Hippo

Today I have worked on and finished two new character applications for World of Equestria role play. I've been wanting to make these for a while, and finally got them on paper. So here they are. Introducing: Zareb the zebra, and Sky Beak the hippogriff!

Roleplay Type: World of Equestria Cast Name: Sky Beak Gender: Male Age: Adult Species: Hippogriff Eye color: Orange Coat: Lavender or perano Mane/Tail: Light grey two-tone, long and light Physique: Full grown and athletic Residence: Mount Aris Occupation: Lead Council-member of the revision of the Mount Aris community Unique Traits: Like most hippogriffs, owns a shard of the magic pearl that allows him to transform into a seapony on command. Also like hippogriffs, is extremely eccentric and excited about his freedom and likeness. He represents a standard that many Mount Aris residents follow. Flaws: Unconsciously disrespects others' opinions, especially if they come from a lower place on the culture hierarchy. History: Prior to the Storm King's invasion of Mount Aris, Sky Beak was a trusted member of the royal hippogriff family and was revered as one of the nation's rulers. But when the Storm King invaded, Sky Beak and many other hippogriffs went into hiding while Queen Novo and the general hippogriff population used the magic to transform themselves into seaponies. While Sky Beak could maintain the ability to transform also, he chose not to and ventured across the ocean with his faithful commander Seaspray, looking for ways to resurrect the hippogriffs from their ocean home, including the love of his life Ocean Flow, from their watery prison. He believed that though escaping the Storm King underwater gave them freedom from his clutches, it only did so at a cost of the hippogriff way of life, and the division of families like his own. When the Storm King was defeated, Sky Beak returned to Mount Aris. Queen Novo continued to be a seapony with those who wished to stay in the water, which included the mother of his children, Ocean Flow. The queen commissioned Sky Beak to rebuild the community atop Mount Aris, so that those who wanted to return to Hippogriff lifestyle could do so. Over the months following the eradication of the Storm King's evil, Mount Aris has become a party city, which hosts many festivals and celebrations every weekend. It is Sky Beak's intention that the hippogriff way of life will never die and will become even more vibrant in future generations. Character Personality: Sky Beak is very protective of his kind, but understands that sometimes they may not wish for him to rule their lifestyle. He attempts to encourage everyone around him that a good sense of community and celebrating your identity is important to the community as a whole. He is a natural-born leader who is charismatic and delegates with joy to others on how they should proceed to maintaining a successful Mount Aris society. He can often be overly kind though, and at least with foreigners, can be aggressive with his insinuations that hippogriffs are the best creatures on the planet. He has good reason though, and if told an opposing opinion, has enough virtue to understand the difference of perspective and is willing to concede someone's personal choices. Character Summary: Sky Beak is a very energetic hippogriff that represents his kind very well to the rest of the world. Though sometimes his attitude can seem invoked with classism, his intentions are well placed and only desires that those he leads over have the most happiness in life.

Roleplay Type: World of Equestria Name: Zareb Gender: Male Age: Young stallion Species: Zebra Eye colour: Turquoise Coat: Standard zebra grey Mane/Tail: Buzzcut-looking mane and tied frizzy tail, both a grey-scaled dark teal Physique: Average stallion build, stronger than most ponies however Residence: Unyasi, on foreign exchange to Ponyville at the School of Friendship Occupation: Student at the School of Friendship Cutie Mark: Symbol meaning "Friendship" or "Bonds" Unique Traits: Outgoing, personable, charismatic Flaws: Lacks awareness of personal space, misses social cues, resistant to conform to social acceptance History: Zareb comes from the land of Unyasi. In his tribe, his family and friends took notice at his ability to bring others together even when he was very young. In the communities he had spent time in, all zebras held a closer bond than they did before he was involved in it. In one instance, he was able to create friends out of sworn enemies, and his cutie mark appeared. As he grew towards stallionhood, some of the elders suggested he travel to Equestria to see if his ability to mold friendships could be enhanced or learned from. With the School of Friendship opening in Ponyville, he was sent as a foreign exchange so that he might learn something new about friendship, but also in hopes that the leaders of Equestria would recognize a zebra in their institution as a sign of increased political influence between the dominant pony nation and the distant zebra empire across the sea. Character Personality: Zareb is an adventurous zebra, but prefers to do things with others. He will attempt to bond with others around them, even if they initially reject his presence. He knows that kindness and a good attitude can generally sway someone else to be more open to being friends. He is also inspired to do some things that he has no talent for. One of his futile dreams is to be a rapper, but lacks the real prowress to rhyme on command and cannot generate good lyrics to a beat, but he will continue to try. Zareb is protective of his friends if adversaries go too far; He does not yield to those who have no chance for redeeming a relationship. Character Summary: When first meeting Zareb, sometimes he can be overly friendly and abrasively kind. Behind his forced relationship-building, however, is a tough zebra who truly wants to make a positive difference in the world around him.

For my third day of Hippo week, I'd like to honor my B.P.R.P.F.F. (Best Pony Role Play Friend Forever), SteelEagle. Over the years, him and I have posted many ponies, and occasionally did so in the form of text chat. This allowed us to react to each other in a different, more immediate way, as well as add some story fill to other role players in threads that require some dialogue to expand the scope of the narrative. We did it when it called for it, but mostly we did it because it's really fun! If you have ever thought about doing this kind of thing, I would recommend it. Find someone who is on at the same time as you and duke it out in character back and forth. Here are three joint posts Steel and I published just this past weekend:

(Joint post that includes Hippo and SteelEagle in character responses. Made via Discord text chat) Silverstream carried a plate of snacks with her as she hovered alongside Gallus. The two were exploring the castle a little, hoping to find a secret room. However, most of everything they saw so far were empty rooms. "I wonder if we could spend a night in the castle. They probably wouldn't even notice!" Silverstream giggled. She entered a room before Gallus and looked around. "Another empty room." Silverstream turned to exit the room, but stopped when she spotted a pony skeleton in the corner of the room, animated as if it were alive. She did a double take, and then dropped her snacks. She quickly zipped out of the door and planted herself against the wall in the hallway, giving Gallus a feared expression. "What... was that!?" Gallus snickered. "With all the chaos of the Chancellor doing this whole castle-sitting nonsense, I think we could get away with that really easy," he said as he flew over her to reach for a chip, tossing it into his mouth as he completed the loop to be on her other side. "And if we're caught, well, we'll say its for research. The Chancellor is a sucker for that," he laughed as he went to follow her into the room. That failed as she shot out, spinning him in place. Such was the force of her exit that the plate of snacks was sent flying- and as he landed on the ground in confusion, the two cupcakes landed on his face, one on each eye. He sat up with a huff as he looked into the room. "Well, it looks like cupcakes because somegriff decided she..." he started as they slid off of his face, plunking onto the ground with a delicious thud. Then he saw the skeleton, and his throat got caught up in a gulp as he slowly started pushing himself up, his wings flaring up slowly. "Uhhh...uhhh...Twilight's...umm, Twilight's Nightmare Night...thing?" He said haltingly, trying to remain brave even as he slowly started to back up towards Silverstream, back to her and front facing the door. Silverstream encroached over Gallus as he stepped back to her in a guarding manner. She subconsciously accepted the stance he set as some kind of alpha protector, but she supported him by giving him the physical affirmation she knew the griffin secretly liked. One of her claws was set softly on his backside. "Twilight's? What if it's the new Headmare's? You know them well, are they into this kind of thing? Like even a as a joke?" Silverstream was amazed by almost everything she laid her eyes on, and was typically only fearful of things that harmed her emotionally or otherwise. A pony skeleton fell into a grey area where she felt curiously anxious about how it existed in the first place. Gallus and her had once been amazed at the sight of a picture of King Grover that seemed to be animated, but only became fearful of it when it started flying and chasing after them. His tail flickered nervously as she touched his backside, her warmth sending a quick shiver to his extremities that ended with a quickly squashed blush. "I...I mean maybe, I guess its possible...but I don't think so. At least, why have it hidden in a random room like this if it was supposed to be a joke?" He asked, the curious cat allowing his wandering mind to distract him from a primal fear. Skeletons belonged on the inside, not outside, and anytime he had seen a non-scholastically related skeleton it wasn't a good time. He found a chipped piece of crystal and picked it up, then threw it into the room, at his best approximation of where he thought the skeleton was. "Hey! Hey, creepy skeleton thing! Just..stop what you're doing! Being c-creepy, stop it!" The rock landed next to the skeleton. Silverstream peaked inside the room to see if Gallus hit it or not. She observed it careful. Fortunately, but still creepily, it seemed to be browsing a few old bookshelves and occasionally looking under furniture that had been stored there for space-saving. "What is it doing?" She asked out loud. "It's like it doesn't even know we're here. Oh! Maybe because it has no eyes so it can't see us!" Silverstream perked with brilliance but then dropped her excitement. "But then how does it know where things are?"

