The Magic Man in Equestriaby iDeltaVelocityChaptersMeet the Magic ManMagic Man Has SwagCan't Stop Magic Man!A Jerk in Ponyville Meet the Magic ManThe Magic Man in Equestria Chapter 1 The Annual Butterfly Migration was undoubtedly Fluttershy’s favourite time of the year, and what made this particular event even more special was the fact that she had Rainbow Dash beside her to enjoy it with. Normally the rainbow-maned pegasus would be bored out of her mind. Watching a bunch of butterflies flying through the air was not a very exciting way to spend her day. She and Fluttershy were hiding behind a bush as the thousands of tiny critters flew by, their colourful wings gliding in the sunlight. The butter-yellow pegasus, wearing a camouflaged hat, looked up at the insects with binoculars. She was awestruck. “Isn’t it beautiful, Rainbow Dash?” Rainbow looked up at the trail of butterflies passing by. To her, it seemed like it was a never-ending swarm. “How many are there? This is so boring.” “Oh, come on, Dashie. You’re not even giving this a chance,” said Fluttershy. “I gave it a chance last time, remember?” Rainbow glanced up at the butterflies still passing overhead. “Nothing exciting ever happens at these things. I would be cool if they could breathe fire like the dragons.” Fluttershy shuttered at the mention. The last thing she wanted on her mind was a scary dragon flying. Her thoughts, however, were trailed off as the raspy sound of coughing nearby caught her and Rainbow’s attention. The coughing was like someone regurgitating a wad of gum stuck in their throat. Whoever it was, they must have been sick. It wouldn’t hurt to take them to the Ponyville Hospital to get them checked on. They left the bush to see who it was, but they found not a pony, but a different creature all together. It had a pair of legs, as well as arms. It stood upright, their size somewhat trumping the two pegasi. A bulky fur coat covered its body, and a pale-yellow pointed hat on his head. They could not determine what species he was. They were way too small to be a dragon, and to scrawny for a Minotaur, so that left a Diamond Dog. Though, it was still difficult to determine because his voice wasn’t as scratchy as the ones they encountered when they kidnapped Rarity. He coughed again after seeing Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. He looked almost too weak to stand on his own two legs. “Food…” he muttered, breathlessly as he staggered, “Would you be so kind to give food to a wary old beggar?” Being the Element of Kindness, Fluttershy couldn’t help but feel sorry for the… whatever this creature was, though she was still certain that it must have been a Diamond Dog. Nevertheless, her instincts instructed her to do what was right. “Oh, you poor thing.” She went over to her saddle bag and grabbed a dandelion sandwich to give to the beggar. “Here you go.” It was snatched out of her mouth. The beggar greedily ate the sandwich and the immediate, and slightly bitter, taste of grass hit his tongue. He was done eating in minutes, finishing with a burp. “Oh, thank you, kind one. Uh, just one thing. I’m not really a beggar. I’m actually a magic man!” He sang his name as his hat brightened in colour. He threw the fur coat to the ground, revealing a set of tattered yellow clothing. The Magic Man was green, literally. He stood with a somewhat mischievous grin on his face as he looked down at the ponies. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash looked up at him in awe and disbelief. Sure, there was plenty of magic in Equestria, but they’d always thought that magic was held exclusively for unicorns and alicorns. Seeing another being, especially one that they never encountered before, was bewildering. They watched on as he got down onto one knee and held a finger out. A butterfly landed on it. “Aw…” Fluttershy cooed. It was kind of cute to her. The Magic Man then balled up his other hand before holding out in front of the butterfly. Suddenly the insect roiled. Its body imploded, turning inside-out into a slimy, green ball of winged bug guts. It flapped its wings furiously, struggling to lift itself off the Magic Man’s finger before finally managing to do so. The sight of what just happened particularly scarred Fluttershy. She was holding onto Rainbow Dash, eyes shut tight as she tried to force the image from out of her mind. “I didn’t see a thing,” she stammered, “Did not see a thing. Just try to think happy thoughts.” “Why’d you do that?” Rainbow Dash glared at the Magic Man, who simply cast a gleeful smile in their direction. “You gave me that food, even though it did taste like complete junk,” he replied, “so I’ll do you a favour in return. A magic favour.” He sprinkled a strange bluish-violet powder over them: “A mystical, magical favour!” Suddenly, the worst happened. Fluttershy’s mane contorted before turning into a vomit green colour. The feathers on Rainbow Dash’s wings, as well as patches of her coat, fell to the ground at once. And finally, as if to add insult to injury for the situation, the pegasi were being sucked into a small vortex-like hole, before finding themselves stuck together in one body. The Magic Man finished, singing, “…For you~!” in a mocking tune. “Oh, my…” was Fluttershy’s only response to seeing the mess she and Rainbow Dash were in. The cyan pegasus, on the other hand, was not amused. “What the hay did you do to us?” “Isn’t it wonderful, ponies?” The Magic Man responded, skipping around the two terrified pegasi. He didn’t seem too fazed from the matter, seeing as he just mutated them, obviously on purpose. In fact, they could tell he was laughing on the inside. “Today, you get to learn a magical life lesson!” Rainbow Dash’s mouth was agape. She couldn’t believe her ears. They gave him food out of kindness, and he expects them to learn some type of lesson? Where was the logic in that? “No, change us back! NOW!” She would’ve been in his face if she wasn’t connected to Fluttershy. The Magic Man clapped his hands above his head and replied, “Not until you appreciate what a jerk I am!” With a gleeful and satisfied cheer at his work, Magic Man took off into the sky like a rocket. In a sudden flash of fireworks and pyrotechnics, that came together to spell ‘EAT IT’, he disappeared. Rainbow growled. “When I get my hooves on him…” Fluttershy looked around. There were no ponies around that witnessed what’d just occurred. They couldn’t stay out here forever, nor could they stay stuck in a single body. “What are we going to do?” she asked. “We obviously can’t do into town looking like this,” replied Rainbow,” We need a disguise.” Twilight answered the knock on her door. She opened it to Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. They were standing in the doorway awkwardly. Fluttershy had an oversized hat on her head with her mane done up in a bun and both were wearing a large trench coat over them. The way they looked had garnered some attention from ponies passing by. “Twilight,” Rainbow Dash started, “We need to talk.” Magic Man Has SwagThe Magic Man in Equestria Chapter 3 With a swift kick, Applejack forced the doors opened into Rarity’s Carousal Boutique. They finally had the magic man cornered. They developed a plan on the way here on how they would go about capturing him, which would end with Twilight encasing him with her magic to prevent his escape. And then afterwards, once they had him where they wanted him, they would force him to change everypony back to normal. They went inside, only to find the living room empty, save for some sheets of fabric laid about and a few bare mannequins set off to the side. “We got you outnumbered, Magic Man!” Applejack announced. There was really no doubt that she was ready