box? Ya'know, to keep dust off it, keep it perfect and awesome? I do not want it to get ruined."
"I was going to give it to you in the box," Karsci said, pulling out something else from behind his back. A pen. "But I want you to sign it first."
"Really? You mean it!?"
"100%."
"AWESOME!" she yelled, quickly taking the pen. She soon realized, however, that her mouth was shaking so much, she couldn't sign it.
Karsci saw her difficulty, and tried to comfort her. "Don't worry, the pen's washable, so if you make a mistake, we can wash it off."
With that layer of safety set in, her mouth stopped shaking, and she finally signed her name. "There we go. Perfect."
"Oh, uh, you know what I said about the pen being washable?"
"Yeah?"
"Well, I lied."
"YOU LITTLE-" Rainbow yelled, tackling him to the ground. "How dare you lie to me!"
"Well, you stopped shaking, didn't you?"
Rainbow paused. He had a good point. "Damnit," Rainbow mumbled, getting up.
Karsci laughed. "Well, now that we got that over with, uh . . . wanna have some fun?"
Rainbow nodded, and started to walk into her bedroom, Karsci following. "Sure! What do you want to do?"
Karsci gave a mischievous smirk. "Not that type of fun. The other definition of fun."
Rainbow froze. He didn't mean . . . She gave a small gasp. "You want to . . . "
"You know it."
"You little bad boy!" she said, failing to hide a small chuckle. It soon faded, though, as her cheeks turned scarlet with embarrassment. "Only . . ."
"Yes?"
For the first time since she could remember, she was truly embarrassed. "Well, uh . . . I'm haven't . . . "
"You're still a virgin?"
Rainbow's face turned even redder, and she gave a tiny, almost imperceptible nod. Karsci turned around, locked the door, then pushed the unsuspecting Rainbow onto the bed. Karsci got on top of her. "Well, now you'll get to learn."
"Now?"
"Now."
Morning; Sunday, April 25, Rainbow Dash's Cloud House
Rainbow Dash tiredly opened her eyes - and closed them as the sun's rays penetrated them. Giving a loud groan, she flipped around - and almost fell off the bed when she saw Karsci sleeping next to her, his mane wet and splayed. The night's events washed back down on her, she gave a small gasp. Karsci . . . we just . . . they'd . . .
So that's why I'm so tired, Rainbow thought wearily. Wait a moment . . .
I'm not a virgin anymore.
Was that a good thing? Rainbow didn't know; she'd never been in this sort of situation before. She assumed it was good; she had never experienced such pleasure from anything in her life before. Yet this was her first relationship, and she just didn't know-
"You know you're talking aloud, right?" Karsci said eerily, taking Rainbow by surprise. She lost her balance and fell off the other side of the bed.
"Karsci!" Rainbow said, aghast. "How long have you been awake?"
"Long enough," he groaned, getting on his haunches and rubbing his head. "You've also been talking to yourself for awhile now."
Rainbow blushed deep red. He knew how to catch her off guard, and she didn't like it . . . too much. "Well, that's embarrassing."
"Yes it is. Hey, what time is it?"
Rainbow looked over at the cloud clock on her cloud wall - in her cloud house. I really need to reduce the cloud factor, she thought. "Eh, let's see - 'bout 8:30." She paused for a moment, before asking, "Karsci, when are you leaving? For your trip to the next town, I mean."
"Eh, I don't know," Karsci replied, slightly stressed. "Sometime this morning. All depends on when I drop by Twilight's to get the two guards. Speaking of which," he added, getting up. "It would probably help if I took a shower."
Rainbow looked at him, then herself. "Actually," she observed. "Both of us probably need one. I'll take one with you."
Karsci turned around, an eyebrow raised in confusion. "You're starting to think like me."
"Is that good?"
"Depends. I'm a 'bad boy'."
It took Rainbow a few seconds to get the joke, but when she did, she laughed outright for a full four minutes. "Oh, dear Celestia!" she chuckled, finally controlling herself. "Oh, wow, that was too funny." She took a deep breath, trying to think straight. "Okay, I'll get a few towels, then I'll be right there."
When she arrived, Karsci was waiting, impatiently tapping his hoof. "Took you long enough."
"What's with you and criticizing me?" Rainbow asked, entering the bathroom and hanging the towels nearby. Karsci entered and closed the door, and she turned the water on hot. She sighed pleasantly as steam slowly enveloped the room. "Oh, wow. I love the feel of hot water in the mornin'."
"You and me both," Karsci agreed.
