Disclaimer - The rights to My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and its characters belong to DHX Media Vancouver, Hasbro Studios, and Lauren Faust, and any others associated with the show. No profit is being made by this fanfiction, this is just for fun and so I'm not addicted to watching anymore episodes of this show, haha... Also, Total Drama and its characters belong to Fresh TV, Teletoon, and any others associated with the show.
After a few months of not keeping up of MLP, I'm FINALLY watching the new episodes! Right now I'm on "What About Discord?". I still can't believe [SPOILERS] the Crusaders got their cutie mark! I was honestly hoping Apple Bloom's cutie mark wouldn't have an apple on it, because I expected her to be the very first Apple to not have an apple-related cutie mark, but oh well...
Hope you guys like this chapter, enjoy!
Chapter 09 - Season 1: Seek and Ye Shall Find
"Last time, on Total Pony Island" Discord begins "Put on your aprons and find your chef hats, yesterday, the teams were chefs! Well, most of them were. Let's just say that 'ponies' and 'kitchens' don't exactly go together... Anyways, both teams had to prepare the best dish for me and Smooze to test in under 2 hours, using ingredients given by a food truck. Pinkie Pie suggested her team make a triple layered chocolate strawberry cake" He begins to mindlessly drool at the thought of the delicious delicacy "Hm? What was I saying? Oh, right! So while the Parasprites were making dessert, the Breezies were preparing the main course. They decided to make a filet mignon meal with a side of green beans and a parsley garnish. And by a surprising turn of events, Rainbow Dash and Applejack finally make amends and become best friends again! How sweet... NOT! And by, yet another turn of events, despite all the delicious and mouth-watering meals I previously mentioned, deciding a winner was hard. It's not that they were both good, it was actually quite the opposite. I mean, come on! How does someone ruin CHOCOLATE CAKE?! But even though the Parasprites shamelessly burned their meal, they took the cake-" He begins to laugh and his unintentional pun for a few seconds "And won the challenge, since Sweetie Belle used her... Ugh.. 'secret ingredient' to spice up the filet mignon..." He tries not to puke for the 60th time since yesterday "Unsurprisingly, Sweetie Belle got the boot. But this caused Fluttershy to become extremely distressed. She spent the entire night crying because of all the 'turmoil' and 'drama'. Well, how else am I supposed to get paid? I can't have everyone all happy and friendly! It'll ruin the whole show!" He was then cut off by the sound of Fluttershy's distant bawling from her cabin, as she heard what he said "Er... Who's gonna mess this challenge up for their team? What evil and chaotic challenge will I come up with today! And will that pony ever stop crying? Find out, on Total, Pony, Island!"
"Is Fluttershy STILL crying?" Rainbow Dash whispered to Applejack, trying not to get the weeping pony's attention
"Apparently.." Applejack whispered back. Fluttershy was bawling her eyes out into her pillow
"I feel so bad for her! It isn't her fault everyone hates each other now" Sunset Shimmer says, causing her to cry even more after hearing that last sentence
That's when Big Macintosh walks into the girls' side "Is everything ok here? I heard someone crying"
"Big Macintosh! What the hay are you doing here?!" Rainbow Dash asked, shocked to see the stallion in the females' room "It's called the GIRLS' side for a reason, you sicko!"
"How many times do I have to say it?" Applejack asks "We. Don't. Wear. CLOTHES!"
"Oh, right! Heh heh.." The pegasus says, rubbing the back of her mane nervously
"That crying is Fluttershy" Cheerilee says, pointing her head over to the pony "She's just been upset about all the conflict lately, and wants to get away from it is all, poor girl!"
** CONFESSIONAL **
Fluttershy: *has red eyes, due to all the crying* I-I don't know WHO to trust anymore! I just wanna go home! *begins bawling again*
Fluttershy's crying isn't just heard throughout her entire cabin, but it also catches the Parasprites' attention. Similar to the Breezies, the entire team was all gathered in one side of the room, for they were previously wondering what the loud noise was
"Ugh!" Diamond Tiara says, as she covers her ears with her pillow "Why is that whiny pony still crying? Can't she just shut up already?!"
"Hey! Don't say those things to Fluttershy!" Pinkie Pie barked at Diamond Tiara "Maybe we just need to throw her a party to make her feel better!"
