Mojo

Mojo was at full stride as he listened closely to every word Lyra said to him. His ears twitched, straining to hear her when the voice of the lovely unicorn mare faded. "Didn't quite hear that, love. Would ya mind repeatin' that, sweetheart?" The Paint stallion's mind raced with possible answers to why she spoke in a lower tone. "I'll betcha Lyra's tryin' to whisper sweet nothin's in me ear!" he thought to himself, "I need to get even closer to her!" Mojo gritted his teeth and pushed himself to his physical limits to gallop faster and lean in closer to Lyra. "Now, what was that you were sayin' to me, dollface?" the hippie brony asked with a beaming smile. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- High above the racers, Granny Smith leaned over the side where Diamond Tiara was looking. "Like I was-a tellin' ya, youngin', fiyin' this low will help us find my little AppleBloom. Wure are my manners? I'm Granny Smith! Y'all can tell by my cutie mark that I love to bake pies! What's yur name, kido?" Meanwhile, back at the starting line bleachers, Professor Krashkop used a spray bottle to cover Hoss with a cloud of greenish mist as Jubilee, Louise LaMare, Misty Magic, Madam Bistro and Snails nervously watched. "if dis vorks, vee will see results immediately!" the gray maned Pegasus said as the cloud of mist began to clear up. All the ponies gathered around gasped when they saw the 'new' Hoss. "HOSS! YOU'RE BACK TO NORMAL!" Jubilee shouted as she fluttered up to the brown winged stallion and hugged his neck tightly with her front hooves. "SUCCESS! Mein formula vorked!!" Professor Krashkop shouted, doing a happy strut. "You did it, Professor!" added Louise with a loud voice. When she took a glance at the shimmering portal, she spotted Sheriff Silverstar in the bushes doing investigative work. "Sheriff! What the hay is HE doing here! I've got to see him!" In her excitement, the brown furred Pegasus mare flew towards the portal. "WAIT LOUISE! DON'T FLY INTO THAT THING!" Misty warned seconds before Louise flew through it, emerging on the other side where she was now hovering over her beloved mustached stallion. "MISTY! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?" Starflower shouted in complete shock. "I didn't do anything, honest, I even tried to stop her from flying into it!" "Vait a moment. Dis must be a dimensional portal vee have here!" "HUH?" the collective bunch of ponies asked in unison. "Dis is not a mere vindow to distant lands, it is a doorvay! Any pony could valk through dis und travel to dee place day are seeing! Oh Misty, you must remember how you did dis! It vould revolutionize going from place to place in all Equestria!" "But Professor, I don't know how I did it. it just happened, like the lightning and Granny's wings... and.... my wings too...." On the other side of the portal, all could now see Louise LaMare flying down until she was directly above the Sheriff. "Sheriff Silverstar!" she shouted. "What are you doing hiding in these bushes?" "SHHHHHHHHHH!" he said in a soft tone. "Keep quiet and git down outta sight. I ain't supposed ta be spotted by these here runners." "What the hay are you saying?" the airborne Pegasus mare asked as the Sheriff reached up, grabbed her by the tail and pulled her down beside him. "I'm here to watch fer cheatin' goin' on in this here race. The judges sent me out to do this task without the runners knowin' about it." "So, has any pony cheated in the race so far?" "No PONY has, but thar's one big cheatin' griffin in this race and I got photographic proof of it!"

Sheriff Silverstar began to examine the plans Maximillian had unfurled on the tabletop. The mustached stallion was happy to see Arrow Plain was now behaving herself. He then turned to listen to Honey Thread's concerns. She was making sense to him. Would a major 'tourist trap' operation wreck the charm and wonder of this beautiful frontier pony town? Could something like this be a threat to everything he and his fellow ponies had worked so hard to build over the past two years? "I reckon you got a good point thar, Miss Thread," the Sheriff said with a nod as he began pointing his front hoof at several places on the blueprints as he spoke. "This here land's owned by several pioneer pony families and to my recollection, it aint fer sale. And over here, this section's boundary line is about fifty feet across in buffalo territory. Ya might wanna reconsider that part of yur operation. One more thing, Mr. Rockefilly, I'm only the Sheriff of this here town. Any plans this vast would have to be approved by our Chamber of Commerse, and as I recall, Miss Thread here is a member of that group and so is Madam Bistro. This looks like a great idear, but yur gonna have to do a lot more convincin' before you can start construction." "Well said, Sheriff!" Louise neighed. "And I agree with Honey Thread. The very reason I came here to live was so I could experience firsthoof the rugged beauty and charm of frontier life. This town doesn't need to grow into a metropolis like Fillydelphia or Manehattan. Appleoosa is special because it's a nice, quiet little town."