Early Noon; Sunday, April 25, Outside of Town Hall
"I didn't expect a farewell goodbye from the whole town," Karsci said, genuinely surprised, as he, Jidan, Red Sword, Twilight, and Rainbow Dash walked toward the town hall. "This is amazing."
All of Ponyville was surrounding the podium, where the Mayor was in the process of making a speech. " . . . Celestia and Luna gave this Andrijan their consent to spread this new sport all across Equestria. In about a month, Celestia will make the special announcement, officially making longball national. We say farewell to you, Karsci Katsuo! We wish you luck!"
The applause warmed Karsci's heart. Soon, however, the applause turned into a cheer, shouting, "Speech! Speech!" Karsci finally consented, and walked up to the podium.
Taking a deep breath, he started his impromptu speech: "Good morning, everypony! Wow, uh, I did not expect this sort of reception from any town. First of all, let me say thank you to those ponies I met who welcomed me and my comrades with open arms. They were some of the kindest ponies I've ever met. To tell you the truth, I didn't think any other pony knew I was here, but I guess Pinkie Pie decided to change that, right?"
A few chuckles rippled across the audience as Karsci continued. "So, I taught most of the basics to those few ponies who I personally met. I am hoping those ponies can teach everypony else how to play. If you're one of those few ponies, raise a hoof." Six hooves quickly shot out into the sky.
"What about specifics?" A voice shouted from the crowd.
"If you need to ask a specific question, ask either Rainbow Dash or Twilight Sparkle over there," he said. "Now . . . where was I again? Oh, yeah! Um, I'm hoping to make longball national, so this support is just . . . phenomenal. Thank you, everypony."
A loud applause rang out as Karsci stepped down from the platform. Jidan and Red Sword were waiting at the edge of the crowd. "Where next?" Jidan asked.
"Cloudsdale."
Jidan turned to Twilight. "Twilight, can you do that spell to let me walk on clouds?"
"Sure, but-" Twilight looked around suspiciously. "Let's do that in the library."
As Twilight and Jidan walked away, the others of the Mane 6 came toward the traveler and remaining guard. "Wow, Karsci, you are amazing!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed. "How did you know I set all that up?"
"'Cause you're the only one that can do that in less than three hours," Karsci responded simply, arising a few chuckles from the others.
"Where ya'll goin' next?" Applejack asked.
"Cloudsdale."
A smile crept over Fluttershy's and Rainbow's face at the name of their hometown. "Well, um," Fluttershy said softly and nervously. "I hope you, um, have a good time there. It's, uum, a very nice place."
Karsci gave a small nod, then turned to Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you come over here for a moment?"
Rainbow took a few steps closer. "What is it?"
Before she could react, Karsci planted a kiss smack on her lips. "I'll make sure to send letters and postcards, kay?" he said soothingly, pulling back.
Rainbow was so pleasantly surprised by the kiss, her mouth was hanging open, and she was blinking rapidly. "You do that," she said softly.
"We ready?" Jidan called, just returning from the library.
"Let's go!" Karsci shouted. Shouts of "Goodbye!" "Have a nice trip!" and "Good luck!" were heard as he and the two guards took off. Those cries were soon replaced with "What's he doing?" "He's doing something some thing with the clouds!"
Karsci was molding a shape in the clouds. The crowd watched in fascination, wondering what could it be. The final shape finally became clear in a few minutes: A heart-shape with an R cut in the middle. Karsci yelled, "See ya, Rainbow!" before dashing off.
Sighing happily, Rainbow Dash fainted.
Wednesday, March 5; Canterlot Royal Castle
Dear Princess Celestia,
You know that stallion, the one that's making longball national? Karsci, I think? If you came to Ponyville right now, you would see that Karsci made a HUGE impact on this town. We've already made a big longball field with grass paint. Me and Rainbow help teach the others the rules of the game, including strategy and other things, and soon everypony was playing little games, or 'scrimmages,' I think they call them.
Speaking of Rainbow Dash, I learned something surprising: Rainbow and Karsci are . . . in love. I didn't know that; I'm excited for them! I think the relationship they have going on is a strong one.
That's all I have for now.
I'll keep in touch,
Twilight Sparkle
P.S: Did you really call me 'The Destroyer'!!?
Princess Celestia read the newest letter with much intrigue and curiosity. She was amazed at how the ponies got accustomed to the sport so quickly, and that Karsci was dating Rainbow Dash.
Then she read the 'P.S.'
Her eyes went wide in shock.
Then they narrowed into slits.
"Karsci . . . You're gonna pay."