and willing to have revenge. RD agreed. “Get your sorry butt out here!” she demanded. They heard Rarity call from upstairs, “Girls, is that you?” It was strange to hear that she was all right, since not too long ago they heard her screaming all the way from Sweet Apple Acres. “Yeah, it’s us,” Twilight responded, “Is everything alright, Rarity?” They heard her begin to descend down the stairs. “Of course, everything is alright. Why wouldn’t it—?” She entered the living room, but stopped once she saw what four of her friends had become. She was awestruck at seeing them. “W-What happened?” “There’s some crazy Magic Man hang’n ‘round this part of Equestria,” said Applejack, “He went and did this to us, and now we’re on a hunt’n for him so he can change us back.” Rarity put a hoof to her chin. “A Magic Man, huh? Well that can’t be true, entirely.” “Why not?” asked Applejack. Rarity responded, “Well because he’s upstairs right now. I was planning on introducing you all to him once I got Pinkie Pie.” Her answer had surprised the group, though it was more than enough of a resolve for Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy to charge upstairs to Rarity’s room. “What’s their problem?” the prim unicorn asked. “Magic Man did that to all of them,” said Twilight. Spike, who was still in the form of a ball, confirmed it. Rarity wasn’t sure she wanted to believe them. To her, Magic Man seemed like a nice fellow when she first met him. Sure, his outfit was raggedy, and that made her scream out of habit, but after she offered him a place to stay, it turned out he was one of the nicest guys she’d ever meet. Perhaps she would find a way to get the others see that, also. With Twilight and Spike, she headed upstairs to see that an argument had broken out. A barrier had been set up in front of the Magic Man, separating him from the trio of ponies he had recently mutated. Rarity cleared her throat. “Now girls, don't be hasty.” She broke them up, backing Applejack and Rainbow Dash/Fluttershy from her guest. If Magic Man truly did do this to them, then a proper way to get him to change them back would be through politeness, rather than mindless brutality. “Whatever happened between you two, I'm sure we all can handle it in the utmost civilised way.” Magic Man raised an eyebrow. “Civilised?” “When I agreed to take Magic Man in,” said Rarity, continuing to defend the magician, “he promised to help with some of my designs. Why, if I do say so myself, he's one of the nicest being that I've ever—” In a sudden flash, the alabaster unicorn was engulfed in the violet-blue smoke, the same that everyone in the room was all too familiar with. They heard Rarity cough as she emerged, staggering from the smoke. Her new appearance had left the ponies' mouths agape, and it left Spike petrified in shock. She opened her eyes to see them staring. “Why are you looking at me like that?” They were too nervous to say anything. Applejack was scratching the back of her apple head, trying not to look; Rainbow Dash was whistling and Fluttershy's and Twilight's eyes darted around the room; Spike was the only one still staring at her, albiet he was still in shock at her new appearance. Rarity was left confused, unknown to what held her friends back from saying something. “Here, honey,” Magic Man floated next to her, holding a mirror, “You might need this.” Grabbing the mirror with her magic, Rarity looked at herself, and upon seeing her reflection she screamed. Her makeup had exploded over her head, with lipstick smeared over her mouth and mixed in with the eyeliner over her eyes; her mane had literally been annihilated, like a student barber had taken to cutting hair with garden shears; and to top it off, she wasn't a pony anymore; the Magic Man had changed her into a rat/mannequin hybrid. Rarity’s face was red with anger. She glared daggers into Magic Man, who only floated above the floor with a cheeky grin on his green face. His hands placed on his hips, he gave a nod of approval at another job well-done. “Five in one day? Wow, that’s my new personal best,” he declared, giddy as the ponies confronted him, “Guess I owe myself five bucks.” Rarity growled. “You did this to me, you ruffian. Why?” “Well,” Magic Man started, “You called me nice. And I can’t have people thinking that, can I? I have a reputation to uphold, after all. But the main reason is that you, my pretty unicorn friend, were generous enough to give this homeless beggar a roof over his head. And now you get to partake in the wonderful life lesson that I plan to give everyone in this very strange land!” He said this all as if it was a good thing, considering that he had just gone and outright mutated another pony. Twilight’s horn glowed. She shot a blast of magic at the Magic Man, which was effortlessly redirected into the wall behind him, blasting a hole through to the outside. “Haha! Better luck next time, kiddies!” The Magic Man turned himself into a rocket and sped out of the building, but only but causing another hole in the wall. Twilight and her friends coughed, fanning away the smoke. Out of it, they noticed a note on the ground. Twilight picked it up. Dear ponies, Eat it! With love, Magic Man She crumpled the paper and threw it away. This Magic Man was becoming more of a pain than before. “How the hay do we go about catch’n this guy? He has just as much magic as Twilight does,” said Applejack. Twilight couldn’t lie to herself, but she silently agreed with her. Whatever abilities this Magic Man possessed, it was easily on par with hers. Maybe it matched Shining Armour’s, or Discord’s, or even the Princesses’! The realisation made their situation that much more difficult. Catching the Magic Man was no easy task, at least not conventionally. “I think I have a plan,” said Twilight. “Follow me.” With interest present in his eyes, Magic Man looked down at the very small creature in front of him. There was no doubt it had caught his attention. “I like you, kid,” he said, “You remind me of me when I was younger: clever, stunning, and a real ladies' man.” Gummy held the normally blank expression on his face. He blinked, his eyes staring off into different directions as he turned his back to the magician in front of him. Magic Man smiled at this little guy. He was a jerk, just like him. Outside, he heard his name called. He walked over towards the window to see a pink, poofy-maned pony standing in the street. Now what could she possibly want with him? Only one way to find out, he thought. After donning his clever disguise, he pushed open the window and flew from Sugarcube Corner onto the streets. Ponies passing by turned their attention to the stranger as he walked towards Pinkie Pie. “I've never seen you before,” the pink pony said. “I'm fairly new around here,” the Magic Man replied, using his beggar alias to fool her. From a nearby alley, Twilight waited for the right moment to strike. Pinkie Pie was a decoy, meant to keep Magic Man distracted long enough for her to ensnare him in her magic. She just had to stay out of sight. Pinkie was chatting nonstop with the Magic Man. He looked distracted, not taking his eyes off the pink-coated earth pony bouncing around him. She saw her chance. She galloped out of cover, horn glowing in preparation. The Magic Man still had his back turned. He hadn't noticed her, thankfully. She got close, ready to finally end it. At the last moment, however, Magic Man made his own move. He jumped, doing a backflip over Twilight. He threw off his disguse, laughing at the unicorn's failed attempt. “I could sense you coming from a mile away. Guess you'll have to try harder if you wanna catch me.” Twilight couldn't understand how he was able to sense her magic, yet she couldn't