Mojo couldn't believe his luck! Even with all of the distractions he had faced in the race so far, he was near the lead pack of racers now! This meant that instead of having to gallop through all the cascading leaves as the leaders knocked them out of the trees, HE would be one of the first ones doing all the 'knocking down!' Spotting the random puddles of tree sap along the road, Mojo's agility helped him avoid them, so far. To the Paint stallion's delight, he spotted Lyra closeby and now Applejack was running right beside him, back to her original size! "Hello there, Applejack! How was that surprise you pulled on your brother? Bet ya both had one ripper of a laugh over that, right?" Then Mojo rushed slightly ahead of the country mare to finally reach his beloved Lyra. "Hi Lyra! Got your message back at the mountain pass, and I love you too! I know this is rather sudden, but love at first sight is totally groovy! Let's say you and me get together after this race and pitch some woo! You name the place and time, darling!" --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quickly mastering the use of her 'new' wings, Misty Magic zoomed up to the Professor with Snails arriving shortly thereafter. "Professor Krashkop! We need your help!" she shouted as she flew up in front of the retreating green Pegasus. "Misty? ACH UN-KNEE-MAL! How did you get doze vings, fraulein?" "Nevermind that now! Our friend Hoss got a dose of Poison Joke! He needs your cure to return to normal!" "But mein formula is untested! It could make Hoss vorse! I cannot take dat risk!" "Hoss wants to take the risk! You're not a failure, Professor! We all believe in you! Please come back with us and give Hoss your cure!" As Misty continued to plead, Jubilee and Louise LaMare arrived back with Hoss to the starting line bleachers. "Starflower! Where's the Professor?" Jubilee asked. "Yeah! We brought Hoss with us, where is he?" added Louise as Starflower got to see the 'female' Hoss up close for the first time. Her eyes bugged out and her mouth swung open in shock. "Who does your mane, ma'am?" she asked in a moment of confused bewilderment. "HAY! Stop teasing my boyfrie... I mean, stop teasing Hoss!" the petite blonde Pegasus roared. "Better do as she says, I wouldn't want to get on her BAD side," Louise quickly whispered into the ear of the light blue unicorn mare. This was enough to 'snap' Starflower back to reality. "Oh! Forgive me! I didn't mean to bring more attention to your condition, Hoss. The Professor left but I sent Misty and Snails to bring him back here." "WHAT????" "FLEW AWAY??" "C'mon guys! We better move out after him! The three of us can fly up to get him and,,," "LOOK!!!!" Louise squealed, pointing a front hoof upward when she saw Misty and Snails flapping their wings in perfect rythem with Professor Krashkop's as the trio descended and landed in front of them. "MISTY!!! YOU USED YOUR MAGIC TO MAKE MORE WINGS?" "Well, not on purpose, I mean.... well..... that is to say....." "Young stallion, I mean, mare, vell vhatever, I must varn you dat dee poison joke cure I made is very experimental. It has never been tested on ponies before. I vill not force you to be dee first test subject, dat decision is yours, mein friend. Vhat is your answer?" Meanwhile, the still hidden from view Sheriff Silverstar trotted off to shadow the race competitors. He now had a perfect view of the lead pack, and spotted the unmistakable figure of Gllda falling back of the race leaders. "Ha! Serves'er right! That griffin's been nutin' but trouble throughout this here race! Jist wait'll I git to the judges and show'm all these here pictures of her cheatin'! They's been some weird goin's on in this race, contestants meetin' big spiders, fallin' into rivers and then gittin' shrunked down by poison joke, but none of them shenanigins was agin' the rules. All that Gilda's been a-doin' breaks every rule in the whole book and I'm gonna make sure them racin' judges knows it!"

Mojo breathed a sigh of relief when Big MacIntosh told him he was ok and then took off running. "Oh, dash it all, I better get back to the blinkin' race too!" the Paint stallion neighed as he began to gallop to catch up. By now, Mojo had reached the top of the trail and was now trotting downhill. He took great care, knowing that if he ran too fast down the trail, he could either trip or miss a sudden sharp turn and end up rolling over the side of the mountain. Looking ahead, he could spot Lyra but she was too far away. "I've got to catch up to her! After all, that lovely creature did leave me that love note back at the start of the trail. She's a fine lookin' bird, that's for true! Wonder where she'd like to go on our first date? Maybe I could serenade her with some of the folk music I play on me guitar! But what if she's not into folk music? Blimey! This datin' stuff takes a lot of thought!" --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Julibee squealed with joy when the airborne Louise joined them again. "Everything alright with that injured pony?" Jubilee asked. "He said he was fine so I had to take his word for it. Hello Hoss, or should we call you, Hossita?" "That's NOT funny, Louise!" Jubilee neighed defensively. "We're gonna find a way to make Hoss normal again!" "Oh, I'm sorry, Hoss. Didn't mean to be insensitive. Of course we'll cure this poison joke. The Professor will know what to do!" As the trio of Pegasi flew off towards the starting line, back at the bleachers, Starflower thanked Madam Bistro for the food. "If you have some of your famous coffee, that would really be wonderful, thank you!" the light blue unicorn mare neighed. Meanwhile, Misty and Snails watched the Professor soar upward, the yellow unicorn shouted out. "COME BACK, PROFESSOR! WE NEED YOUR HELP!!! Oh no Snails, he's too far away! He can't hear us. We need his cure to help Hoss!" As Misty began to feel frustrated and upset, her horn began to glow and she stomped her hooves angerly on the ground. "I wish we had a way to catch up to him now!" she yelled, unknowingly triggering her magic. As she began to weep, she instantly felt different. Turning her head to one side, she saw a feather wing attached to her body. Quickly turning her head to the other side, she saw another wing and spotted Snails, who now had a pair of wings too. "How in Equestria did I.... oh nevermind. C'mon Snails, we gotta get to the Professor!" the winged unicorn neighed, flapping her wings as she shot up into the sky to pursue Professor Krashkop.