Remington chuckled shyly. "Hehe, no. I don't think there are any pools out here anyway." Remington walked outside with the rest of the class, his eyes adjusting to the blurry brightness of the sunshine. He peered across the field they were walking towards once he could see the mostly green terrain. "There aren't any pools out here, are there?" Moonlight thought about it. She knew there was a pool somewhere out there, since they needed to train the swim team and whatnot. But was there one nearby? She wasn't sure. She tapped her hoof to her chin, almost missing and hitting her snout. Not seeing was a bitch, wasn't it? "I don't think there are. But, like, if there are, don't lead me to one. I don't have a towel and drying off in the sun is, uggh, so super grody like you wouldn't believe. I'd be totally itchy all over." Remington walked down the path to meet with the rest of the class next to what the professor deemed the starting line. Every moment that passed this began to look more like a race to the fast pegasus. Figures. "Alright, Moonlight, we're over here." Remington looked back and saw the disfigured Moonlight-shaped object far behind him. "Oh, that's right. You can't see." He started walking back briskly to where Moonlight was, tripped on a misstep of his hoof and quickly recovered. Next to Moonlight he started telling her where the path was. "Ok, the path is beneath you. It's beneath you. It's still beneath you. Turn left, I mean right, my right. Oh you can't see me, just go straight, there's nothing in front of you." Remington began to realize how helpless he might be at this. Remington was walking a little bit faster than Moonlight was. Easy to see why- well, see was the inappropriate word. Easy to understand why. Because he could see, see? That and she would never claim to be the fastest pony anyway. As she meandered listlessly though there was a moment of concern, her ears twitching at the sound of a pony...perhaps falling? Huh. Whoever tripped better not be the leader of the group. That could cause trouble! His voice chimed in with exact instructions. It would be easy to get annoyed at them but she had been working with a rather demanding fashion mare and her equally demanding fashion show compatriots on shows across the land. Reacting to a colt's hurried, harried instructions wasn't something to tickle her tail hairs any. She followed his instructions, flaws included, but could hear the trepidation creeping in his voice. "You're doing so good. Just relax, Manehattan." Remington exhaled. Everything was cool. Moonlight was cool. He was not cool for some reason. Or maybe he was just worried something bad was going to happen. It was possible the only reason why he felt this anxious about anything was because he was constantly worried about how long he might be without a fixed pair of glasses. Having his vision impaired flustered Remington, and all times, it had to be now, when he was giving directions to a potential friend who seemed to like what he was about, whatever that was. "Only a few more steps and... Stop! We made it. Well, we made it to the start line, keep your blindfold on." She reacted on point, stopping at what she could only assume was the right position. Out of habit she stuck out her chest and stood with a straight stern back, as if she were about to spin in place and walk up and down the aisle. Fashion models were second behind only the Royal Guard when it came to parade-ground formation trotting, or so she had been told. "Ready when you are. Or when the Professor is. Or really whenever." When the professor gave the signal, Remington turned and faced Moonlight. "Alright we got this. Hey, wait don't move yet. What are you doing? I didn't say to walk forward yet." When a stallion was close enough for Remington to notice he wasn't even talking to Moonlight, he shook his head and looked at the lone mare standing by herself. "Oh. Moonlight, go ahead and walk forward at a normal pace. Turn left in about six steps. Or seven. Six and a half, maybe." She waited and when it was time to go she excitedly waited for his instructions. That excitement became confusion which was expertly hidden in her eyes, away from the prying judgments of her compatriot, when he then told her not to move. What was that all about? She was having doubts now. Was his eyesight gonna lead him to trouble? Her to trouble? As these thoughts flew about her head, he started giving her orders. And she did her best to follow them, even including a half-step- which she did with a short hop, her tail rolling up and down like a wave in the ocean as she did so. Moonlight did a great job following his instructions. Except she had deviated from the line by about two steps. Was that too far? "Great, now just sidestep to the left a couple steps." Remington turned to look ahead of the pair. All the other ponies were ahead of them including some of the ones that seemed to cripple themselves to the finish of the last obstacle course. At least this one seemed filled with nothing but green grass. The white chalk line the professor had drawn started to fade already having been trampled by the students before them. So he decided to call an audible and try to make do. He walked backward in the direction of the other ponies. "Follow my voice, Moonlight. Turn to your 2 o'clock and keep walking straight. Nothing is in front of you. Except me." Everything was fine in Moonlight's world. Truth was the hop had adjusted her blindfold and if she wanted to cheat it had been loosened enough to do so, but she wasn't going to do that. So she also closed her eyes, to double-lock-blind herself for the time being. She moved with practiced precision and grace, gliding over the grass with great gaiety as she followed the voice in front of her, which was all she needed to hear. It was a calming one too, even as it went up and down and seemed to try and steel itself. He could do it. She had the faith! Remington and Moonlight had been walking in tandem for a few moments. He had constantly been checking behind him--the direction they were walking--to make sure the others where still there and that they were in their wake. The white line seemed to have completely faded and seemed like a misjudgment on the professor's call to even suggest following an arbitrary line in the first place. But then, a stallion walked in the opposite direction of the two. "Oh, stop! Turn right ninety degrees, and then turn ninety degrees again, to the right. I guess turn a hundred and eighty degrees. Not twice though, only once. Just turn around." Remington facehoofed himself and walked to the other side of Moonlight, the direction the other stallion had trotted. He seemed to be in a hurry. Hopefully he knew where he was going. Remington was counting on following others to help him lead his newly found friend. She walked and walked and then found herself suddenly being stopped. She could feel the tail of somepony else graze her...going in the opposite direction. Weird. She then started to follow his directions but this time they were hurried, confused, almost panicked. She turned ninety degrees, then another, then started to do a one-eighty when she was told what the real scoop was. Luckily she hadn't been made a fool of yet and started to walk forward. "Remmy, relax. No need to pull a Sunrise Special out of this," she said with a giggle. Then realized he likely didn't know what that meant. And then was embarrassed, and kept quiet. Only a short moment after they had started walking in their new direction, the same stallion as before and another pony quickly ran in the other direction again. They were going back? "Oh no," Remington thought out loud. "This might be the blind leading the blind." Remington paused on that sentiment and the longer he lingered on it, the more real it became. A pony next to Remington who was purple and seemed to have an orange afro mane suggested to him, "What are you doing on the buckball court?" Remington facehoofed again. "Moonlight, just stand still, I need to get us out of this." Apparently he got lost in an open field and lead himself and blindfolded Moonlight into the practice field during hoofball practice. He flew upwards to get an aerial view and saw instantly they had trotted off course by about forty to fifty steps. He fell down gracefully next to Moonlight. "Alright Moonlight, let's walk forward, turn left to your 10 o'clock and continue walking." Remington was now in Moonlight's right ear, instead of facing her and not looking at where he was going. Though blurry, the distant trees gave him a field of view he could relate to, and he could make it pretty easy. Being this close to Moonlight seemed to give him funny feelings as well. It didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened and Moonlight was a genius- well, a genius when it came to figuring out when ponies were in over their head. Like Remington was. Though in his case it was more likely blinded by his shattered eye glasses. She nodded when he said he needed to clear it up. That was fine. She was not happy to be on the buckball court (which she could feel the difference in grass underneath her hoof). And she took this time to fix herself a way out of this jam. Eyes open, horn lit, she nudged the blindfold a little lower. Not enough to uncover her eyes, but just enough for her to be able to get a sense of what was around her. He returned then and started giving her orders once again, and she followed now with her added bit of aid. And he ordered her around with his warm breath on her ears, which made her spine tingle and her ear twitch. "Ooooh, getting a little close now ain'tcha?" "Oh, sorry." Remington blushed. "Just wanted to make sure you could hear me. Sorry for yelling earlier, I was just a little, turn right. I was just a little stressed about my glasses. But everything seems fine now. Turn left." Remington seemed to be able to lead Moonlight a lot better this way, along side her instead of leading her like some kind of stray animal. They should have done this from the start. "There's a line of small rocks in front of you, they should be easy to step over or onto. A few more steps and we're done." "It's fine. Like, really. It isn't the first dramatic situation I've been in," she said with a giggle as she followed his directions. It had nothing over a giant worm trying to eat her alive now, did it? It came time for the rocks. She thought they were in the right area and so, in case Rainbow Dash was in the area, closed her eyes and resettled the blindfold before hopping over the rocks. As the two approached the rest of the class, it was obvious they were in last place if this was a race. Good thing it wasn't a race, right? Oh, Luna, was it a race!? "We made it, heh," Remington stated to the others as he and Moonlight joined the group. She walked the last few steps, using her tail to strategically slap him as a sign of gratitude. "Good work there, Remmy. Without your glasses, too! Like, so cool!" She said as she joined the group, turning to face him.