do the same. She looked over and noticed Pinkie Pie had been hit with the blue powder that Magic Man used on everyone else. When it subsided, Pinkie's body entirely had been turned into candy chocolate. Magic Man tipped his hat, bidding farewell to the ponies before vanishing. “Pinkie Pie, are you okay?” asked Twilight. When Pinkie saw her new body, she gasped. “I love it!” The ponies were witnessed the spectacle were in surprise at what happened. However, several ponies stepped up. “That was him, wasn't it? That was the Magic Man?” asked Bon-Bon. “You know him?” asked Twilight. “Know him?” Bon-Bon could some anger rising. She wished hadn't known him. “He cast some transformation spell on Lyra after she played him some music.” “He caught my coltfriend just last week,” a mare joined. Another told him what happened to his friend after he met the Magic Man. It seemed like Twilight's friends weren't the only ones caught by the magician, and it definitely seemed that he had been hanging around Ponyville much longer than she'd thought. Wherever the Magic Man was now, they needed to find him before he was able to get away. Can't Stop Magic Man!The Magic Man in Equestria Chapter 4 Princess Celestia and Princess Luna could only cringe, with a staggering mix of shock and confusion, at the sight beheld in front of them. They had expected, when Twilight told them that something had happened to her friends, to bear witness to something similar to the time Discord corrupted them. What they saw, instead, was something far beyond expectations. “And who did this to you again?” asked Celestia. Rainbow Dash replied, “He calls himself a Magic Man. He’s been doing this to ponies all across Ponyville.” Luna closed her eyes. Her horn glowed as she focused her energy in attempt and track the culprit responsible. “It doesn’t seem that I can locate him.” “I’ve tried that, also,” said Twilight, “and the weird thing is that he’s able to sense our magic. And it doesn’t seem native to Equestria, either.” “I’m afraid I have to agree,” said Luna, “Transformation spells that can turn a pony into something like… this are well beyond even our abilities.” “What do you suppose we do?” asked Rarity. She was more than ready to get her hooves on the Magic Man for doing this to her. The last thing she expected, after she showed such generosity, was to be mutated. “The first thing we need to do,” Celestia announced, “is locate this Magic Man as soon as possible—” “I’m way ahead of you, honey!” They turned towards the source of the voice to see the Magic Man plastered on one of the stained-glass window pictures. The window bared a painting of Twilight and her friends using the Elements of Harmony against Discord. The Martian was lying atop of Twilight’s head, eating a bag of popcorn. “It’s so wonderful to see you all here together!” “How’d you know we were coming here?” said Twilight. Magic Man finished the last of the popcorn and threw the bag away. “I think the term is called ‘following’. You seven are just so much fun that I’ve decided that to hitch ride in hopes of finding equally fun ponies in this Kingdom. You can see that I was pleased with the results.” Celestia looked up at the green man with a threatening glare, but it did not seem to faze him. “Are you the one they call Magic Man?” The magician jumped from the picture and floated down in front of the Princesses. A huge, goofy grin was plastered on his face as he glanced over at his most recent victims. “Why, yes I am. This is wonderful, isn’t it? It’s fantastic to know that my reputation is beginning to grow around these parts.” “We were told that you’ve been mutating ponies around Ponyville.” “Ponyville? Is that what you call that nowhere town?” The Magic Man’s laughter that followed earned a few glares from the equines in front of him. “And yes, while my magic’s been lingering in that town, I’ve been to other places, as well. And I must say to you, Princess-” He pointed at Celestia and Luna, “This place, Canterlot is something else. I’ve seen a lot of snooty, uptight, and arrogant ponies who have been bringing tears to my eyes all day. Of course, there have been the occasional generous and kind equines that I’ve ran into on the way here.” “Generous and kind?” Applejack gulped. “Oh boy…” A guard ran into the throne room. “Princess, we have a situation. We have a large number of mutants amassing at the castle entrance.” He stopped when he caught sight of the several creatures in front of him. “Apparently, some of them have also found a way into the castle, as well.” Princess Celestia looked back at the Martian. “I demand that you change them back, Magic Man.” “Sorry, Queeny, that’s not how this works.” Magic Man floated. “For you see, my glorious lesson has yet to be learned by anyone I’ve met. But I’ll strike a deal with you: I’ll reverse my magic and change everyone back, but only if one of you can figure out that is.” Luna, lout of anger and frustration, shot a bolt of lightning at him. If he wouldn’t go through with this peaceful, they’d have to use force. She was taken back when Magic Man opened a portal, letting her attack pass through harmlessly. The Martian laughed. “Sorry, hun-” he pointed a finger at his butt, “-don’t touch what you can’t afford!” With a last laugh directed at the clueless ponies, the Magic Man teleported out of the throne room. It’s been a few weeks since Discord’s reformation. Of course, even though he was no longer causing random acts of chaos across Equestria, it was still fun knowing that he could still play pranks and maintain the amount necessary for keeping the natural balance in the Kingdom. He was the still the Spirit of Disharmony; doing it was literally one of his main reasons for living. Though, now, today had been a slow day. There wasn’t much to do, except take a walk around the castle, and there was no fun in that. As he passed an intersection, he found himself crashing into a few Royal Guards. “What’s the rush?” he asked in annoyance. He teleported himself off the ground and looked down at the armoured ponies in front of him. “We’re searching for someone,” said one of the Guards. “And who might that be?” “He’s calls himself a Magic Man, whatever that means. He’s been mutating ponies all across Equestria, apparently for fun, and we’ve been—” He lost Discord when he mentioned that ponies had been mutated for fun. Hearing this type of news had given the Draconniquis an opportunity to make most out of today. “I see. And what might this ‘Magic Man’ look like?” “For starters, he’s not a pony. He’s green and he wears ragged clothing—” “He’s basically a giant pickle,” a younger Guard commented. “Interesting…” Discord rubbed his beard. This could have been the perfect chance for him to have fun today. All he’d need to do was find this Magic Man, wherever he might have been. Although, it wouldn’t be too difficult for him to locate another magical being in Equestria, especially one that’s causing chaos. “All right, I’ll help you find this Magic Man.” His proposal had drawn some questionable looks from the guards. “Really? You’d really do that?” “What? You don’t think I can help?” His question was met with silence. “Just go back on guard duty. I’ll find this Magic Man myself.” A Jerk in Ponyville A Jerk in Ponyville The Magic Man in Equestria Chapter 2 Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, still stuck together in a single body, stood in the middle of Twilight’s room. The lavender unicorn in question paced around the both of them. She was astounded at how this happened. She did not think magic was capable of doing something like this to anyone in Equestria. Whoever did this must have had a large amount of energy at their disposal, enough to even match