"Beastie Colts! I LOVE THIS GROUP!" Jubilee neighed as her voice squeaked slightly. Hearing the rythemic beat made her move faster, dancing very close to Hoss and maintaining eye contact with him as they moved. Meanwhile, Mojo was still being 'forced' to dance with Destiny Star, her unicorn magic moving him to match her dance moves. "I'm going to show this bunch of rudes and hayseeds that I'm the greatest dancer in all of Equestria," the conceited unicorn muttered while continuing to dance. "Lady, this isn't cool. First of all, I don't like this method of dancing. Second, you're supposed to be working with the caterers now. Third, no offense doll, but you're really not me type of.." "Shut up, hippie! Like it or not, you're my dance partner for the night." "I'm beggin' ya to let me go, miss." "Nothing you can say or do will change my mind!" "Then ya leave me with no alternative. And believe me, this will be harder on me than it will be on you." "What are you babbling about," Destiny said as Mojo puckered up his lips and gave the stunned reddish maned unicorn mare a long, long passionate kiss. Mojo's plan worked! The surprise kiss caused Destiny to lose her concentration on her magic so the Paint stallion could escape her unforgiving grip. When the furious mare reached her front hoof up to slap him, Starflower spotted her and used HER magic to freeze her hoof in midair. "No you don't!" the light blue unicorn neighed sternly. "Mojo didn't want to dance with you, he has better taste than that." "Thanks, love!" Mojo shouted as he scampered back to his seat at the table. "You've interfered in my life for the LAST TIME, you old busy body!" "Ya might wanna have a look around, doll," the Paint pony said as he pointed with his hooves behind her. Now she could see that nearly all of ponies on the dance floor were now staring at her with frowns on their faces. "Er, I was just on break, everyone. Back to work for me!" Destiny said with a forced, toothy smile as she reached for a nearby cart and began to clear away dirty dishes. It was then that Mojo noticed Saddlesore struggling in the back of the room with the rope that was around his snout. "Half a mo, pardon me folks," Mojo said as he rushed back to help the angry blue stallion. Starflower now directed her attention back towards Spirit Flame, hoping she didn't scare the young filly with her use of magic to save her friend from getting clobbered. The kindly nurse unicorn could see that she was a bit uneasy at the moment. "Are you alright, dear? Is the music bothering you? Can I do anything to make you more comfortable?" After Mojo freed him, Saddlesore was angrier than ever. He decided to take drastic action. Watching the white apron wearing Destiny beginning to tire, he quickly snuck up and set a sharp tack on a nearby stool before backing away. "This is hard work," Destiny sighed. "Need to take a break." When Destiny sat down on the stool....... "YYYYEEEEEEOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWW!" she yelled, jumping up so high, her head nearly touched the ceiling. When she landed and started rubbing her pain filled rear, the ponies who had watched it burst into laughter, including Jubilee. "OH THAT IS FUNNY! THINK SHE GOT THE POINT THAT TIME, HOSS?"

As Starflower began to listen to Rue, she couldn't help but notice she bore a striking resemblance to herself. But this remarkable coinicidence did not go unnoticed by the others present. "Blimey Star! You and Rue here look like twins!" "WOW! Are you two sure you're not related somehow?" The casual observation of her friends confirmed what the taller unicorn had been thinking. The match in pelt and cutie mark was either a bizzare bit of random luck, or was it an omen. Either way, it was now getting dark and the nurse unicorn could tell that Rue looked very fagitued. "Well Rue, I believe she lives all the way on the other side of town. All of you look like you could use some refreshments. I have some fresh oatloaf I just baked along with plenty of apple turnovers. It's not much, but it's all I could manage to do after the long day I had at the clinic." "Long day?" "Did you have a lot of emergency cases?" "No, nothing like that. Enough about me, please come in and make yourself at home!" Mojo, Jubilee and Rue entered the cottage to see it was very neat and so clean, the living room floor shined. This had been the first time they had visited their old friend at home, so everything was new and wonderful to them. Elegant paintings hung on the walls and various types of nicknacks rested on the shelves above the fireplace. "Lovely home ya have here, Star! Simply smashing!" "Very couzy! Now you did mention food? I'm as hungry as a horse!" "Rue, would you like some mint tea? I know that Mojo and Jubilee want some! Mojo's the one who introduced it to me." The hippie brony and his Pegasus friend sat down on the big sofa in the living room. "Come Rue, join us. You're gonna love Star's home cookin'." "She cooks better than YOU, Modge!" "Hay Wings! Ya better watch it! I'm your ride home, remember?" "Just pullin' your leg, pal!" Jubilee laughed as Mojo joined in the laughter.

(ooc): While "Mojo" is waiting for a response from "Big MacIntosh", this post will address some of my characters who AREN'T participants in the race. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Louise has been around long enough to know THAT look on a guy, the look of a stallion who needed to relieve himself urgently. She decided to bid a hasty retreat from One Wing. "Oh, I get it, sir," the brown Pegasus said, trying to hide the embarrassment on her face. "Since you don't need my help, then I will take my leave of you. Good luck in the race. Keep a sharp eye out for wild paths of poison joke when you .. er.. take care of that... thing .. you need to do." Louise took off through the air, hoping to catch up to Jubilee and Hoss on their way back to see the Professor. Meanwhile, in Diamond Tiara's chariot, the now wingless Granny Smith listened to what her new seatmate had to say to her. "Yee-up! I'm AppleBloom's granny! I'm so proud of her! Wanna see some photos of her I carry with me everywur I go?" Then she heard Diamond Tiara's offer to land to search for AppleBloom. "I gots a better idear, sweetie! This here flyin' thing kin cover a lot more ground than two ponies on hoof! Betcha we kin find her by flyin' over the racers agin!" The elderly lime green mare perched herself near the front of the chariot. "YOO HOO! Nice young feller flyin' this here chariot! Would you do an old gray mare a favor and fly another low pass over all them runners below us, PLEASE? Purty please?" she said in her gentlest, kindness voice she had. "See thar youngin'? THAT'S how ya talks polite to other ponies. They's an old sayin', y'all can kitch more flies with huney than ya can with vinegar. But then agin, vinegar does taste better on my homemade prune surprise than flies do." Unseen by all the racers so far was a pony who had been following the entire race from afar. This pony wore a cowboy hat with a silver star cutie mark. He gazed up at the mountainous trail with his binoculars and had just witnessed Gilda's self made avalanche and all that transpired after it. "Dag nabbit! That thar griffin's at it agin!" Sheriff Silverstar groaned as he produced his camera with telephoto lens to snap a few quick pictures. "That Gilda's been doin' a barrel full'a cheatin' durin' this entire race! It's a good thing the racing O-fficially hired ME to be a special on field referee! That crazy bird-lion nearly sent some of the runners to the Last Roundup with that last bit of meanness! I better ski-daddle along and keep on observin' this race from a safe distance." With that, Sheriff Silverstar quickly packed up his gear and galloped down a lower trail towards the downward slope of the mountain.