"Yeah!" Cheese Sandwich says "With streamers, and balloons, and cake, and-"
"PINATAS?!" Pinkie Pie screams excitedly
"DEFIANTLY! SO MANY PINATAS!" Cheese Sandwich adds in blissful agreement
"Guys, I don't think some streamers and balloons-" Apple Bloom begins, before being cut off
"And pinatas!" Pinkie and Cheese interrupt
"And pinatas..." Apple Bloom sarcastically says with an eye roll "Are gonna make her feel any better. Fluttershy's just dealing with anxiety. Y'know, with the whole 'battling against your friends' and stuff"
"You say that like it's a bad thing!" Soarin says "It's for $1,000,000 for Celestia's sake!"
Flash Sentry violently nudges the stallion, glaring at him "You're not helping, dude!"
"Ouch! Hey!" Soarin says, rubbing the hit area
"Well, I don't think the crying's good for her at all!" Rarity says "It'll give her those terribly hideous red eyes! And those dreadful bags! All that pony needs is a new coat of makeup!"
Apple Bloom rolls her eyes at this "I don't think makeup is gonna make Fluttershy feel any better either!" She walks up to her cabin door, and looks out the small window at the top of it "I wonder when Discord's gonna call us to the mess hall. I really just wanna get this terrible day over with"
BLAAAAREEEE
... Was the sound of Discord's obnoxious air horn, which signaled that it was time for breakf- "breakfast"
"Does that answer your question?" Flash Sentry asks, exiting the cabin
"So, then I was like, Do you really think you can challenge the one and only Rainbow Dash in a race?"
It was quite obvious who said that. It clearly wasn't Scootaloo, so we can get rid of that guess
Yup, you guessed it, Rainbow Dash was telling another story about her awesomeness
"That's when they started to get cocky, like, 'Of course I can!'" She continued
"Because THEY were obviously the only cocky pony..." Applejack silently said to herself with a chuckle
"Heh! Yeah, whatever" Rainbow Dash says to her, smirking "Anyways, that's when we got in racing position. And as soon as I lifted up my wings, I-"
She was then cut off by Fluttershy's extremely loud bawling "WAAAH!" She wailed
"Ugh!" Rainbow Dash groans "The one time Fluttershy's loud, it's for the most ridiculous reason!"
** CONFESSIONAL **
Rainbow Dash: Fluttershy can't keep crying like this! She'll obviously try to get herself out of the competition, which I can't have! We're in an alliance, and that could leave me at stake of being voted for if she leaves! ... O-Oh! A-And, of course, she can't get eliminated because I'll dearly miss her! Y-Yeah... *clears throat*
- STATIC -
"Fluttershy, calm down!" Applejack politely says to her friend "No one is gonna vote ya off, sugar cube"
Fluttershy doesn't even bother to look Applejack in the eye, as she continues to cry and sniff "I don't care about that! If anything, I WANT people to vote me off!"
"Then it's settled, we'll vote you off" Rainbow Dash says, crossing her hooves
Everyone on her team (except the bawling, yellow pegasus) shot her an angry glare for her selfish remark "... What?" Rainbow Dash asks, completely unaware of what made them mad in the first place
"I still can't believe we won that last challenge" Flash Sentry says to his team, at the table right next to the Breezies' "Y'know, since our cake got burnt and all"
"It was just our luck that the Breezies' happened to have such a rancid, disgusting dish!" Rarity says
"And it's all because of your little sister. Not that I'm surprised, she's a horrible cook!" Soarin says
"Hey! Don't say that about Sweetie Belle!" Apple Bloom and Rarity both scolded at the male pegasus
"At least she wasn't trying to eat her team's food!" Diamond Tiara added in defense of her classmate
"Did ya just... Defend Sweetie Belle?" Apple Bloom asks her with a look of confusion
Diamond Tiara turns dark red for a few seconds and gets very nervous "Er.. What?! No! I wasn't trying to defend that blank flank, I just... Whatever!"
** CONFESSIONAL **
Diamond Tiara: Please! The day I defend Sweetie Belle is the day her and her lame blank flank friends get their cutie marks!