Applejack looked back at her cousin Moonlight to see what she was talking about. "You got hurt? Lemme see." The apple professor stopped trotting away and held Moonlight's hoof close to her so she could examine it. "Well, you walked outta class just fine. So it couldn't have been that deep of a cut. Don't worry you'll be fine, just rub some dirt on it. Or don't rub dirt on it, and just get a bandage from the nurses office. I gotta go, Sugarcube, them apples don't sell themselves!" Applejack paused one more time and looked back at her cousin to her one more loving assurance of her livelihood. "You best not be callin' in sick tomorrow on accounta yer minor scratch there, Missy." She chuckled to release the tension as a joke and trotted away. Remington found it odd how much in a hurry Moonlight was to leave class. Either she secretly hated her cousin's teachings, or she had a meet up with others. Yeah, Remington, you're not the only one she's friends with. But what's this? Remington looked down around her table as the class emptied out, and something pink and sparkly was hiding underneath it. Remington bent down and grabbed it. It was a hairbrush. "Moonlight, you forgot your brush..." Remington looked up to see if he could catch her before she left within earshot, but she was gone. He looked back down at the brush in his hooves and made the executive decision a hero like him was capable of. "I'll put it in my bag and give it to her tonight. She'll be so impressed that I found it for her." He had no more time to waste, he left the classroom and galloped towards the gym.