Jubilee swallowed hard before she began to tell her story to Hoss. "When I was growing up, my parents wanted me to be a racing Pegasus, a great flyer like they were. At first, I went to the flight camps and was quite skilled at flying. But then, someone introduced me the music of Sapphire Shores! THE pony of POP!! From that moment on, I dreamed of performing on stage with her! Secretly I took music and dance lessons behind my parent's back. It wasn't until we had a fight when I lost the Jr Speedsters Finals that I told them about my dream. They were FURIOUS with me, but when I rushed over to the family piano and began to play classical music that brought tears to their eyes, they finally decided to let me pursue a career in entertainment. Attended a special Music and Performing Arts School and now, here I am. I actually met Mojo while I was in that school, but that's another story." The dashing Pegasus stallion then asked Jubille to dance. "Dance? SURE! You betcha!" she squealed as she grabbed Hoss by his front hooves and pulled him into the middle of the dance floor. "C'mon everypony, let's shake those flanks!" Seated next to Spirit Flame, Starflower nodded to acknowledge her response. "A talent for magic? That's wonderful! Unfortunately, this isn't a magic competition. This kind of talent show is for entertaining, things like singing and dancing. Have you ever did any of those things before, Spirit Flame?" As Mojo returned to the table, he heard the DJ's announcement and the music playing. "Far out! Time to get me groove on!" the Paint stallion said as he trotted out to the dance floor and began to move with the music. Moments later, when Destiny Star emerged from the Men's Room after cleaning it, she saw all the ponies dancing and having a good time out on the dance floor. "What? They're having fun and I'm not the center of it?" the tall reddish maned unicorn complained. "That does it! I've done enough work! I'm going to have some fun too!" When Destiny pleaded with other stallions in the room to dance with her, every one of them refused. In desparation, she approached Mojo who was dancing by himself. "Look hippie, I need a dance partner, and YOU'RE IT!" "Calm yourself, love. Ya seem to be very uptight, so many negative vibes..." "Oh, knock off all that weird talk and let's dance NOW!" the arrogant unicorn sneered, using her unicorn levitation powers to position the stunned Paint pony into position as she began to slow dance with him. "Beggin' yur pardon, doll, but I'd rather be movin' me body on me own." "Hush now. I want my dancing to look flawless, so I'll keep you in perfect sync with me." "Don't I get a say in this, miss?" "Nope," Destiny said as Saddlesore rushed up behind her. "Quit goofin' off, filly! There's still a lot of work to do here!" "Tell someone who cares, shrimp!" "Now that wasn't a cool thing to say to the bloke!" "No one asked you, hippie!" "I'm going to tell Big Time on you!" Saddlesore announced just before he felt his snout being tied shut with rope my Destiny's unicorn magic. "You'll tell NO ONE, dork pony, now leave me alone!" Destiny snorted as she continued dancing with Mojo. Saddlesore trotted over to the back of the room, attempting to pull the ropes off his snout with his front hooves.

Mojo continued to gallop along the winding, long mountain trail. He was starting to get tired as he ascended the road. The hippie brony had participated in many nature hikes in the mountains near home when he was a foal, so this kind of racing he understood all too well. The Paint stallion also realized that by challenging the angry she griffin, he had made a big time enemy that was willing to do ANYTHING to get even. He had to remain dilligent and alert. Mojo was happy to know that the stallion he had freed from the boulder would receive proper care from Louise LaMare. He also was glad that Granny Smith was safe, howbeit flying around in an air chariot, but safe none the less. He just happened to look down when he spotted something shiny on the ground. "A chocolate bar? Far out!" he neighed as he stopped long enough to unwrap and consume it. This then presented the Paint pony with another problem. "What do I do with this blinkin' wrapper? Don't wanna litter the earth." Suddenly, the solution came to him! With one swift motion, Mojo ate the wrapper, chewing it first before swallowing. "Actually, not a bad flavor, for paper," he giggled as he resumed trotting on, hoping he could catch up to some familiar ponies, including his 'love', Lyra. As he galloped on, the Paint stallion saw a sight that made his eyes bug out and his mouth drop. A huge reddish stallion with orange mane rolling up ahead. "Hay! I know that bloke!" he shouted, galloping up to the fast moving Big MacIntosh as he collided with a huge bush. "Hay chum, you alright?" Mojo asked, stopping in front of the bush to offer a helping hoof. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- When she first watched Hoss approached that moving and talking pile of leaves, she let out a loud scream of fear. "MONSTER!" she yelled before zooming behind a tree to hide. When she heard that Hoss was actually speaking with another victim of Poison Joke, the embarrassed Pegasus mare emerged from behind the tree. "Oh my gosh! I am SO sorry sir, didn't know you were a pony, you ARE a pony, right?" Meanwhile, Louise stayed with One Wing, insisting on helping the injuried Pegasus. "Beggin' yur pardon, sir, but you're visibly bleeding. I do have some asprins on me to help with your headache. Please allow me to at least bandage your open wounds. How's yur tail? If THAT boulder landed on it, chances are it's broken. I can fix up a quick splint for it so you can continue in the race." Back at the starting line bleachers, Starflower smiled at Madam Bistro's menu selections. "May I have two bagels and an eclair, please?" she asked as she watched the shimmering portal. As Misty complimented Snails again for his glowing horn, she glanced up at the portal in time to see the now female Hoss talking with Jubilee and Louise LaMare and heard the mention of Poison Joke. "Poison Joke? Wait, the Professor said he had a cure!" "That's right, Misty! You and Snails find him fast!" Misty looked back at the bleachers, but the gray maned Pegasus wasn't there. He was airborne, flapping his wings to get further away from the starting gate. "Zhat's dee use? I vill go home und zit on dee front porch. I have done too much damage already today..."

I've noticed lately that often it's taking more time for the Canterlot site to 'load' on my PC and a few times, the 'operation' will 'time out' on me (IE9 gives the 'Internet Connection Problem' screen, yet all my other programs/internet run fine). Am I the only one experiencing this? Could this be the result of the site using more bandwidth or the increased memory demands of the new software? Just curious.