hers. Finally, Twilight stopped. “How did this happen?” she asked. “Some magic man near Whitetail Forest,” said Rainbow, “He made us like this after we gave him some food. He said that he wanted to teach us some ‘magical life lesson’.” Twilight wondered what lesson there was to learn from showing a person generosity and kindness. It didn’t make sense. She placed the thought to the side for the moment and aimed her horn at the two pegasi. They were enveloped in a cloud of purple, floating up from the ground before being pulled apart. For a moment, it seemed like Twilight’s solution would work. The two seemed like they would be back in their own bodies, but wouldn’t stay like that for long. Twilight’s magic quickly wore off, sooner than expected, and forced Rainbow and Fluttershy to join bodies once again. The unicorn became frustrated, trying it yet again, but yielding the same result. She couldn’t get her head around how this was possible. “Whatever magic this guy was using, it doesn’t seem natural. It’s negating my magic.” “So you’re telling me you can’t change us back?” said Rainbow. “Not unless we go and find this magic man, first,” replied Twilight, “If his magic caused this, then I’m certain it’ll reverse the effects.” “Then what are we waiting for?” Rainbow, excited, made a dash for the exit. She didn’t move or budge far, considering that she was still stuck to the butter yellow pegasus. “Sorry, Rainbow, but I you’ll have to take things a bit slower,” said Twilight, “I’m sure we can find them, though. He can’t hide forever.” They heard claws scraping against wood. They looked over at the stairs to see Spike walking into the room. He was shocked and startled when he saw Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash in the situation they were in. “What… happened to you two?” The two pegasi looked at each other (it was an awkward sight to see them trying to) and responded, “It’s a long story.” Spike, still confused as to how it happened to his friends, walked over to his basket. He reached under the cushion and grabbed a small burlap bag from underneath. He’d make a note to hide it somewhere else afterwards. “What’cha got there, Spike?” asked Twilight. “Just some bits.” The dragon headed back for the stairs. “I met some guy on the way here. Said he needed some to repay a debt, and I said I’d help him out.” Twilight grew suspicious about it. Hearing about some stranger asking for money drew a considerable amount of questions, but she would rather dig deeper than just jump to conclusions. “If you don’t mind me asking, who is it that asked you?” Spike shrugged. “I dunno. Said he was a beggar or something.” The mention of the work triggered alarm bells in Fluttershy’s and Rainbow Dash’s heads. “Beggar?” “Spike! Wait!” Fluttershy called down. Twilight looked at them. “What? What’s going on?” Before any answers could be given, a loud noise rang through the air, and followed by a puff of blue smoke rising from downstairs. Twilight, along with Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, hurried into the library. Out of a cloud of blue smoke in front of the door, Spike appeared, but he wasn’t himself. He’d been turned into a rubber ball! The blue smoke finally disappeared, revealing a man dressed in a fur coat standing in the doorway. “You!” Rainbow Dash immediately recognised him. “That right! Is it I, the Magic Man!” He threw off the coat and stared at his two previous victims with glee. “So, have you two sissy do-gooders learned your lesson yet?” Rainbow growled. “Change them back, Magic Man!” Twilight demanded. Her demand was met with a disapproving look. “Nah-ah-ah! That’s not how it works in my world, honey. Just like this little guy…” he referred them to Spike, “These two need to learn what I’m trying to teach them. Come on, it’s not that hard, is it?” “Why you!” It didn’t matter if she was connected to Fluttershy or not, Rainbow wanted to get her hooves on his guy. “You want a piece of me? You’ll have to catch me, first!” He clapped his hands together, and in a puff of smoke, he vanished, leaving three confused ponies and a dragon. “Where’d he go now?” asked Spike. Twilight tried her magic, but yielded no results. “I can’t track him anywhere. We’re gonna have to warn everypony in town about him before he can strike again.” Applejack kicked the side of the tree, making the ripe, plentiful apples fall into the waiting buckets below. Despite only working for half an hour, she was already beginning to feel the effects of the afternoon sun. She took her hat off, fanning some of the sweat from her coat. As she continued her harvest, she heard a cough coming from further into the orchard. She figured it must have been Applebloom, or Sweetie Belle or Scootaloo. Perhaps one of them was getting sick. She followed the sound, but instead of coming across one of the CMC fillies in questions, she found a large figure lying against one of the trees. “You all right, Mister?” she asked. The man coughed again, looking over at Applejack. “I’ve fallen very sick and I’m without a home,” he told her, “Would you be as kind as to provide a poor old man a place to stay for the night.” Applejack felt a huge amount of sympathy for this man. He was not only homeless, but also ill and broken. It wouldn’t be in her character to deny him some food and a home. “Sure thing, pal.” She helped him to his feet. “Ya’ll can help yourself to some of the apples here, if ya like.” The man looked up at the plentiful apples that graced the orchard. “Thank you ever so much. But, uh, just one thing… I’m not really homeless.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “You’re not?” He chuckled. “No, I’m afraid I’m not. I’m actually a…” he threw off the fur coat and revealed himself to the orange pony, “Magic Man!” Applejack had a surprised look on her face. This was surely unexpected, seeing another purely magical race in Equestria. “So, you’re magic?” The Magic Man nodded. “Yep, I guess I am! And because you were so kind to give a home to a sluggishly old beggar like me, I’ll repay the favour by doing you a mystical magical favour!” Twilight, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Spike teleported and found themselves at Sweet Apple Acres. The unicorn had Spike suspended from the ground with her magic since there was no way he could really move on his own. “Applejack has to be around here, somewhere,” said Twilight. They scanned the area. She wasn’t near the house, so that meant she must be somewhere in the apple orchard. They called out for her, but before they had a chance to go in and look, the all too familiar sound of smoke reached their ears, followed by a cloud of blue rising into the air from inside the orchard. Fluttershy feared the worst. “Oh no…” They watched as a figure staggered from behind the trees, coughing. When it emerged, they saw it was Applejack. The four of them were horrified at what happened to her; her head had been transformed into an apple, saved for her eyes, mouth, and muzzle. She looked bemused at her four friends standing in front of her, particularly at Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, and then at Spike. “Lemme guess: you met that magic guy, too?” They nodded. “Yep,” said Rainbow Dash. “He’s going around doing this to anypony who’s nice to him,” said Twilight, “It doesn’t make any sense in the slightest. He changed Spike into a ball before we got here. And you can already see what he did to Rainbow and Fluttershy.” Applejack stomped her hoof on the ground. “I found the no-good varmint in m’ah orchard and agreed to give him a place to stay for the night. Disappeared right after he did this to me. Why, when I find him, again, I’m gonna—” They heard an ear-piercing scream shoot through the sky, and at that moment, they knew who it belonged to. “Rarity!”