((The following is an interlude to the story thread here in which Remington takes off for gym class before meeting with his fillyfriend Moonlight later that evening.)) When Remington arrived at the gym, he went into the stallion's locker room to change out of his uniform and into his more athletic appropriate clothing. Not that it would make much of a difference for him. He wasn't very athletic, but like most ponies that would endure a gym class like this one, he would only be required to play fair and work as a team with others in order to get a passing grade. His peak wingpower wasn't all that low, but he would be able to avoid the embarrassment of having to deal with most of the class being stronger than he was. Today, the class would be outside. The buckball court would be temporarily changed into a diamond-shaped field that had white lines and large square bags on the corners. The game was called base ball. No one had ever heard of it before. This new student in the class, named First Base, came up with the rules of the game and introduced it to the professors and was able to get the go ahead on sharing the game with the class. "It's easy. You throw the ball, you hit the ball, you catch the ball, you get on base." First Base was a pony that grew up in Ponyville and upon getting his cutie mark after hitting a ball with a stick very far, held the imagination required to make this zany, sometimes confusing game. "Do I hit the ball and then catch it?" Remington asked aimlessly as he was trying to understand. First was attempting to explain to each classmate one by one, but as soon as someone felt they understood, he would go to another classmate and affirm them. "No, you don't hit the ball until it's your turn. Right now, you're on the pitchers mound, so you throw the ball and try to catch it if I hit it." He stood by the area he kept calling home or the plate. "Throw the ball towards me over this plate, and see if you can get it passed me without me hitting it." Remington looked confused, but decided to play along. He grasped the ball in his wing and hurled it towards the plate as fast as he could. As it approached, First swung his bat and the ball went flying high over Remington who stared at it helplessly. "How am I supposed to catch that? Am I supposed to fly up there every time you hit it?" "Well." First paused a moment and thought. "You're actually not supposed to fly in this game, it's against the rules. But you can if you want to, you'll probably still not hit a dinger like that one. Throw me another one." Remington threw him another ball, as fast as he could. Again, First hit the ball with his bat and it went flying over Remington's head. The pegasus jumped up to take off for the ball, but quickly dropped as he saw it as futile. The ball moves too fast. "I don't get it, how am I supposed to throw this ball passed you." "Don't worry." First chuckled. "You'll get it. It just takes practice. You see I just want others to play with. Look at everyone." He pointed towards the field of gym ponies, some of them holding gloves on their hooves backwards, some throwing the ball with their opposite hoof or their inferior wing. And even others were just running after balls that they deemed had been chase-worthy. "No one gets it yet. I don't know how to make it official. All I know how to do is hit this ball, and catch it when it comes at me. I want to call this game baseball, but I need help to make it happen." Remington grabbed another ball and threw it passed First Base, several hoof-lengths from the plate. "Ha, I threw it passed you!" He did it again, and again, and again. First Base dropped his bat and started trotting towards the first bag. "You just walked me. In order for you to throw a strike to get me out, it has to be thrown over the plate three times. Four times outside the plate and I get to walk over here." Remington pointed to the bag. "And what's that?" "It's first base." "No, I mean, the bag." "Yeah, my name is First Base, and I'm standing on first base." Remington stared at him blankly. "Can't we just run laps like normal gym ponies?" After a short hour of learning a confusing game, all the ponies went to the locker rooms. Remington hadn't felt like he got much exercise in, but he was still sweating and in need of a shower, so he took his gym clothes off and walked into the shower. As more stallions entered the locker room, several layers of chatter could be heard. "Dude, F.B., that game is crazy. You make me laugh so hard it hurts me inside my bones, haha." "Glad you liked it." "Glad you liked it," Remington mocked while staring at the shower walls, water now pour over his mane and poll. "Hey good job, um, what was you're name?" "Remington." First Base offered a hoofbump. "Appreciate you taking a chance on something new, even if it's not your kind of thing." Remington copied the hoofbump back to him. As he showered, Remington started thinking about his day and the fact that it wasn't over yet. In less than an hour, he expects to meet up with his friend Moonlight in his room to help him study. The red pegasus knew that it might lead to something else, but he had no idea what that would be. He had no idea what he was doing. All he knew was that he wanted to make a move, and tonight would be the first time he could try it, if he was up for it. Water beading down his pelt, he started daydreaming about the kind of things he would say to her. For instance, what if she was in the shower with him right now? What would she say? What would he say back? Every time she talks, he listens. If she was getting dumped on by water like he was, her pelt would glisten even more now than when she was dry. "Oh my, Luna, I like it." "What?" "Nothing." Remington quickly excused himself out from underneath the shower heads and back to his locker, holding a towel that would eventually dry his body. When he started grabbing his school uniform to put it back on, the pink sparkly brush he found dropped out of the bag and onto the floor. He quickly picked it up and held it away so nopony else could see it. When he held it close, he noticed it had a specific fragrance to it. He held it to his nose and gave a soft inhale. It smelled like her. He didn't really know how he knew that, but it smelled like her. "Holy shit, she smells like heaven." He continued to be amazed at how enamored he was with just the idea of being around her. "Oh my Luna, I like her." "Yeah I heard you like her." First Base was standing next to Remington holding his towel at his head trying to dry his mane. Remington fumbled the hairbrush and stuffed it in his bag. "What? How could you know that?" First Base chuckled. "You're talking about that Moonlight chick? Pink-ish color, sparkly mane, unicorn? I see you with her all the time. I just figured you guys were already an item. Not yet though, huh?" Remington didn't want to be a jerk, but he was feeling awfully insecure. The amount of vulnerability he felt when thinking about her made him feel like not talking to anyone. "We're just friends." "Oh really? So you don't mind if I made a move?" Remington gave First Base a look that should transcend meaning and not require verbal explanation. "That's what I thought. Bro, it's OK! You just gotta make your move. Everything is about making your first move. It's just like baseball. You gotta put the ball in play and see what happens. Step up to the plate and swing for the fences." Remington stayed quiet for a moment, but after realizing First Base would confront him while maintaining a boundary, he was willing to hear him out. "But what do I do after that? What do you do after you hit the ball?" "After you hit the ball, you just get to the first base. It's called a single." "And after that?" "After that?" First Base began plucking his ears of excess water. "I dunno, dude. All I know how to do is get to the first base. Everything else after that is all about how the rest of the game plays." "How do I play the rest of the game from first base?" "That's just it. You're not the only one playing the game. You have to rely on others to get you to second base and third base, and back home. You gotta put the ball in her court." First finished drying himself off and threw his towel in the laundry bin. "Who knows. Maybe she'll catch you stealing." He laughed and walked away. Remington understood everything except what stealing had meant in this context. But he knew that First was right. He needed to make a move. And it had to be tonight. The longer he puts this off, the longer it'll continue to bother him. Remington quickly snapped his uniform on and put everything in his bag along with the hairbrush and saddled it on his back. He began cantering out of the gym and to Stygian Hall, where his room was.