- STATIC -
Discord struts into the mess hall, observing each team. (Un)Surprisingly, no one was eating their gruel, which caused the host great dismay
"Hey! Why aren't you guys eating the food Smooze willingly took time to make for you guys?!" Discord complained
"Food? Where's the food?!" Soarin anxiously and idiotically blurted, for he wasn't aware that Discord was referring to his expired oatmeal
"You rude, ungrateful little ponies! You guys should count your blessings more often!" Discord nagged. He snaps his lion paw hand, and at a moment's notice, he used his magic to instantly make Flash's bowl of gruel appear on top of his muzzle. The stallion was startled and disgusted at the same time
"See! Flash Sentry appreciates Smooze's efforts, don't you Flash?" Discord says, bending over to face the stallion, who only responded by incoherently mumble-screaming through the bowl of gruel. He tries to remove it, but it's no use, almost as if it was glued on
"Oh, and good luck getting that off, buddy!" Discord says "It's bonded with magic!"
Twilight Sparkle walks over to Flash and tries her hardest to remove the bowl. It takes a lot of straining and struggling (which probably wasn't good for her previously broken wing, but she was always willing to help out a friend) but she finally succeeds "So, challenge?" She reminds Discord
"Oh! Right! You're gonna love this one!" Discord says
"Suuure we are..." Everypony says in unison, with simultaneous eye rolls, as if it was rehearsed
"No! Really!" Discord insisted "You ponies like scavenger hunts, don't you?"
Twilight Sparkle gasps "Do I! Scavenger hunts were my favorite when I was a filly! Shining Armor would always set one up for me, and the prize at the end would be something like a new book!"
** CONFESSIONAL **
Twilight Sparkle: Finally! A challenge I'm actually enthusiastic about!
- STATIC -
Discord sighs in boredom "No one asked for a backstory, Twilight... Now, as I was saying, today's challenge will be a scavenger hunt, by yours truly! You all know how scavenger hunts work, so I won't be planning on going into too much detail, but for today's challenge, you'll all be working individually!"
"Individuality? Before the merge?" Cheese Sandwich says "Sweet!"
"Here's how this will work, I'll give every contestant a sheet of paper with the item around the camp that they'll be looking for. Since this is an individual challenge, I suppose you don't have to stick with your team at all times. In order to win, your team must bring all of your items back to me first! Luckily, since the teams are evened out now, you guys won't be whining to me that 'Oh! This isn't fair at all! The teams are uneven!'" He used a very high pitched, childish voice for that last part
"You better not give me some impossible-to-find item, like a radioactive fire breathing alicorn statue or somethin'!" Rainbow Dash griped at Discord
"Don't worry, my item for you won't be NEARLY as hard as that!" Discord cackled, as he handed every pony their item on a notepad. As soon as he handed the 14th notepad, the ponies began reading off their items. The items were as follows:
Screaming Parasprites
Diamond Tiara - Broken Box TV
Apple Bloom - Multi Colored Socks
Pinkie Pie - Rubber Duck
Flash Sentry - Ice Skates
Soarin - Rainbow Afro Wig
Cheese Sandwich - Beach Ball
Rarity - Globe
Killer Breezies
Big Macintosh - Watering Can
Cheerilee - Dictionary
Rainbow Dash - Bouquet of Flowers
Twilight Sparkle - Key Chain
Sunset Shimmer - Beret
Applejack - Quill
Fluttershy - Ice Sculpture of Discord
"Are ya kidding me?!" Applejack sassed, looking at her notepad "You're tellin' me, I've gotta find a tiny little quill in this huge island?"
"What else would I be telling you? That you don't have to find a tiny quill in this huge island? Ha!" Discord laughed
Fluttershy takes another glance at her item "I have to find an ICE SCULPTURE! Of DISCORD! How could I miss that?!"
"Exactly! I made sure to make it really easy for my best friend, Fluttershy!" Discord shamelessly admits
"B-But I don't want it to be easy!" Fluttershy whines
** CONFESSIONAL **
Fluttershy: How am I supposed get eliminated if my item is so obvious and impossible to look over!
- STATIC -
Apple Bloom: I just realized, ever since yesterday I'm the only Cutie Mark Crusader left on this island! I can't leave early like my friends did, I gotta step my game up and win it for them! Maybe if I do, I can get my cutie mark in winning a million dollars!