Mojo, having hit his intended target both physically and emotionally, turned his attention towards One Wing. "You don't look so good, chum. I know enough first aid to know that you've got bonked on your head. Ya need to keep movin' to prevent passin' out." Mojo then turned towards Stormsong. "Lovely name, miss Stormsong. Sorry ya had to see all that, but dash it all that evil griffin Gilda had it comin' to her for putting all the racers in danger like this and ..." Mojo stopped talking when he saw Stormsong rush off. "Guess she wanted to get back in the race," the Paint stallion said as he turned back towards One Wing. "Are you gonna be alright to race? I wish I had a first aid kit with me. Gotta get ya some help fast!" Mojo began to shout 'HELP!' repeatedly, thankful that there seemed to be an echo on the mountains that could help carry his voice farther. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Julibee and Louise LaMare listened with much interest to what the female Hoss told them. "Oh NO!" Julibee neighed. "Mojo's right! Bet that Professor pony's got a cure for that!" "We'll follow you back to the starting gate once we find Granny Smith again and..." Louise stopped talking when the three of them spotted Diamond Tiara's chariot swooping by and the gray maned mare inside it. "She's safe for now, let's get back to.." Jubilee stopped in midsentence when she heard a familiar voice echoing in the distance. "That's Modge! And he's in trouble! C'mon guys, we need to see what's going on!" Jubilee and Louise led Hoss with them as they flew over to the Paint stallion who quickly explained the situation with the injured One Wing to them. "I always carry a First Aid kit in my saddlebag, Mojo," the brown Pegasus said as she landed. "I'll stay here and treat this poor fellow's injuries." "And I'll fly with Hoss back to the Professor! Got to get him back to his handsome self and..." suddenly the blonde Pegasus mare began to blush. She had called Hoss handsome outloud! She had always thought of the brown weather Pegasus as attractive, but she'd been afraid to tell him. Now that Hoss had fell victim to the Poison Joke, Jubilee's feelings for him became stronger. "C'mon Hoss! I'll see you get changed back to normal, I promise!" Mojo waved to his friends before resuming the race. Louise now began a quick examination of One Wing's injuries as Jubilee escorted Hoss back towards the starting gate. Meanwhile, back at the starting gate bleachers, Starflower smiled at Madam Bistro. "Watching this race has made me hungry, I believe I'll buy something from your cart." Misty hoofstomped in applause for Snail's efforts to get his horn to glow. "Well done, Snails! I had trouble doing that myself when I was your age! Perhaps in time, you'll be able to weild great magic!" Professor Krashkop remained seated on the bleachers, his mind pondering all that went wrong with the jet pack he had created earlier.

"That looks delicious, Pony Joe," Misty said with a smile. "May I have the same?" The yellow unicorn tried to hide how nervous she was. She really didn't know what to think of Big Time's offer. Could it be possible for her to gain control of her magic to the place where she could actually perform like her parents? Was this agent stallion just planning to show her off like some sort of magical 'freak exhibit' in a circus? Misty was small, but she was old enough to investigate any offer before agreeing to it. She wasn't about to be bullied by Big Time or anyone. As she waited for her food, her mind began to wonder, trying to picture herself as a star performer of magic feats.

"We could tell ghost stories," Jubilee suggested. "Isn't that traditional during a sleepover?" "Indeed it is," Starflower said with a wicked grin as Mojo set up another lava lamp to brighten up the inside of the wagon. "There now," Mojo said as he climbed into his hammack. "That'll give us plenty of light for the next few hours. So Star, you have a ghost story? Groovy!" "Yes guys, let me tell you the story of the Midnight Rider of Hoofington!" the light blue unicorn neighed. She told the story flawlessly, over the course of fifteen minutes, a story so scary that it caused Jubilee to quake in fear. Mojo laid calmly as he heard the story, with a calm expression on her face. "And then, when the full moon came out and all the town's residents sprang to their windows to see where the rattling noise was coming from, they saw him..... the Midnight Rider! With a head aflame in fire and hooves of steel! BOOOOOOOOOOO!" The sounds Starflower made frightened Jubilee so much, she rolled out of her hammack to the wooden floor. "That one really scared ya, huh Wings?" "I wasn't scared! I just... lost control of my hammack, that's all." "Sure ya did, Wings, sure ya did!" As Mojo laughed, Jubilee smacked him with her pillow. "Take THAT, Modge!" "Two can play at THAT game!" Mojo neighed, grabbing his pillow in his teeth and swatting the blonde Pegasus with it. "Will you two stop this behavior? Stop hitting each other with your pillows!" "Ok" "Alright, Star." Mojo and Jubilee looked at each other, nodded, and then took their pillows and hit the taller unicorn with them. "HAY!" she shouted before bursting into laughter. Using her unicorn powers, Starflower levitated all three of their pillows and began playfully striking the hippie brony and the white furred Pegasus with them. Soon, an all out pillow fight broke out and feathers began to fly all over the inside of the wagon.

"Actually, my name's Jubilee. Old Mojo calls me Wings ever since we met many years ago. I'm Mojo's friend and I don't sell things, I'm an entertainer. In fact, I'll be performing in this city tomorrow night." "I sell a lot of groovy things," Mojo said as he rehitched himself to the wagon. "I sell hoofmade arts and crafts, fresh produce grown on me family's farm and fun stuff like mood bracelets, lava lamps, hammacks, tools, general merchandise." Mojo began to pull his wagon towards a small cottage on the end of a residential neighborhood. The door of the dwelling swang open as a light blue taller unicorn mare wearing a stethoscope galloped out to greet the group. "MOJO! JUBILEE!" she neighed as they shared a group hug. "Golly good to see ya again, Starflower," the Paint pony said with a grin. "Starflower, meet our new friend!" Jubilee neighed, pointing to Rue. "She needs some directions, love. Since you live here, maybe you can help her out." "I'll certainly try," Starflower said as she approached her. "My name's Starflower, I own the clinic just down the street from here. How may I help you?"