Back to Life a short story inspired by "Back to Life" by Sam Synthis A light blue pegasus fell from the sky. The atmosphere was partly cloudy sunny skies, but the stallion seemed lifeless and immobile. His eyes were closed and his wings unfolded, only being moved by the air around him as he plummeted. No one else was around. It's not understood why he is falling. Was he knocked out? Did he fall asleep? The ground kept growing nearer and nearer underneath him, without a sign of safety being realized or even hoped for. He remained unconscious as the clouds held their space above his trajectory. Colliding with the earth becoming an inevitability, still no one was around to even witness his fall. And the few seconds that remained began to calculate the damage to his body that would soon come to fruition. With no sign of life, he reached the point where he could fall no more. He wakes up. A dream? Wow, a dream. The pegasus exhales a few times to catch his breath from what seemed to be a nightmare of him falling to his death. Falling to your death, what a way for a pegasus to go. It was a good thing he had wings that worked. He sat up in his bed and flapped his wings a little, just to make sure that they were still in working condition. All was good. A little stiffness here or there, but that was normal. Any other day it would have been overlooked, but after such a vivid dream he thought about how often his wings suffered from mild aches and pains when he woke up in the morning. He rolled out of his bed and made a few quick stretches. A turn of the neck each way and he would venture into his home's kitchen for a little breakfast. But as he was walking out of his bedroom, he noticed something on his dresser. A picture frame, ordinary in color and shape, but carefully positioned to illustrate its significance. He trotted backward to get a closer look at it. The photo in the frame had two ponies in it. One was him. The other was a white pegasus mare with a black and red mane. He looked confused for only a moment and then remembered who she was. He smiled and rolled his eyes. How could he forget, he must have been really ensconced in his dream, so much so that he had removed himself from the reality that he always knew of. You know what? Skip breakfast. This mare was very important to him. He needed to see her right away. For some reason, he couldn't remember the last time he had seen her. If only you could see what holds you close to me, following my heart. He opened his front door and looked outside. He was in Cloudsdale. Several pegasus ponies already getting on with their day, some wearing work uniforms to help at the factories, some wearing more casual suits for whatever errands they needed to run. He closed the door behind him, took a deep breath of the high altitude air and took flight. He remembered where she lived, but he didn't understand how. He couldn't seem to remember anything else. What was wrong with him? Was he dealing with some sort of amnesia? Hopefully he could remember how to get back home. He soared above the residential zones of the city in the sky, looking for the colorful signs of the place he found so familiar. When he recognized it, he flew down towards the mare's front door and knocked. Beyond this empty view is something waiting for you. Resurrect me now, forever. He only needed to wait a few seconds for her to open the door. There she was, cute as ever, with a smile that turned wider once she noticed who she was answering to. This was love. They looked at each other warmly for a few seconds before giving each other a hug. Nothing really needed to be said. No words were spoken, not even accidentally. They both read each other's body language and everything was understood. Harmony at it's finest. She motioned to him to leave with her. She closed her door behind her and took off, and he followed. She didn't care where they were going. A park? A show? Who care's, let's just go. They flew in tandem with each other, occasionally flying an orbit around the other, a typical playful expression, evidence of a true pegasus bond. The two were flying passed rogue clouds that escape the factories but paid them no mind. Enamored with her presence in his life at this moment, he wanted this moment to last forever. When I stare into your eyes, tell me what you believe. Comfort me with your lies, I need you next to me. As he meditated on how much he enjoyed this moment, he let her fly forward a little, and when he attempted to catch up, his wings locked up. Immediately he began to lose altitude. He couldn't move his wings. He looked up as he swirled downward, looking up at her astonished face. She couldn't save him, she couldn't fly that fast, but she looked horrified about what was happening to him. No pony else was around to help him. He continued to fall, just like in his dream. Was that dream a prediction? Was it a precursor? His mind raced at what brought him here, and regardless of the reasons he began to blame himself. He figured somehow that it was something he must have done to ruin things. The moment he wanted to last forever now seemed to have a bitter and bleak end, all too soon. Just like in his dream, he fell faster and faster until he hit terminal velocity, and less than a minute later, was meeting the ground with deadly force. You bring me back to life. He wakes up. What? A another dream? A dream within a dream. How awful. The blue pegasus shook himself from his mental wear, not minding the minor aches his body probably had for however long he had been sleeping. He got up and tried to recollect everything that had happened, but it seemed harder and harder to retain memories. He staggered a few steps after getting off his bed, but was able to stabilize. The picture frame on his dresser was sitting there as normal. But there was something frighteningly worrying about it. He approached the dresser and picked up the frame and gave it a closer look. It was a picture of him and his friend from school. What? Where was the mare? He remembered this colt, he was friends with him for many years during his foalhood, and they stayed close to each other for his entire life up to this point. But there was no sign of his lover. He looked frantically across his bedroom looking for signs of his significant other. Did she not exist? Had she been a figment of his imagination this whole time? Mend my broken ways with love that lasts for days. Keep me close at heart, if only. He needed answers. So he left his home and flew as fast as he could towards where he knew she lived. Once again, like a moment of dejavu, he knocked on her door. This time, a stallion opens the door. He was big, purple, and scruffy. He did not look pleased to see him. Behind him was the white mare, looking innocent and curious at who was knocking. He reached out for her, telling her to come with her, but the large stallion held onto the mare. They both gave the blue pegasus a look of disapproval. She was taken? Did she even know who he was? The large pegasus motioned him to leave. He had no choice, and fled to a stray cloud. When I'm feeling lost, I see you in my thoughts. Memories I miss. He sat on the stray cloud contemplating what had just happened. Was this another dream? No, this was a nightmare. How could he not be with her? He could not imagine life without her, but appeared to be living in a universe where that seemed to be the case. Was this some sort of alternate dimension that he was not graced for? Would he wake again if he fell to his death? When I stare into your eyes, tell me what you believe. Comfort me with your lies, I need you next to me He looked over the edge of the cloud he sat on and looked at the length of fall to the patchwork farmland that he was floating over. There was no way this life was his, he figured. He needed to wake up and find out what was going on in his mind. So he folded his wings to his side and fell downwards. As he fell he closed his eyes, tears streaking upward passed his yellow mane. Reluctantly, he kept his wings locked and eventually made peace with himself and the ground below. You bring me back to life. He wakes up. Of course. He had a different tactic this time. He was going to go straight for her and find a way to speak with her about everything that was going on. He had to be honest and put his heart on the line. Then, and only then, would he know if he was truly awake from whatever dream cycle he was being tortured with. He flew fast towards her place and knocked on her door. There was no answer. He took flight to the Cloudsdale marketplace where she often visited and he scanned the area for the white pelt he was so familiar with. And then, he spotted her. She was next to a suspended water fountain. He landed quickly next to her. She was stunned, but then happy to see him. Madness in my mind of what I've left behind. Wake me from this dream! Before she could hug him or react sweetly, he began pouring out his heart, explaining to her everything that had been happening to him, in his dreams, in his nightmares, and whether he was dreaming right now or not. He asked for her to explain how she felt and she reciprocated. She loved him very much, she always had. She affirmed to him that this was real life and that nothing was going to stop their love, and anything that would happen to him would also happen to her. She motioned to take flight again. He was unsure at first, but decided to follow her again. As they flew, they began loving each other with their words, explaining in great detail how they felt about each other. It was pure and it felt real. Everything around them seemed to stop. Nothing else mattered. Even if you're wrong, you'll miss me when I'm gone. Close my eyes again. They spent the rest of the day together, sharing moments during meals and visiting different sights around Equestria's mountaintops. Through joy and honesty they strengthened their bond as the two spent quality time, explaining their flaws, sharing their worries, and comforting each other with their pain. It seemed clear to him that it was not always going to be bright, but she would always be by his side when times got tough. He was thankful to be rid of what seemed like an endless cycle. But I can't breathe anymore, tell me what I'm fighting for. Help me see the truth before I'm blinded again. Eventually, she flew with him to his home. They needed to go their separate ways for the evening and she was dropping him off where he resided. She and him gave each other a long loving stare. Everything was going to be fine. He believed it, because she believed it. Through perseverance and trust, she was able to breathe life back into him, and help him deal with his lack of confidence in reality. They kissed goodbye, and she flew away. When I stare into your eyes, tell me what you believe. Comfort me with your lies, I need you next to me He ventured into his home feeling much better. He was standing tall and was nimbly thinking about his day. It couldn't have gotten any better. And the best part? No one fell to their deaths. This was it. He was finally awake. If he didn't dream for a while, he wouldn't mind. Knowing he could rest in reality was the best form of comfort to his mind anything could bring. When he walked into his bedroom he glanced at the photo on his dresser. His smile fell immediately. He walked towards the dresser and stared in thought at the picture. Something about it began to churn a new page of worry in his mind. He saw something in the photo that made no sense. But instead of accepting the reality of a photo, he rejected it. He grabbed the frame with a hoof and put it face down. You bring me back to life