- STATIC -
"Oh yeah, and I guarantee that everyone's item is out on the campgrounds. GUARANTEE!" Discord says
"I bet you're just saying that!" Rainbow Dash barks
"Why would I ever lie to you guys?" Discord innocently asks. Everypony gives him an unconvinced glare
"Now, begin the scavenger hunt!" Discord bellowed
Everypony had already piled out in front of the mess hall and onto the campgrounds. They were practically scattered, since the teams weren't obligated to stick together for the challenge
Rarity takes a look at her item again "A globe?" She looks at Pinkie and Soarin's items also "A rubber duck and an afro wig? Where does Discord get all of these things?"
"The better question is," Apple Bloom begins "Why would he get all this junk only to hide it on this island?"
"Well, maybe in stead of complaining, we should go and, oh, I don't know, FIND the items!" Diamond Tiara demanded
"Oh, right!" Soarin jumps up, as he completely forgot what he was supposed to be doing in the first place "I'm way ahead of ya!" He dashes out of the forest at the speed of sound, causing the immense amount of trees to sway back as he galloped
"Pinkie, darling, would you like to find our things together?" Rarity asks her friend
"Do I!" The pink pony exclaimed excitedly, jumping up and down "... Wait? Do I? Hmm... Let me think... Oh! Yes! I totally do! Let's go!" She continues to hop away in a very similar manner as Pepe Le Pew would
Rarity follows her, complete unaffected by how strange Pinkie was acting, for she was used to this
"Hey, RD!" Applejack piped up "Wanna go look for our items together?"
Before Rainbow Dash could actually say something, she was cut off by Applejack
"Oh, on second thought, I better not" Applejack adds "I'm sure ya wanna go and scavenge with your lil' crush, Soarin!" She begins to chuckle and make "kissy" noises
Rainbow Dash's regular blue fur became a scarlet shade after her friend referred to the stallion as her "lil' crush" "Wh-What? I don't have a crush on Soarin..." She quickly clears her throat "I couldn't care less about him!" She proceeds to bolt off, leaving a rainbow trail, with intentions of finding the bouquet of flowers she was looking for
"Heh heh, sure ya don't..." Applejack quietly says to herself, smirking
** CONFESSIONAL **
Rainbow Dash: Ugh! Why does everypony keep saying that! I don't like that dumb Wonderbolt! I couldn't care any less for his stupid face! Or his coarse, shaggy baby blue fur.. Or his slick, wavy mane.. Or the way his emerald green eyes twinkle in the night sky! *begins swooning while softly blushing* ... Er...
- STATIC! STATIC! -
Rainbow Dash: *now close up in front of the confessional camera, while the screen continues to become static, she tries to remove the camera* Ugh! How do you remove this stupid thing?!
- STATIC -
Fluttershy begins to slowly sneak away from her team, hoping not to catch their attention. But before she can leave, she's caught off guard
"Hey, Fluttershy!" Cheerilee calls over to her. She jumps, startled to hear the teacher's cheery voice calling her
"Y-Yeah?" She nervously stutters, her wings fidgeting rapidly
"I was just wondering, would you like to search with me and Big Macintosh?" Cheerilee says, pointing her hoof at the red stallion
"O-Oh.. Um.. No thanks! I'm fine!" Fluttershy quietly squeaks. She quickly flies off into the forest to avoid any further questions
Cheerilee and Big Mac trade suspicious and slightly worried glances, but merely shrug it off and walk into the forest to start their hunt
"Applejack!"
Applejack could recognize that enthusiastic, squeaky voice from a mile away. She turned around and looked down to the pony that verbally beckoned her
"Applejack! Ya wanna scavenge together?" She asked, grinning pleasantly
"Why, of course! Why wouldn't I wanna hang out with my sister?" Applejack says, nuzzling her orange hoof against the pony's mane, causing it to become a bit scraggly, but nothing she couldn't fix in a few minutes
** CONFESSIONAL **
Applejack: *sitting on top of the confessional seat, while Apple Bloom is next to her* Ever since this camp began, me and Apple Bloom haven't spent a lick of time together as sisters!
Apple Bloom: Especially since we were on different teams!
Applejack: *puts her hoof around Apple Bloom's neck* But now that we're finally allowed to mingle, me and my sister can finally spend some time together!