Mojo heard a lovely female voice and turned his head in that direction. When he did, his eyes bugged out at the sight of the elegant looking blue unicorn with the full note cutie mark. "This must be me lucky day," the Paint stallion said to himself, "all these wonderful fillies I'm meeting! I should enter competitive races more often! But wait, Lyra loves me, can't betray her! Besides that, someone brought these blinkin' stones down on this trail on purpose and I think I know who it was!" Mojo then smiled before he spoke, "I'm fine, miss, but I don't know about me pal here yet. He got his tail caught under one of these fallen rocks. Hope he's alright to continue racing. Name's Mojo, pardon me while I do some investigation." Acting quickly, the hippie brony grabbed a round stone the size of a baseball in his mouth and set it carefully on the edge of a nearby tree stump. Then he turned his back on it and maneuvered his body slowly. "Gotta aim this just right," he muttered as his hooves came to a stop. The Paint pony then reared back and kicked the stone with all his might, sending it straight up in the air until there was a loud, audible 'thump' that was followed by screams of pain and a few white feathers floating down towards them. "I THOUGHT THERE WAS SOME MISCHEIF AFOOT! SHOW YOURSELF, COWARD! ONLY A BLOOMIN' WIMPY, LAME SNIVELIN' COWARD WOULD DO SOMETHING THIS SINISTER!" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Now watching the action in the large, shimmering portal, Starflower and Misty Magic grew angry at Gilda's antics. "How could she be so cruel?" Starflower growled. "Griffins are not exactly renowned for their virtues," added Misty. "Oh my gosh! I forgot about Granny Smith! I hope she's alright." The portal seemed to respond to Misty's words, fading in to show the elderly green mare now riding in an air chariot with Diamond Tiara. "How in the name of Equestria did she end up THERE?" "Don't know, but LOOK! Her wings are gone!" "At least she seems to be ok. Perhaps she landed in that chariot before she lost her wings." "It's good that she's safe. I still don't know how I did that. I have to be more careful with my magic."

Well, there went MY guess out the window.....

So far, so good for Mojo. He was managing to stay focused on the road ahead and avoided potential pitfalls along the way. The Paint pony with the peace sign cutie mark was galloping forward now, enjoying his new quicker pace until he stopped at a fork in the road. The road sign was gone but he could make out a message left behind, apparently for him: MOJO, CARRO WENT LEF REAL PAT LOVE LYR "What a bummer! Part of this writin's been rubbed out. Hmmmm. It WAS meant for me, I can see me name, and Carro could be the name of another pony. WENT LEF probably means WENT LEFT and REAL PAT, REAL PATH! Of course! The left way is the real path! And look, LOVE LYR, LOVE LYRA! That mare really LOVES ME! COMING, SWEET THING! YOUR MOJO'S ON THE MOVE!!!" The instantly lovestruck stallion took off like a rocket down the left path. Now he was running on pure adrenaline, wanting to catch up to the mare who loves him! He leapt over fallen rocks as if he was dancing on clouds. he was determined that NOTHING would stand between him and his one true love, Lyra! As he glanced up ahead, he spotted One Wing who seemed to be stuck. At that moment, the dreamy minded Paint stallion came back to his senses. "That pony needs me help! It's NEVER cool to miss an opportunity to help me fellow pony! Lyra, my love, you'll just have to wait." Mojo came to stop near One Wing and proceeded to use his hind legs to kick at the large boulder that had landed on his tail. "Hang in there, chum, I'll have ya out quicker than you can say 'Bob's your uncle!'" It took several hard kicks for the boulder to move enough to release the older pony's tail. "There ya are, pal. Name's Mojo, glad I could be of service!" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The still galloping Jubilee and Louise LaMare nodded at Hoss's words, quickly reaching up to grab the brown Pegasus mare's legs so they could be lifted out from the middle of the herd of hard charging ponies. When the winged mare sat them down to the side, the gratiful duo expressed their thanks. "That was a great rescue, thanks, we owe you one!" Jubilee neighed. "Thanks, and we do owe you one," added Louise. "How can we be of service to you?" "Just name it, lady and we'll DO IT!" Meanwhile, still aboard the air chariot, Granny Smith looked upset when she heard Diamond Tiara's words. "Hay young foal! You need to learn respect fer yur elders! I got half a mind to turn ya over my knee and put some wood to yur flanks! I don't care so much for ya razzin' me, I'm old and I'm used to it, but to insult that nice driver feller steerin' this here thing! You really orta apologize to'm!" Then Diamond Tiara ordered the lime green Pegasus to fly off. "Be happy to leave! I don't wanna be wur I ain't welcome!" Granny Smith neighed as she began to flap her wings, only to watch them instantly vanish on the last flap. "HAY! What in tarnation's goin' on? Oh yeah. Guess them flyin' fillies were right about them wings disappearin' at any time. Looks like I'm stuck here, kiddo. Did you say my Applebloom was in this here race? I had a hunch she was here! Wur is she? Have ya seen her yet? I smell chocolate! How about givin' some to me? I ain't et nutin' since the prunes I had fer breakfast!" Back at the starting line bleachers, Professor Krashkop paid Saddlesore the bits he had promised him. "Are you sure you're alright enough to leave on your own?" Starflower asked the blue stallion. "That's what I said, lady, gee, are those ears of yours PAINTED on? I'm outta here!" he grumbled before galloping away. "Vhat an impolite pony!" the green colored Pegasus stallion snorted. "Dat dumkoff didn't even tank ya for all ya did for'm!" "It's OK, Professor. I've known Saddlesore for a long time. If he DIDN'T act like this, I would KNOW something was wrong with him!" the taller light blue unicorn giggled. "Thanks again, Madam Bistro, for your assistance." Snails was starting to make Misty feel better. She giggled a little watching the unicorn colt trying to activate his magic as sparks flew from his horn. "You can do it, Snails! You're almost there! Keep trying!" the yellow unicorn mare cheered.