The tea had set long enough, so Silverstream picked it up carefully and started sipping it. It was delicious. The autumn breeze combined with the warm notes of the tea gave her a perspective she wasn't expecting. The light wind that occasionally whisked away a leaf or two reminded her of the seaside breezes that often swirled around Mount Aris. The coconut flavor gave her hints of home memories while the almond taste gave her inspiration of a place she had never been. It was like a home away from home in a mug. Smolder was good. Silverstream was conflicted. She had admiration for someone and was willing to tease talking about it, but regretted the feeling of embarrassment she felt in having the need to express it. This was highly unusual for her about basically everything, she typically did not need encouragement to spill her beans. However, she would suppress her blurting out of her excited hippogriff hormones in order to make some progress in digging deep into Smolder's thick scales instead. It wasn't very often she, or any dragon for that matter, would be willing to open up this much. "Yeah, I guess Spike is kinda young. I never think of him as that young, though. He seems pretty smart for his age." Since smolder began hinting at the possibility that such a creature as Smolder might be interested in the occasional snuggle with someone that may not necessarily be a dragon, Silverstream began racing through her mind at the obvious message the orange reptile was attempting to send. Smolder must have a huge crush on someone. "Ho! You like someone don't you!? Is it Chiller? Blade? Zesty? Wide-out?" Silverstream began listing names of fellow classmates. Some of these ponies shared mutual classes with Silverstream and Smolder, but some of them may have not been. It then occurred to Silverstream that she was listing off names of several pony stallions. "Oh, is it Grubber?" She knew there were other non-pony students at the school, more than the original five that came last year during the inaugural semester. But there was still a vast amount of ponies that could serve as a suitor to many interested love scouts. Yet another fragment of imagination came to Silverstream when she realized all the ones she was naming were all male. Her eyes fell and her mouth curled up. "Are you and Ocellus getting closer than I think?" Bluebelle's answer was all too practical and surprisingly blunt. Straight to the point and if Silverstream was honest, not as interesting as she would have thought. "Type?" She blushed. "Yeah guards are pretty neat, they have shiny armor and are usually very strong." Silverstream never thought about a profession or occupation being the thing she would be more attracted to, she always felt it was more of a sixth sense. She couldn't possibly understand her own infatuation with certain classmates of her's. It was why she was so interested to see what others thought before she began dissecting the pattern of her own crush. "Everyone I spend a lot of time with are all students. If one of them was my type, all of them would be!" She waved her talons around to match the gesture of her insane proposition. "Could you imagine! What if I liked everyone!?" She would gauge the reaction of course, in case logical discourse of that insinuation occurred and it lead to the idea that it was a possible outcome. It was a far-fetched idea though, even she knew. Smolder asked who this someone might be. Silverstream in the back of her head was hoping she derailed long enough to avoid having to divulge her personal feelings. But since the dragon was too clever for her ability to redirect the conversation to something that had nothing to do with her, she yielded her focus to her shyly spoken interest. "Well." Silverstream circled the mug of tea with a talon. She took a deep breath and looked up. "His name is..." A hummingbird flew just above Smolder and quickly zipped in flight away from the group. It was orange and green. "Whoa! Is that a hummingbird!!?" Silverstream had genuinely never seen a hummingbird until now, although she had heard and read about them during her first studies in Ponyville. She took a large sip of her tea and emptied her cup. "Oh wow, all out of tea. It was good, though." Silverstream grabbed a kelp sandwich and munched on it happily.

Silverstream listened intently on Smolder's phrasings to catch a possible secret the dragon might have been holding onto. But much to her disappointment, Smolder's expressing of her closest relationships currently happening at the school were all too publicly known, and quite frankly, boring. She was expecting some spicy rumors much like the ones surrounding a certain green earth pony and a particular brown yak. "Oh, come on Smolder. Really? There's not someone you haven't thought deeply about, like maybe another dragon. Like Spike, what about him?" Spike was younger than Smolder, but Silverstream had no barometer as to how much younger he was. She had siblings that were as small as him when she left Sequestria for school, but during the last holiday, she returned to see that they were twice as big as she remembered. Maybe dragons didn't grow that fast. How old was Smolder? A few years old? Seventeen years old? A few hundred? Silverstream wanted to elaborate and attempt to pry, but before she could, Smolder returned the question back to her. She began to sweat a little, which was odd considering how loose and free Silverstream is about many things in conversation. She started playing with her hair again. "Well, um. I think there is someone..." The Headmare approached the two under the tree and asked if she could participate in the impromptu tea party. Silverstream stood straight up and resumed a more presentable posture. She held inside her confession for the time being. "Oh, hi Archancellor Bluebelle. Um. Sure!" Silverstream scooted over closer to Smolder to create room for a inner-facing shape of creature conversation. Silverstream didn't know Bluebelle very well. She knows she came from Canterlot and that she was somehow related to the royal family there. Silverstream was also a member of a royal family in Sequestria, but she never considered it a huge detail in describing herself. "We were just talking about who we, I mean, what we like." Silverstream would play coy for the time being, but she would also continue to be intrusively personal with those she talked to for the first time. It was her social default. "Archancellor. Are you in a serious relationship? Married maybe?" Silverstream giggled and smirked at Smolder who she hoped would return a giggle. Most times, the dragon didn't though.

Silverstream sat under the tree and waited on Smolder as she heated up water in a kettle. She opened up her bag and pulled out a paper sack that had two sandwiches in them. One of them was cucumber, the other was kelp and mustard. Of course, the dragon had many kinds of tea to offer her. "Oh, I don't care, Whatever you think I should try. I love it when you surprise me." Silverstream had drank tea with Smolder at least a half a dozen times already. She was always hung up on what tea she wanted to try, and she always shrugged because she didn't know tea enough to really understand what she would prefer. However, the moment Smolder introduced a seaweed-tasting tea or a kelp-flavored brew, she would insist. Silverstream put her two sandwiches on a paper plate she also had in her pack. She set the sandwiches on the plate and cut them in quarters with a picnic knife. "Help yourself." She grabbed a cucumber sandwich quarter, chewed it, and then swallowed it. As the dragon poured the beverages, Silverstream started combing her hair with her claws. She typically only did this when she was nervous, guilty, or if she was unsure of how others would react to something she plans to talk about. She had many opportunities to explode nutty subjects up with her friends about many things that didn't require her to fidget, so whatever was on her mind must have to be pretty substantial. "So. Smolder." She looked around making sure no one was within earshot. "Have you ever had feelings for anyone else." Silverstream's eyebrows bounced. "Like in a 'more than friends' sorta way?"

Remington slowly began realizing how wrong he was about the acronym he tried to decrypt. It made Moonlight laugh out loud, so loud that she held her hoof to her mouth in order to not make a scene in the classroom. Unfortunately, he didn't count it as a win. Sure she made her laugh, but he felt he was being laughed at. But he had to shrug it off as she was still engaging in the planning of previously aligned meeting agreements. "Hehe, yeah. That's you! Heh." He noticed that she was biting her upper lip. Was that a sign that she really liked him? A magazine once said so. "Bring anything? Bring anything to what?" Remington paused not knowing why Moonlight was frantically wrapping her hoof in a paper towel that was normally used for cleaning up glue and stain. Failing to pull his attention from his poor choice of words, he tried to focus on her question. But he was so clueless, she could have been doing cartwheels with a monkey on her head and he wouldn't notice. "Oh right, the study thing. Um, no not really. I have everything we need. I'll even have some snacks in case we're hungry. All you need to worry about is bringing yourself so you can help me-" "Beat it!" Applejack yelled at her students with excitement. She opened the half door violently with a hind hoof. "Hurry up and clean your space and get out of here," she said with joy. "You guys did a good job today, and we'll finish your projects some other time, but we've run out of time and it's time to skidattle. Work ain't worth a ton if you're not allowed to have some fun." Applejack bucked the resident apple tree that shared the classroom space. "And take an apple as you go. No student of mine is going home hungry!" Applejack left the classroom and urged her students to do the same in order to carry on with their day. Remington jumped at his teachers announcement. He closed his box one last time. "Well, I guess we're done." He grabs an apple off the ground and puts it into his sack which was faithfully sitting on the floor. He picked it up and saddled it around himself. "I hope the gym doesn't wear me out today. I had a rough time last week when they made the winged creatures do a hundred laps around the school bell towers."