Meet the Magic ManThe Magic Man in Equestria Chapter 1 The Annual Butterfly Migration was undoubtedly Fluttershy’s favourite time of the year, and what made this particular event even more special was the fact that she had Rainbow Dash beside her to enjoy it with. Normally the rainbow-maned pegasus would be bored out of her mind. Watching a bunch of butterflies flying through the air was not a very exciting way to spend her day. She and Fluttershy were hiding behind a bush as the thousands of tiny critters flew by, their colourful wings gliding in the sunlight. The butter-yellow pegasus, wearing a camouflaged hat, looked up at the insects with binoculars. She was awestruck. “Isn’t it beautiful, Rainbow Dash?” Rainbow looked up at the trail of butterflies passing by. To her, it seemed like it was a never-ending swarm. “How many are there? This is so boring.” “Oh, come on, Dashie. You’re not even giving this a chance,” said Fluttershy. “I gave it a chance last time, remember?” Rainbow glanced up at the butterflies still passing overhead. “Nothing exciting ever happens at these things. I would be cool if they could breathe fire like the dragons.” Fluttershy shuttered at the mention. The last thing she wanted on her mind was a scary dragon flying. Her thoughts, however, were trailed off as the raspy sound of coughing nearby caught her and Rainbow’s attention. The coughing was like someone regurgitating a wad of gum stuck in their throat. Whoever it was, they must have been sick. It wouldn’t hurt to take them to the Ponyville Hospital to get them checked on. They left the bush to see who it was, but they found not a pony, but a different creature all together. It had a pair of legs, as well as arms. It stood upright, their size somewhat trumping the two pegasi. A bulky fur coat covered its body, and a pale-yellow pointed hat on his head. They could not determine what species he was. They were way too small to be a dragon, and to scrawny for a Minotaur, so that left a Diamond Dog. Though, it was still difficult to determine because his voice wasn’t as scratchy as the ones they encountered when they kidnapped Rarity. He coughed again after seeing Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. He looked almost too weak to stand on his own two legs. “Food…” he muttered, breathlessly as he staggered, “Would you be so kind to give food to a wary old beggar?” Being the Element of Kindness, Fluttershy couldn’t help but feel sorry for the… whatever this creature was, though she was still certain that it must have been a Diamond Dog. Nevertheless, her instincts instructed her to do what was right. “Oh, you poor thing.” She went over to her saddle bag and grabbed a dandelion sandwich to give to the beggar. “Here you go.” It was snatched out of her mouth. The beggar greedily ate the sandwich and the immediate, and slightly bitter, taste of grass hit his tongue. He was done eating in minutes, finishing with a burp. “Oh, thank you, kind one. Uh, just one thing. I’m not really a beggar. I’m actually a magic man!” He sang his name as his hat brightened in colour. He threw the fur coat to the ground, revealing a set of tattered yellow clothing. The Magic Man was green, literally. He stood with a somewhat mischievous grin on his face as he looked down at the ponies. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash looked up at him in awe and disbelief. Sure, there was plenty of magic in Equestria, but they’d always thought that magic was held exclusively for unicorns and alicorns. Seeing another being, especially one that they never encountered before, was bewildering. They watched on as he got down onto one knee and held a finger out. A butterfly landed on it. “Aw…” Fluttershy cooed. It was kind of cute to her. The Magic Man then balled up his other hand before holding out in front of the butterfly. Suddenly the insect roiled. Its body imploded, turning inside-out into a slimy, green ball of winged bug guts. It flapped its wings furiously, struggling to lift itself off the Magic Man’s finger before finally managing to do so. The sight of what just happened particularly scarred Fluttershy. She was holding onto Rainbow Dash, eyes shut tight as she tried to force the image from out of her mind. “I didn’t see a thing,” she stammered, “Did not see a thing. Just try to think happy thoughts.” “Why’d you do that?” Rainbow Dash glared at the Magic Man, who simply cast a gleeful smile in their direction. “You gave me that food, even though it did taste like complete junk,” he replied, “so I’ll do you a favour in return. A magic favour.” He sprinkled a strange bluish-violet powder over them: “A mystical, magical favour!” Suddenly, the worst happened. Fluttershy’s mane contorted before turning into a vomit green colour. The feathers on Rainbow Dash’s wings, as well as patches of her coat, fell to the ground at once. And finally, as if to add insult to injury for the situation, the pegasi were being sucked into a small vortex-like hole, before finding themselves stuck together in one body. The Magic Man finished, singing, “…For you~!” in a mocking tune. “Oh, my…” was Fluttershy’s only response to seeing the mess she and Rainbow Dash were in. The cyan pegasus, on the other hand, was not amused. “What the hay did you do to us?” “Isn’t it wonderful, ponies?” The Magic Man responded, skipping around the two terrified pegasi. He didn’t seem too fazed from the matter, seeing as he just mutated them, obviously on purpose. In fact, they could tell he was laughing on the inside. “Today, you get to learn a magical life lesson!” Rainbow Dash’s mouth was agape. She couldn’t believe her ears. They gave him food out of kindness, and he expects them to learn some type of lesson? Where was the logic in that? “No, change us back! NOW!” She would’ve been in his face if she wasn’t connected to Fluttershy. The Magic Man clapped his hands above his head and replied, “Not until you appreciate what a jerk I am!” With a gleeful and satisfied cheer at his work, Magic Man took off into the sky like a rocket. In a sudden flash of fireworks and pyrotechnics, that came together to spell ‘EAT IT’, he disappeared. Rainbow growled. “When I get my hooves on him…” Fluttershy looked around. There were no ponies around that witnessed what’d just occurred. They couldn’t stay out here forever, nor could they stay stuck in a single body. “What are we going to do?” she asked. “We obviously can’t do into town looking like this,” replied Rainbow,” We need a disguise.” Twilight answered the knock on her door. She opened it to Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. They were standing in the doorway awkwardly. Fluttershy had an oversized hat on her head with her mane done up in a bun and both were wearing a large trench coat over them. The way they looked had garnered some attention from ponies passing by. “Twilight,” Rainbow Dash started, “We need to talk.”