Applejack and Apple Bloom: As sisters! *hoof bump each other*
- STATIC -
"Hey, Twilight!" Sunset says "Wanna go look together? I can help you find your item, and you can help me find mine!"
"Sure!" Twilight Sparkle replies. The two mares gallop into the forest
"How about the 2 of us go and look together?" Flash Sentry asks the only other male member of his team (that hadn't already flew into the forest)
"Sure!" Cheese Sandwich says. Cheese gallops into the forest of Disaster Island, while Flash flies rather close to the ground there
"Perfect! I can go solo!" Diamond Tiara says to herself "I don't need anypony getting in my way anyways!" She struts into the forest with her muzzle up in the air in a rather snooty manner
Now that all the ponies were in their groups (and some by themselves) the challenge could officially begin
"So, you're looking for...?" Rarity asks her partner, as they scan the premises
"A rubber ducky!" Pinkie Pie replied "I remember Mrs. Cake received a rubber ducky at Pound and Pumpkin's baby shower! It was so cute! It was pink, and had this fluffy brown hat!"
"That's... Nice..?" Rarity responds, unsure how to correctly reply to that
"And you're looking for a globe!" Pinkie Pie adds "I love spinning globes! It's like the world is spinning round and round!" She gasps "Hey, Rarity! What if the earth ACTUALLY rotated! That would be so cool!"
"Pinkie, the world does-" Rarity stops herself. She decides to just go along with her "... Never mind"
As the Rarity continues to walk (and Pinkie Pie continues to hop) they stop in their tracks, as they find an item. It wasn't either of their items, though
"Hey! Do you see those socks?" Rarity asks, pointing to a pair of multi colored socks. One sock was dotted with rainbow stars on a blue and green gradient background, while the other sock had hot pink smiley faces on a rainbow striped background
"Yeah! They're so pretty! Ooh! Ooh! Can I have them?" Pinkie Pie asks
"Hmm.. Aren't those the socks that Apple Bloom needed?" Rarity says, thinking back to the time when they all received their items
"Is that a yes?" Pinkie Pie asks turning her head to the unicorn
"Hey, maybe we should give them to her?" Rarity suggested "I mean, she is on our team"
Pinkie Pie gasps "Are you CRAZY?! We can't give them to her!"
"Why not?" Rarity questioned
"Because, if we take the socks, then Apple Bloom will come looking for them while we go and look for her to tell her that we found her socks. And if Apple Bloom goes looking for the socks we took, then she won't see them and she'll keep looking, and then we'll all be so far apart and never get those socks to her! And if we take Soarin's wig, then he'll come looking for them without knowing that we're looking for him! And if we take Diamond Tiara's TV, then she'll come looking for her TV and she won't see it because she'll be completely unaware that WE took the TV and so on and so forth! And we WON'T WIN THE CHALLENGE!"
Rarity just stared at the pony. She could barely comprehend what she had just said "... O...K...? I guess we'll just leave it here then.."
"Good choice!" Pinkie Pie beamed, hopping up and down
The camera then fades over to our next duo, Apple Bloom and Applejack
"See a quill anywhere, sis?" Applejack asks
"No, and I don't think I ever will" Apple Bloom says "Do ya know how tiny those things are?"
"I know! Discord's really makin' us work for those million dollars, ain't he?" Applejack jokes
"Heh, yeah" Apple Bloom snickered "But, seriously! Multi colored socks? Is this a challenge or a joke?"
"If anything, both" Applejack says
While the sisters continue to walk, someone accidentally bumps into the girls, knocking them over
"Woah!"
The 3 all tumble onto the ground in a pile. That certain someone should learn to be more careful
Certain somePEGASUS to be specific
Surprisingly, it wasn't Rainbow Dash
"Ouch! Now who in tarnation-" Applejack exclaims, lifting herself up. Only to notice it was Fluttershy "Fluttershy? What the hay were ya doin' speeding up like that? Bumping into people without apologizing is Rainbow's job"
Fluttershy gets up, immediately regretting what she did "Oh! I'm so sorry, Applejack! I'm just... Really worried..."
"Worried? Now why would-"
"Gotta go!" And before they knew it, Fluttershy sped away
"That was strange" Apple Bloom says, looking up at her sister
"I know" Applejack says "Fluttershy's been awful distant lately"
"Hey! Applejack!" Apple Bloom exclaims, lifting up a red quill "I found your quill!"