Starflower smiled at Spirit Flame as she used her unicorn magic to levitate a plate of salad over towards the filly. "In the case of this party, a talent competition is when ponies who have musical abilities perform on stage with a judge deciding who played and sang the best. I am going to help my friend Jubilee with her performance later in the evening. Do you have any special talents, abilities, things that you are good at?" Now that she had a band, Jubilee sat down next to Hoss and breathed a sigh of relief. "PHEW! This will be my big chance! If I can impress Big Time, maybe he'll sign me up as a client! So Hoss, I hear you're a weather pony. What's it like working up there in the clouds? I came from Cloudsdale myself, but I wasn't cut out for the Weather Bureau." Mojo smiled when he saw Shanna and Bull Dozer 'warming up' to one another. Deciding it would probably be better not to interject himself into their conversation, the Paint stallion turned and spotted Saddlesore bedeviling Destiny Star some more. "Oh miss! There's a clog in the Men's room and you're the PERFECT pony to clean up the mess." "Are you out of your little blue mind? I will NOT lower myself to do such menial labor!" "Well then I need to go tell Big Time you're refusing to .." "You didn't let me finish," Destiny said in a nicer tone. "I will not lower myself to do such menial labor without getting my rubber hoof gloves and appropriate tools first!" "That's better, brillo head!" Saddlesore laughed as he turned to walk away. Destiny SO wanted to harpoon the loudmouthed blue stallion for his arrogance, but backed off when she remembered she had to stay on everyone's good side so she could perform in the talent competition. "That blue bloke better stop teasin' her. It's not cool to get attacked by an angry unicorn!" Mojo muttered.

When Mojo saw that tiny Appletini was being cared for and was safely on Carrot Fields, he gave a nicker of satisfaction before he galloped off and back into the race. He left so soon, he missed the shrunken mare's encounter with Granola Gracie, otherwise he would've stayed to explain that Appletini was NOT a toy. Now the Paint stallion decided to make his move. He'd been holding back, trotting at a leisurely pace to conserve energy, but now, he excellerated his gait. His new friend Lyra was way ahead with the lead pack while his other new mare friend Shanna was lagging behind him. In his mind, Mojo wondered how to explain to her what had happened to her twin brother. "Dash it all! How do I tell Shanna that her brother was now her sister?" the galloping Paint pony muttered. "Not exactly a cool, subtle way to do this. Should I wait and see if Hoss gets cured of the poison joke first? Marvy! If she becomes he again, then I won't have to tell that cute lady anything! I can spare her feelings! Groovy!" Mojo was now approaching the foot of the mountain and the place where the Mountain Pass starts. The trail looked a bit narrow, plenty of room for racing participants but no room on either side for stopping. Once he entered the pass, the Paint stallion realized he'd have to keep galloping or risk getting trampled under hoof. Mojo focused on the ground immediately in front of him. Loose rocks or fallen tree limbs could trip him up in an instant, so he wanted to be very careful. He was now running along side Mobius and Stormsong and decided to 'break the ice' with them. "This race is absolutely smashing, ain't it?" If Mojo had looked far enough behind him, he would've spotted more of his friends.... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Trapped within a pack of race contestants, the galloping Jubilee and Louise LaMare heard a voice above them, Looking up, they spotted a brownish colored mare calling down to them by name. It was Hoss, but now in a form unfamiliar to either of them. "How do you know our names?" Jubilee shouted up towards her. "We'd love to stop and chat with you miss, but we're trapped in this herd of ponies! Can't stop, step aside or fly up!" a panting Louise explained. "Help us out of this jam and we'll gladly help you, whoever you are!" Meanwhile, as the winged Granny Smith was still riding uncomfortably as a 'surprise' passenger in Diamond Tiara's Pegasus drawn chariot, back at the starting line bleachers, Starflower accepted the garlic from Madam Bistro as she stuck it under the passed out Saddlesore's nose with her unicorn magic, attempting to revive him. "C'mon Saddlesore, wake up, please!" the light blue unicorn neighed as the blue stallion opened his eyes. "That smell! That horrible smell! Get it away from me!" "You're up! Thank goodness! How are you feeling?" "I'm ANGRY! That crazy old Pegasus owes me twenty bits for testing that stupid piece of junk for him! I WANT MY MONEY!" "Yep, he's back to normal alright," Starflower giggled. A short distance away, Misty Magic was touched by Snail's suggestion. This goofy looking foal seemed to truly care about her. The short yellow unicorn with purple mane looked up at the wide eyed youngster and smiled. "That's a very good idea, Snails, thank you. I've struggled with my magic all my life. Sometimes I've done great things with my spells, sometimes, not so much." Seated beside her, Professor Krashkop heard Saddlesore shout his name in anger. "Ack! Dat is mein test subject! Pardon me, I must pay dat brave pony vhat I owe him!" the green colored Pegasus said as he rushed over to him.

"Hemlock? Fraid I never heard of him, have you Wings?" "Nope, can't say that we have." "We're heading for Hoofington, if you'd like, you could ride with us." "You could ride in the wagon with me, if you're heading that way." "There's a special friend we're meeting there. Come with us, if you like."

Mojo was now running at full stride as he approached where Lyra and Carrot Fields were galloping. Suddenly, he saw the stallion halt and extend a hoof to the trail. "Half a mo', that's ... OH MY!" the Paint stallion shouted when he spotted Appletini. Thinking quickly, Mojo came to a stop and stood sideways in the road to serve as a shield from the other racers so the shrunken mare could climb up upon Carrot Fields safely. "Did something go amiss with your surprise, Miss Applejack?" Mojo asked in a serious and concerned manner. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Up ahead, having been knocked to the ground by Diamond Tia's wild flying air chariot, Jubilee and Louise LaMare suddenly found themselves lying in the middle of the road as a group of hard charging ponies were galloping their way. "Oh my! Better make a run for it!" Jubilee screamed. "I'm with you, kid," added Louise as the two winged mares sprang to their hooves and began to gallop. Soon, they found themselves surrounded on both sides by other competitors. "What do we do? Can't stop or we'll get trampled, can't trot off the track, can't get enough wingspan to fly!" "We have no choice! For now, we have to run with the rest of the herd!" "How do we get in situations like this?" "Don't know, but we better just keep running!"

I don't mean to toot my own horn, but it looks like I could be right about who Discord really is. I lifted this from an online TV Listings entry for "The Return of Harmony - Part 2" Could the dream I had about this a week ago be right?