Magic Man Has SwagThe Magic Man in Equestria Chapter 3 With a swift kick, Applejack forced the doors opened into Rarity’s Carousal Boutique. They finally had the magic man cornered. They developed a plan on the way here on how they would go about capturing him, which would end with Twilight encasing him with her magic to prevent his escape. And then afterwards, once they had him where they wanted him, they would force him to change everypony back to normal. They went inside, only to find the living room empty, save for some sheets of fabric laid about and a few bare mannequins set off to the side. “We got you outnumbered, Magic Man!” Applejack announced. There was really no doubt that she was ready and willing to have revenge. RD agreed. “Get your sorry butt out here!” she demanded. They heard Rarity call from upstairs, “Girls, is that you?” It was strange to hear that she was all right, since not too long ago they heard her screaming all the way from Sweet Apple Acres. “Yeah, it’s us,” Twilight responded, “Is everything alright, Rarity?” They heard her begin to descend down the stairs. “Of course, everything is alright. Why wouldn’t it—?” She entered the living room, but stopped once she saw what four of her friends had become. She was awestruck at seeing them. “W-What happened?” “There’s some crazy Magic Man hang’n ‘round this part of Equestria,” said Applejack, “He went and did this to us, and now we’re on a hunt’n for him so he can change us back.” Rarity put a hoof to her chin. “A Magic Man, huh? Well that can’t be true, entirely.” “Why not?” asked Applejack. Rarity responded, “Well because he’s upstairs right now. I was planning on introducing you all to him once I got Pinkie Pie.” Her answer had surprised the group, though it was more than enough of a resolve for Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy to charge upstairs to Rarity’s room. “What’s their problem?” the prim unicorn asked. “Magic Man did that to all of them,” said Twilight. Spike, who was still in the form of a ball, confirmed it. Rarity wasn’t sure she wanted to believe them. To her, Magic Man seemed like a nice fellow when she first met him. Sure, his outfit was raggedy, and that made her scream out of habit, but after she offered him a place to stay, it turned out he was one of the nicest guys she’d ever meet. Perhaps she would find a way to get the others see that, also. With Twilight and Spike, she headed upstairs to see that an argument had broken out. A barrier had been set up in front of the Magic Man, separating him from the trio of ponies he had recently mutated. Rarity cleared her throat. “Now girls, don't be hasty.” She broke them up, backing Applejack and Rainbow Dash/Fluttershy from her guest. If Magic Man truly did do this to them, then a proper way to get him to change them back would be through politeness, rather than mindless brutality. “Whatever happened between you two, I'm sure we all can handle it in the utmost civilised way.” Magic Man raised an eyebrow. “Civilised?” “When I agreed to take Magic Man in,” said Rarity, continuing to defend the magician, “he promised to help with some of my designs. Why, if I do say so myself, he's one of the nicest being that I've ever—” In a sudden flash, the alabaster unicorn was engulfed in the violet-blue smoke, the same that everyone in the room was all too familiar with. They heard Rarity cough as she emerged, staggering from the smoke. Her new appearance had left the ponies' mouths agape, and it left Spike petrified in shock. She opened her eyes to see them staring. “Why are you looking at me like that?” They were too nervous to say anything. Applejack was scratching the back of her apple head, trying not to look; Rainbow Dash was whistling and Fluttershy's and Twilight's eyes darted around the room; Spike was the only one still staring at her, albiet he was still in shock at her new appearance. Rarity was left confused, unknown to what held her friends back from saying something. “Here, honey,” Magic Man floated next to her, holding a mirror, “You might need this.” Grabbing the mirror with her magic, Rarity looked at herself, and upon seeing her reflection she screamed. Her makeup had exploded over her head, with lipstick smeared over her mouth and mixed in with the eyeliner over her eyes; her mane had literally been annihilated, like a student barber had taken to cutting hair with garden shears; and to top it off, she wasn't a pony anymore; the Magic Man had changed her into a rat/mannequin hybrid. Rarity’s face was red with anger. She glared daggers into Magic Man, who only floated above the floor with a cheeky grin on his green face. His hands placed on his hips, he gave a nod of approval at another job well-done. “Five in one day? Wow, that’s my new personal best,” he declared, giddy as the ponies confronted him, “Guess I owe myself five bucks.” Rarity growled. “You did this to me, you ruffian. Why?” “Well,” Magic Man started, “You called me nice. And I can’t have people thinking that, can I? I have a reputation to uphold, after all. But the main reason is that you, my pretty unicorn friend, were generous enough to give this homeless beggar a roof over his head. And now you get to partake in the wonderful life lesson that I plan to give everyone in this very strange land!” He said this all as if it was a good thing, considering that he had just gone and outright mutated another pony. Twilight’s horn glowed. She shot a blast of magic at the Magic Man, which was effortlessly redirected into the wall behind him, blasting a hole through to the outside. “Haha! Better luck next time, kiddies!” The Magic Man turned himself into a rocket and sped out of the building, but only but causing another hole in the wall. Twilight and her friends coughed, fanning away the smoke. Out of it, they noticed a note on the ground. Twilight picked it up. Dear ponies, Eat it! With love, Magic Man She crumpled the paper and threw it away. This Magic Man was becoming more of a pain than before. “How the hay do we go about catch’n this guy? He has just as much magic as Twilight does,” said Applejack. Twilight couldn’t lie to herself, but she silently agreed with her. Whatever abilities this Magic Man possessed, it was easily on par with hers. Maybe it matched Shining Armour’s, or Discord’s, or even the Princesses’! The realisation made their situation that much more difficult. Catching the Magic Man was no easy task, at least not conventionally. “I think I have a plan,” said Twilight. “Follow me.” With interest present in his eyes, Magic Man looked down at the very small creature in front of him. There was no doubt it had caught his attention. “I like you, kid,” he said, “You remind me of me when I was younger: clever, stunning, and a real ladies' man.” Gummy held the normally blank expression on his face. He blinked, his eyes staring off into different directions as he turned his back to the magician in front of him. Magic Man smiled at this little guy. He was a jerk, just like him. Outside, he heard his name called. He walked over towards the window to see a pink, poofy-maned pony standing in the street. Now what could she possibly want with him? Only one way to find out, he thought. After donning his clever disguise, he pushed open the window and flew from Sugarcube Corner onto the streets. Ponies passing by turned their attention to the stranger as he walked towards Pinkie Pie. “I've never seen you before,” the pink pony said. “I'm fairly new around here,” the Magic Man replied, using his beggar alias to fool her. From a nearby alley, Twilight waited for the right moment to strike. Pinkie Pie was a decoy, meant to keep Magic Man distracted long enough for her to ensnare him in her magic. She just had to stay out of sight. Pinkie was chatting nonstop with the Magic Man. He looked distracted, not taking his eyes off the pink-coated earth pony bouncing around him. She saw her chance. She galloped out of cover, horn glowing in preparation. The Magic Man still had his back turned. He hadn't noticed her, thankfully. She got close, ready to finally end it. At the last moment, however, Magic Man made his own move. He jumped, doing a backflip over Twilight. He threw off his disguse, laughing at the unicorn's failed attempt. “I could sense you coming from a mile away. Guess you'll have to try harder if you wanna catch me.” Twilight couldn't understand how he was able to sense her magic, yet she couldn't do the same. She looked over and noticed Pinkie Pie had been hit with the blue powder that Magic Man used on everyone else. When it subsided, Pinkie's body entirely had been turned into candy chocolate. Magic Man tipped his hat, bidding farewell to the ponies before vanishing. “Pinkie Pie, are you okay?” asked Twilight. When Pinkie saw her new body, she gasped. “I love it!” The ponies were witnessed the spectacle were in surprise at what happened. However, several ponies stepped up. “That was him, wasn't it? That was the Magic Man?” asked Bon-Bon. “You know him?” asked Twilight. “Know him?” Bon-Bon could some anger rising. She wished hadn't known him. “He cast some transformation spell on Lyra after she played him some music.” “He caught my coltfriend just last week,” a mare joined. Another told him what happened to his friend after he met the Magic Man. It seemed like Twilight's friends weren't the only ones caught by the magician, and it definitely seemed that he had been hanging around Ponyville much longer than she'd thought. Wherever the Magic Man was now, they needed to find him before he was able to get away.