Zap began to be fixated on the film as the monster grew more and more terrifying. The shots with Daring Do being beaten up, but then also the thrill of her narrowly escaping the certain death of the vicious tentacles the monster hurled at her started to vex Zap's inner colt. He was not a stallion, not yet. Gallus set the apple juice on the table next to Zap and mentioned the film's scariness with chill tones. He jumped slightly at the voice as he was not expecting the half-cat creature to use his feline sense to silently sneak up on him during the tense part of the film. However, it helped that the noise of the film was drowning anything else in the home that could squeak, including Zap's soft involuntary whimper. The film progressed as Daring Do was able to escape the monster by evading the trap through the trickery of color. She climbed back through the floor she fell through and ran to a doorway that would lead her to a large room with a calm pool of water. She then jumped in, the colors that painted her were washed away and the default color of the character emerged, though wet and sporting many bruises and red marks from scratches. She also seemed to have a problem with her wing, which she wrapped with medical tape to protect from further injury. Zap exhaled. Daring Do found her assistant, a pony with a strange accent named Guile Move who was happy to see her mentor. "The temple is coming apart, we need to get out of here." Sure enough the short break of easing had ended and the film became a tense watch for Zap Apple again. The two ponies ventured through dark tunnels and sprinted across sharp blade traps, narrowly escaping certain death. They happened upon a trench that had no obvious way across. Daring Do lassoed a rock on the other side of the trench and pulled it tight to form a reliable knot. Guile Move jumped on the rope, swung to the other side and climbed up the other side safely. "Throw me the rope!" Daring Do yelled as the temple continued to crumble, large rocks and sidings behind her caving in. "Throw me the idol first." Daring Do pulled out the idol she had acquired from deeper in the temple and threw it to Guile Move. "Now throw me the rope!" Without doing so, Guile Move saluted to the pegasus her demise. "So long, ol' friend." The untrustworthy pony then disappeared further down the temple halls. Zap Apple looked back at Gallus. "Gally?" He asked with concern. In the film, Daring Do grunted with annoyance. "This is why I work alone." She took a few steps back from the trench and proceeded to jump across it to the other side. She barely grabs the rope and climbs up the side safely, but only after several terrifying seconds. "Gally?" Zap asks again with more worry in his voice. The next shot shows Daring Do turning a corner in a hallway, and having to jump to the side and over many metal spikes. But then in a moment in the film edited for shock value, she happens across her former assistant, now lifeless, who had been impaled by several spikes that all protruded from her head and torso, leaving no room to the imagination of anyone watching it as to what had happened. Zap started crying. "Ahhhh!!! No!" He covered his eyes but it was too late.

Applejack shared a chuckle with the pretty pony who took the deluge of apple tree leaves in good spirits. Applejack tilted her head happily as Moonlight spoke about beauty. She was so proud of her little cousin. She seemed to understand the best basics of good qualities in a pony, and it seemed almost as if obtaining a young mare's body that was curvy and sparkly as her's was more of a prize that she won, than it was a lucky get. When she started explaining the logistics of Remington's possible attraction to her, however, Applejack started crossing her eyes and flaring her nose at the many versions of the word 'like'. Through the roller coaster of many practical uses of a standard word the pink mare often uttered senselessly, it became hard to understand the details of her nuance. Fortunately, Applejack did think she had the gist of what she was laying out though. "Girl, you train your thoughts into words more confusing than an apple cart rollin' down a rocky mountain trail. I think I get it. Um. Basically you don't know for sure, but at the very least, he's a loyal friend." Applejack approved of such a pony. She just hoped Moonlight's heart-strung describing of Remington is half as good as the colt is in reality. Applejack kicked a tree and the apples fell predictably into their assigned baskets once again. "Wait a minute. Did you say narcolepsy? Did he tell you that just because he accidentally fell asleep during one of Fluttershy's lessons?" She could picture it now. And what a ruse it would be. Remington sleeping in class and his default response as to why would be because he had a 'medical condition'. "Are you sure he's not just saying that as an excuse? Seems kinda odd." Suddenly, Applejack became worried about the integrity of the pony Moonlight seemed so enamored with. Remington was a red pony, and that was a very bold and gracious apple color, so that was a plus. But it would be hard for her to justify allowing Moonlight to bring Remington over during family functions if the pegasus is a habitual liar. "I once had a customer who kept saying they couldn't pay for their monthly apple home delivery because their dog ate their bits. I kept giving them apples in good faith that they would have the money, but eventually I had to cut'em off. I lettem do that to me for four months before I realized they didn't even have a dog."

It only took Silverstream a few school functions in the main hall for her to gain a talent for snacking around the treat table. If only hippogriffs had cutie marks... The Summer Sun Celebration was acknowledge by all hippogriffs but was never officially observed the way it is in Equestria. But no seaponies would ever ignore the invitation of a shindig that involved socializing and celebrating the elements of the universe that help keep everything together. It was always about the what and less about the why. This year, Silverstream got word of the party that would be happening at the Ponyville castle and decided to attend. Knowing that the archancellor would let the invitation extend to students at the school who weren't exactly official Ponyville residents, she knew that at the very least she would be able to lurk and socialize with other students who decided to do the same. She spotted Gallus once she was inside. "Gallus!" She screeched and waved. She zipped over to him. "Did you get a chance to see the food tables. Do they have those potato skins like the ones they had at the Feltock Fete? I don't think there is any dancing, so in case this ends up more boring than we thought, I brought our cards." She held up a packet of playing cards that were worn in from the several games the students would play during school dances and other less interesting functions. She immediately went to one of the snack tables and started plating herself some hors d'oeuvres. But then she noticed Bon Bon's bonbon table and realized that some of the food might require rare circular pieces of metal otherwise known as money. "Gallus, is this stuff not free?"

Silverstream stood back up with the help of Gallus' leverage. She was distraught that she had spilled her mug of cider and felt it was on her to try to figure out a way to get it back. However, a fresh cup would be better than trying to distill the cider from the soil. "Should we ask the Archancellor?" Answering her own question, Silverstream fluttered towards the prince, slowly approaching as she got close. There seemed to be a situation in the supply chain of the cider-making and Silverstream couldn't make heads or tails of it, nor did she feel it was any of her business. But she didn't want to hover idly waiting for nothing. "Prince, um Archancellor? Um." Silverstream rubbed the back of her neck with a claw. "Gallus was wondering if there was anyway we could get a replacement for a lost mug of cider. Lost as in, gone. Gone as in spilled." She smirked, implying the attempt at cider-acquisition was all Gallus' idea. Silverstream looked around at the tired Applejack, the grumpy-looking Princess Luna, the slightly-annoyed unicorn pop star, and a the socially curious kirin. Her assessment is that something big was going down. "Is everything alright?" Applejack peered at Prince Blueblood and the others around her. Seeing Apple Bloom able to deal with the sale counter while making pleasantries with a Princess proved she could handle her own. The Prince was also formidable in delegation, despite how unfortunate his early years as a destined leader may have fallen into place. And the others around her have made successful attempts and doing whatever is was Applejack needed help doing. She realized it was time for her to take a nap. She looked up at Silverstream who had just included herself in the conversation by the cider presses. "Oh. Hey Silverstream." She stood up and gave her exposition to the hippogriff to make everything clear and concise to everycreature around her. "I was just about to take a break and I just needed affirmation from mah friends here that everything will be taken care of the right way." She cracked a smile and looked at the archancellor. "Prince Blueblood, I need your trust that the use of magic will not be used as a direct source of energy to make the cider. Telekin-whatsit and levithems magics for the purpose of carrying a took and whatnot is okay, but I don't want to see some magical aura spinning the treadmill with no pony on it. Alright? And if I can trust you, and I think I can, it'll give me a moment to get some much needed rest." Applejack looked around her at her supporting cast of volunteers. In this time of stress she had to rely on creatures and ponies of all types. But her, the only earth pony in the circle, decided to give the others a chance to prove their integrity. Applejack started walking towards the barn, looked back for a second, smiled, and then continued walking to the barn. Once inside, she would stresslessly walk up the stairs and fall into a bed of hay. Silverstream looked confused but only slightly. It was obvious that there had been a change in who was in charge for the time being, but that wasn't priority number one for the hippogriff. She broke the silence that stood after Applejack had departed. "So is that a yes or a no on the replacement cup of cider?" Current fresh cider supply: Enough for now Cider press #3 repair: 79%