Trotting along the road towards town was a Paint stallion harnessed to a large wooden wagon. The large sign on the side of the wagon read "Mojo's Art and Fine Goods." As Mojo pulled his wagon along, fluttering in the air near him was a white furred, petite blonde Pegasus mare. Her stage name was Julibee Flyer but most ponies called her Jubilee (except for Mojo, who just referred to her as 'Wings'). The two had been fast friends for a long time and were on their way to visit another of their friends, a nurse unicorn named Starflower at her hometown of Hoofington. "Well Wings, we're almost there," Mojo said. "Can't wait to see good ol' Starflower again." "Tell me the truth, Modge. If she were twenty years younger, would you try to date her?" "Probably not. A lady like that is way too smart to want a hippie pony like me. Besides, I like the single life way too much." "Me too! I have my career to think of! Glad I was able to get this singing gig in Hoofington. Gives us a chance to see Starflower again!" "Right-O! Half a mo' Wings, who's that?" Mojo asked, briefly pointing a hoof in the direction of a filly sitting on a bench. "She looks sad. Let's see if we can't cheer her up!" "Brilliant idea!" Mojo neighed as he pulled his wagon over, quickly unhitched himself and then joined Jubilee as she landed. The two walked up to the pony together. "Hello there!" the blonde Pegasus nieghed with a big smile. "Hi there miss! I'm Mojo and this is me friend Jubilee. Couldn't help notice ya here on the bench. Anything we can do to help you?"

Starflower smiled as she turned towards Spirit Flame. "A party is a big celebration! It's a time to meet new friends, enjoy fancy food, generally become amused and entertained! You've never been to a party before, young lady?" "Thank you, sir!" Jubilee said, acknowledging Bull Dozer's compliment before turning her head towards Mojo. "As I was telling you, Modge, I need a band to help me perform in the talent competition. I know you play guitar and I can play piano. PLEASE say you'll help me out!" "Ya know I'm there for ya, Wings, but you and me don't make a full band. Ya really need more ponies than that to make up a band." "You're right! What am I going to do? I'm SUNK!" "No you're not!" Starflower interjected. "Couldn't help overhear, I can play tamborene and help with back up vocals." "WOW! You'd be willing to help me tonight?" "Certainly, now if we only had one more band member..." "YOU HAVE IT!" Saddlesore interrupted. "I play electric guitar and I owe the big unicorn here a favor for exposing that mean oversized brillo maned Destiny Star to the room!" "Half a mo', YOU want to help us out?" "Don't like ownin' any pony anything!" Saddlesore grunted. "I pay my debts!" "Thank you so much!" Jubilee shouted as she fluttered over and gave the blue stallion a quick kiss on the cheek, This caused the blue stallion to blush red slightly. "Now don't get mushy!" he grunted, fighting the urge to smile. Watching from a distance was a furious Destiny Star. "I am SO going to smoke that group of glue factory rejects in the talent competition! I'll win it, by hook or by crook!"

Mojo was now galloping all out. He knew he had lost much valuable time being trapped in that huge spider web. Though he felt bad for Hoss becoming an unwitting victim of poison joke, he realized there wasn't much he could do to help him... or her.... as the case may be. The Paint stallion now began passing other racers, he ran past Big MacIntosh, looking very closely as the huge stallion's pelt to make sure tiny Appletini had not fallen off. Then he passed Gilda and fought to urge to kick dirt in her face the same way she had done him. "That's not me style, revenge isn't my bag," Mojo thought to himself as he ran up the trail. Suddenly he saw a sky chariot lowering towards the other racers. The alert galloping brown and white pony managed to duck his head and speed up to avoid getting smacked by it. That when he noticed the lone passanger, a light purple filly with white streaked mane. "Beggin' your pardon, kid, but it ain't for ya to be flyin' that thing on the race trail. Do yourself a favor and go back home!" As the hippie brony excellerated to get ahead of the flying craft, he spotted his friend Lyra up ahead, who was talking to a Carrot Fields. Mojo was happy to see she was alright, and trotted harder so he could catch up to her. "Hello again Lyra! Didn't get a chance to tell ya how great you were back at the bridge! You wouldn't believe me if I told ya all that I've been through to get here!" --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In the air above the race, as Pegasi Jubilee and Louise tried to convince Granny Smith to return with them, Diamond Tiara's chariot wooshed on by them, causing the two Pegasus mares to spin wildly in the air before crash landing in the middle of the race trail. Granny Smith wasn't paying attention either as so when the air chariot flew near her, it rammed her in the rear, flipped the elderly Pegasus in the air and then caused her to land in the back of the chariot. "SUNDAY DRIVER!" the angry gray maned mare shouted. "Who's flyin' this here contraption? And who's this foal sittin' back here with me?" Meanwhile, back at the starting gate bleachers, as the race continued to 'play' live through the shimmering magical portal, Starflower helped her newest patient, Saddlesore, sit up in his cot. "You're at the starting gate of the Running of the Leaves, sir. Everything that you experienced was no dream, it was all real." "It WAS?" the blue stallion said with a stunned look on his face. "Pardon me a moment before I..." He was going to say, 'pass out', but he already did. "Oh dear. I have to wake him back up. Madam Bistro, do you happen to have any strong garlic in your cart?" As Misty Magic continued sipping her apple smoothy, Professor Krashkop fluttered down and sat beside her. "Fraulein? Vhy are you so sad?" the older green Pegasus asked. "Do you have to ask? Look at all the terrible things my magic has done today!" "Terrible? NEIN! You saved Saddlesore's life vith your magic und look at dat wonderba portal you created! It is I who am dee failure today. Mein solar powered jet pack vas a huge flop! All of mein inventions are dumkoff tings no vone needs! I even created a spray on cure for poison joke, but no pony vill vant to try it vhen day hear about mein jet pack failure!" "An easy cure for poison joke? Every pony will want to buy that!" "Nein! It is untested. It should vork in theory but how can I ask anyvone to be a test subject for dis stuff? Vith mein luck, it vill make dee patient vorse instead of better." The two ponies lowered their heads and sighed in unison.