Can't Stop Magic Man!The Magic Man in Equestria Chapter 4 Princess Celestia and Princess Luna could only cringe, with a staggering mix of shock and confusion, at the sight beheld in front of them. They had expected, when Twilight told them that something had happened to her friends, to bear witness to something similar to the time Discord corrupted them. What they saw, instead, was something far beyond expectations. “And who did this to you again?” asked Celestia. Rainbow Dash replied, “He calls himself a Magic Man. He’s been doing this to ponies all across Ponyville.” Luna closed her eyes. Her horn glowed as she focused her energy in attempt and track the culprit responsible. “It doesn’t seem that I can locate him.” “I’ve tried that, also,” said Twilight, “and the weird thing is that he’s able to sense our magic. And it doesn’t seem native to Equestria, either.” “I’m afraid I have to agree,” said Luna, “Transformation spells that can turn a pony into something like… this are well beyond even our abilities.” “What do you suppose we do?” asked Rarity. She was more than ready to get her hooves on the Magic Man for doing this to her. The last thing she expected, after she showed such generosity, was to be mutated. “The first thing we need to do,” Celestia announced, “is locate this Magic Man as soon as possible—” “I’m way ahead of you, honey!” They turned towards the source of the voice to see the Magic Man plastered on one of the stained-glass window pictures. The window bared a painting of Twilight and her friends using the Elements of Harmony against Discord. The Martian was lying atop of Twilight’s head, eating a bag of popcorn. “It’s so wonderful to see you all here together!” “How’d you know we were coming here?” said Twilight. Magic Man finished the last of the popcorn and threw the bag away. “I think the term is called ‘following’. You seven are just so much fun that I’ve decided that to hitch ride in hopes of finding equally fun ponies in this Kingdom. You can see that I was pleased with the results.” Celestia looked up at the green man with a threatening glare, but it did not seem to faze him. “Are you the one they call Magic Man?” The magician jumped from the picture and floated down in front of the Princesses. A huge, goofy grin was plastered on his face as he glanced over at his most recent victims. “Why, yes I am. This is wonderful, isn’t it? It’s fantastic to know that my reputation is beginning to grow around these parts.” “We were told that you’ve been mutating ponies around Ponyville.” “Ponyville? Is that what you call that nowhere town?” The Magic Man’s laughter that followed earned a few glares from the equines in front of him. “And yes, while my magic’s been lingering in that town, I’ve been to other places, as well. And I must say to you, Princess-” He pointed at Celestia and Luna, “This place, Canterlot is something else. I’ve seen a lot of snooty, uptight, and arrogant ponies who have been bringing tears to my eyes all day. Of course, there have been the occasional generous and kind equines that I’ve ran into on the way here.” “Generous and kind?” Applejack gulped. “Oh boy…” A guard ran into the throne room. “Princess, we have a situation. We have a large number of mutants amassing at the castle entrance.” He stopped when he caught sight of the several creatures in front of him. “Apparently, some of them have also found a way into the castle, as well.” Princess Celestia looked back at the Martian. “I demand that you change them back, Magic Man.” “Sorry, Queeny, that’s not how this works.” Magic Man floated. “For you see, my glorious lesson has yet to be learned by anyone I’ve met. But I’ll strike a deal with you: I’ll reverse my magic and change everyone back, but only if one of you can figure out that is.” Luna, lout of anger and frustration, shot a bolt of lightning at him. If he wouldn’t go through with this peaceful, they’d have to use force. She was taken back when Magic Man opened a portal, letting her attack pass through harmlessly. The Martian laughed. “Sorry, hun-” he pointed a finger at his butt, “-don’t touch what you can’t afford!” With a last laugh directed at the clueless ponies, the Magic Man teleported out of the throne room. It’s been a few weeks since Discord’s reformation. Of course, even though he was no longer causing random acts of chaos across Equestria, it was still fun knowing that he could still play pranks and maintain the amount necessary for keeping the natural balance in the Kingdom. He was the still the Spirit of Disharmony; doing it was literally one of his main reasons for living. Though, now, today had been a slow day. There wasn’t much to do, except take a walk around the castle, and there was no fun in that. As he passed an intersection, he found himself crashing into a few Royal Guards. “What’s the rush?” he asked in annoyance. He teleported himself off the ground and looked down at the armoured ponies in front of him. “We’re searching for someone,” said one of the Guards. “And who might that be?” “He’s calls himself a Magic Man, whatever that means. He’s been mutating ponies all across Equestria, apparently for fun, and we’ve been—” He lost Discord when he mentioned that ponies had been mutated for fun. Hearing this type of news had given the Draconniquis an opportunity to make most out of today. “I see. And what might this ‘Magic Man’ look like?” “For starters, he’s not a pony. He’s green and he wears ragged clothing—” “He’s basically a giant pickle,” a younger Guard commented. “Interesting…” Discord rubbed his beard. This could have been the perfect chance for him to have fun today. All he’d need to do was find this Magic Man, wherever he might have been. Although, it wouldn’t be too difficult for him to locate another magical being in Equestria, especially one that’s causing chaos. “All right, I’ll help you find this Magic Man.” His proposal had drawn some questionable looks from the guards. “Really? You’d really do that?” “What? You don’t think I can help?” His question was met with silence. “Just go back on guard duty. I’ll find this Magic Man myself.”