Zap followed Gallus and sat down in the living room where the movie was playing. "Can I have juice?" He asked with a perky squeak in his voice. As he watched the film, he couldn't really follow what was going on, but he could tell the pace of the plot had increased considerably. The minor details weren't important, but he began to be fixed on things that characters were doing that seemed out of the ordinary. Why was that pony with the scar holding a knife? Was he about to slice a cake? And where do those two unnamed ponies go when they fell off the cliff? Did the Wonderbolts save them? Probably. Yeah, the Wonderbolts probably saved them. Zap wishes he could have seen that scene. Daring Do in the story seemed to be composed, but obstacles kept giving her close calls, a typical trope in Daring Do fiction. But eventually, she fell down a pit. In the pit, a dark monster who seemed very large and had evil green eyes started menacing the screen, giving a horror vibe that could be felt through the minds eye of the protagonist and the viewers alike. Zap's eyes widened and his hooves clinched to the pillow he was sitting on. His imagination could scare himself pretty easy if he thought a monster of some sort was hiding in hid bedroom while he slept, but seeing it in a brilliantly shot black and white film made the reality of such an abomination more real than Zap has ever felt, and he started to quiver.

Silverstream continued to look through books in the school library. She didn't know exactly what she was looking for, but she would know it when she saw it. While browsing the science section of the enormous bookshelves, she heard a large stomping that seemed to come from outside. She froze and wondered what it could be. She wanted to investigate, but Silverstream's pause gave her enough time to notice a book that she recognized as being useful. "Ah ha!" She grabbed the book and sat at a table to start reading it. A few moments passed and she began pondering and meditating on the subject she was currently musing. She then left the book on the table and started browsing again for another topic. She hadn't accounted for how dark it would be in the library after hours, but she managed to make out the spines of the books in order to determine what was useful versus what wasn't. She pulled a second book from a shelf and brought it to the table. Opening it, she flipped frantically to a page she knew would be there. When she found it, she excitedly read it silently. She discovered what she needed to do, and she was pleased. She grabbed a piece of notebook paper and quill that was lying around and started jotting down information from her short term research. Once the scrap notes were completed, she tore the page away the booklet to keep her notes for later. To save time, Silverstream did not worry about putting the books back. She might not even be able to find the location where she got them, so she left them open on the table. One book was called 'Hydrodynamics for the Hooved' and it was left open on a chapter that explained the phenomenon of equilibrium water levels. The other book was labeled 'Diving: Why Ponies Can't Breathe Underwater' and it was open on a page describing how water pressure and air pressure relate to each other. The single-track minded hippogriff walked out of the library and fluttered down the hall and turned a corner where she would lose line of sight to anyone following her. She had to look for supplies for her next project and she knew exactly where to find them.

Remington fumbled the ability to compose himself, trying to play off his lack of words. "Great! When time can, you come, study help me?" What? And what was a BSF? Remington's mind raced nervously as he wanted to try and impress Moonlight with his usefulness understanding what a casually spoken acronym had meant. 'Bad Sassy Female?' No, that can't be it. Moonlight was testing the sides of her sitting device when Remington couldn't help but watch her cutely justify how she would go about improving her piece. Eventually, he would snap out of it and look at his own work. Does the box close? Yes. But what about opening it, does it open? Good. Wait, could it mean 'Beautiful Sister Filly?' Probably not. He tests the hinges of the box over and over until eventually closing the box produces a small squeak. A malfunction! Remington stood up from his workbench stool and walked over to the small can of oil the class shared. He brought it to his bench and squirted a few drops of lubricant on the hinge to keep it from squeaking. Maybe it means 'Bottled Soda Fizzy'? Wow Remington, really? You are so dumb. Remington wanted to speak to Moonlight again, but she hadn't yet specified a time frame for helping him, and he hadn't come up with a good idea of what BSF meant. The ultimate impasse. Maybe it meant 'Best Student Forever'. No, no. That's too obvious and easy, it had to be something else. Fortunately, Moonlight broke the silence and said that she was free tonight, she thought. "Oh good. Yeah tonight would work. After woodworking, I have to head over to the gym to do some P.E." Remington could use acronyms, too. "But then afterwords, We can meet up at my place at my room. My room is in Stygian Hall, second floor. I was never assigned a roommate so we don't have to worry about invading anyone's privacy." It was time to execute the moves that would seal the deal. He had to go for it. He gave an appreciative smile and said, "Haha, thanks so much for helping. I can't wait to have someone's 'Bold Strong Flank' helping me out." Thousands of subconscious ideas of optimism inside of Remington's brain began committing suicide.

Zap Apple was smart enough to know that one of the differences between his mothers is that one of them had a strong affinity to composure and character-building. The other, while very loyal and accountable, sometimes lacked the tenacity to save face in times not ideal. But he was not articulate enough as a young pegasus colt to helpfully explain that to Dashie. He loved both of his mothers, but he would be lying if he didn't find more comfort in the things Applejack was saying to him, all with the tender loving care of warm touches that tried hard to ease the pain. That's all Zap wanted right now from either of them. He had no time to worry about Rainbow Dash's lament, he was overwhelmed with trying to deal with his. Zap nodded. "Yes, please." He responded to Rainbow Dash. He turned to Applejack. "But will cookies make my wing stronger? Should I eat apples instead?" Zap Apple had been born into a family that taught him the deep religious nature of apple fruit before he could even begin to utter a word about how good they taste. He was indoctrinated by a large half of his kin that apples would practically cure any ailment, not the least of which was emotional suffering. He wanted apples. "Or apple pie?" Good job, Zap what a great compromise between sugar and fruit. Zap trotted slowly towards Rainbow Dash, not knowing how she would respond to his closeness. But he had to make something very clear to her. "I don' want you to read Daring Do where she flies. I wanna here the one where she is hurt and can't fly." Zap had a relatively good idea of what he wanted that could possible up his spirits. A warm slice of apple pie while his hero mother reads him a story about a hero adventurer who is overcoming the odds he felt he was facing.