A Jerk in Ponyville A Jerk in Ponyville The Magic Man in Equestria Chapter 2 Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, still stuck together in a single body, stood in the middle of Twilight’s room. The lavender unicorn in question paced around the both of them. She was astounded at how this happened. She did not think magic was capable of doing something like this to anyone in Equestria. Whoever did this must have had a large amount of energy at their disposal, enough to even match hers. Finally, Twilight stopped. “How did this happen?” she asked. “Some magic man near Whitetail Forest,” said Rainbow, “He made us like this after we gave him some food. He said that he wanted to teach us some ‘magical life lesson’.” Twilight wondered what lesson there was to learn from showing a person generosity and kindness. It didn’t make sense. She placed the thought to the side for the moment and aimed her horn at the two pegasi. They were enveloped in a cloud of purple, floating up from the ground before being pulled apart. For a moment, it seemed like Twilight’s solution would work. The two seemed like they would be back in their own bodies, but wouldn’t stay like that for long. Twilight’s magic quickly wore off, sooner than expected, and forced Rainbow and Fluttershy to join bodies once again. The unicorn became frustrated, trying it yet again, but yielding the same result. She couldn’t get her head around how this was possible. “Whatever magic this guy was using, it doesn’t seem natural. It’s negating my magic.” “So you’re telling me you can’t change us back?” said Rainbow. “Not unless we go and find this magic man, first,” replied Twilight, “If his magic caused this, then I’m certain it’ll reverse the effects.” “Then what are we waiting for?” Rainbow, excited, made a dash for the exit. She didn’t move or budge far, considering that she was still stuck to the butter yellow pegasus. “Sorry, Rainbow, but I you’ll have to take things a bit slower,” said Twilight, “I’m sure we can find them, though. He can’t hide forever.” They heard claws scraping against wood. They looked over at the stairs to see Spike walking into the room. He was shocked and startled when he saw Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash in the situation they were in. “What… happened to you two?” The two pegasi looked at each other (it was an awkward sight to see them trying to) and responded, “It’s a long story.” Spike, still confused as to how it happened to his friends, walked over to his basket. He reached under the cushion and grabbed a small burlap bag from underneath. He’d make a note to hide it somewhere else afterwards. “What’cha got there, Spike?” asked Twilight. “Just some bits.” The dragon headed back for the stairs. “I met some guy on the way here. Said he needed some to repay a debt, and I said I’d help him out.” Twilight grew suspicious about it. Hearing about some stranger asking for money drew a considerable amount of questions, but she would rather dig deeper than just jump to conclusions. “If you don’t mind me asking, who is it that asked you?” Spike shrugged. “I dunno. Said he was a beggar or something.” The mention of the work triggered alarm bells in Fluttershy’s and Rainbow Dash’s heads. “Beggar?” “Spike! Wait!” Fluttershy called down. Twilight looked at them. “What? What’s going on?” Before any answers could be given, a loud noise rang through the air, and followed by a puff of blue smoke rising from downstairs. Twilight, along with Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, hurried into the library. Out of a cloud of blue smoke in front of the door, Spike appeared, but he wasn’t himself. He’d been turned into a rubber ball! The blue smoke finally disappeared, revealing a man dressed in a fur coat standing in the doorway. “You!” Rainbow Dash immediately recognised him. “That right! Is it I, the Magic Man!” He threw off the coat and stared at his two previous victims with glee. “So, have you two sissy do-gooders learned your lesson yet?” Rainbow growled. “Change them back, Magic Man!” Twilight demanded. Her demand was met with a disapproving look. “Nah-ah-ah! That’s not how it works in my world, honey. Just like this little guy…” he referred them to Spike, “These two need to learn what I’m trying to teach them. Come on, it’s not that hard, is it?” “Why you!” It didn’t matter if she was connected to Fluttershy or not, Rainbow wanted to get her hooves on his guy. “You want a piece of me? You’ll have to catch me, first!” He clapped his hands together, and in a puff of smoke, he vanished, leaving three confused ponies and a dragon. “Where’d he go now?” asked Spike. Twilight tried her magic, but yielded no results. “I can’t track him anywhere. We’re gonna have to warn everypony in town about him before he can strike again.” Applejack kicked the side of the tree, making the ripe, plentiful apples fall into the waiting buckets below. Despite only working for half an hour, she was already beginning to feel the effects of the afternoon sun. She took her hat off, fanning some of the sweat from her coat. As she continued her harvest, she heard a cough coming from further into the orchard. She figured it must have been Applebloom, or Sweetie Belle or Scootaloo. Perhaps one of them was getting sick. She followed the sound, but instead of coming across one of the CMC fillies in questions, she found a large figure lying against one of the trees. “You all right, Mister?” she asked. The man coughed again, looking over at Applejack. “I’ve fallen very sick and I’m without a home,” he told her, “Would you be as kind as to provide a poor old man a place to stay for the night.” Applejack felt a huge amount of sympathy for this man. He was not only homeless, but also ill and broken. It wouldn’t be in her character to deny him some food and a home. “Sure thing, pal.” She helped him to his feet. “Ya’ll can help yourself to some of the apples here, if ya like.” The man looked up at the plentiful apples that graced the orchard. “Thank you ever so much. But, uh, just one thing… I’m not really homeless.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “You’re not?” He chuckled. “No, I’m afraid I’m not. I’m actually a…” he threw off the fur coat and revealed himself to the orange pony, “Magic Man!” Applejack had a surprised look on her face. This was surely unexpected, seeing another purely magical race in Equestria. “So, you’re magic?” The Magic Man nodded. “Yep, I guess I am! And because you were so kind to give a home to a sluggishly old beggar like me, I’ll repay the favour by doing you a mystical magical favour!” Twilight, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Spike teleported and found themselves at Sweet Apple Acres. The unicorn had Spike suspended from the ground with her magic since there was no way he could really move on his own. “Applejack has to be around here, somewhere,” said Twilight. They scanned the area. She wasn’t near the house, so that meant she must be somewhere in the apple orchard. They called out for her, but before they had a chance to go in and look, the all too familiar sound of smoke reached their ears, followed by a cloud of blue rising into the air from inside the orchard. Fluttershy feared the worst. “Oh no…” They watched as a figure staggered from behind the trees, coughing. When it emerged, they saw it was Applejack. The four of them were horrified at what happened to her; her head had been transformed into an apple, saved for her eyes, mouth, and muzzle. She looked bemused at her four friends standing in front of her, particularly at Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, and then at Spike. “Lemme guess: you met that magic guy, too?” They nodded. “Yep,” said Rainbow Dash. “He’s going around doing this to anypony who’s nice to him,” said Twilight, “It doesn’t make any sense in the slightest. He changed Spike into a ball before we got here. And you can already see what he did to Rainbow and Fluttershy.” Applejack stomped her hoof on the ground. “I found the no-good varmint in m’ah orchard and agreed to give him a place to stay for the night. Disappeared right after he did this to me. Why, when I find him, again, I’m gonna—” They heard an ear-piercing scream shoot through the sky, and at that moment, they knew who it belonged to. “Rarity!”