"Awesome!" Applejack gushed, hoof bumping her younger sibling "Now let's find your socks!"
We then pan over to, yet another duo, Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer
"What kind of nonsense is this?" Twilight Sparkle asks, looking at her note card "I have to find a key chain, in this island?!"
"Well, it's not like I have it any better" Sunset says "I have to find a beret"
"Yeah, but at least a beret is somewhat noticeable! Discord might as well make me look for a needle in a hay stack" Twilight ranted "Scavenger hunts are supposed to be fun!"
Sunset Shimmer starts scurrying through a tree, hoping to find something, and she did, her beret!
"Hey! I found my beret!" Sunset Shimmer proudly says
"See? Easy?" Twilight Sparkle says "Now try finding something the size of my horn in a tree"
"Lighten up, Twilight!" Sunset Shimmer says, politely nudging her friend
The princess replies with a sigh "I guess you're right... I mean, it's just a stupid game, right?"
"Yeah, a stupid game" Sunset Shimmer reassures her "A stupid game with a prize of $1,000,000"
Twilight Sparkle angrily groans while Sunset just giggles
Our next duo, Cheese Sandwich and Flash Sentry, are in a completely other part of the forest
"Ice skates, ice skates.." Flash Sentry whispers to himself as he digs through a bush "Where in Equestria did he put them?"
"On the island, of course!" Cheese Sandwich answered, not aware that it was meant to be rhetorical
"Well, maybe we should start looking for your item" Flash Sentry suggests "Hopefully we'll run into those ice skates I'm looking for. What's your item again? A beach ball, right?"
"Yup!" Cheese replied, holding his note card in one hoof "How about we check the beach part of the island. The one close to the pier we arrived on at the beginning?"
"Well, wouldn't that be a bit too predictable? Y'know, hiding a beach ball on the beach" Flash questioned
"Exactly!" Cheese Sandwich began "Since it's so predictable, Discord would expect us not to check there, so he put it there to trick us I bet!"
"I... Guess that makes sense" Flash shrugged. They both head for the beach to look, and sure enough, the beach ball was there
"Hey! There's my beach ball!" Cheese Sandwich charges towards the large, colorful plastic ball. He bucks it up into the air with his head so it lands perfectly on top of back
And within seconds, Flash also catches a glimpse of 4 cornflower blue streaked ice skates "I see my ice skates!" He uses his teeth to hold onto the strings of the ice skates
"Well, what should we do now?" Cheese Sandwich asked
"Since we already have our items, we should go and see if our team members got theirs yet" Flash Sentry replies through clenched teeth, due to the strings still being in between his teeth
"Okey dokey artichokey!" Cheese Sandwich beamed. He starts galloping around the forest, hoping to find his teammates
"Hey! Wait up!" Flash insisted, as he tried to catch up to the stallion. Though, it was hard, since as he lunged forward, the blades of his ice skates were forced back onto his neck
We pan the camera again. Except, it wasn't on a duo. No, this pony was a lone wolf- Er, lone stallion to be specific
Soarin was soaring through the skies swiftly. So swiftly, that anyone who hadn't caught a glimpse of the previous race between him and Rainbow Dash, would have trouble believing that he suffered defeat. The wind was vigorously pushing onto his face, as his mane, wings, fur, and jaws flew back at a rapid rate. He could barely breathe as the many tree's leaves flew onto him
"Ha! I can already smell that wig!" Soarin determinedly said whilst charging
That's when our camera quickly pans to another pegasus of almost the same color. She was also rushing through the air at the speed of sound
"Ha! I can already smell those flowers!" Rainbow Dash determinedly said whilst charging
As these 2 ponies were flying fast and furiously, they were completely oblivious to where and what they were flying into
Eachother
When the both of them collided, it felt like every organ in their body had jiggled out of place. The pain was mutual, like a giant blow to the head with a metallic mallet
"AGHH!" They both exclaimed in utter pain as they fell to the forest ground. They both swiftly drift across the dirt ground, as they slowly slide underground in opposite paths
Things were silent for about 5 seconds until Rainbow Dash gradually gets up and rubs her head, fishing out the tiny clumps of dirt out of her mane. She moans "Ugh... Who the heck...?!"
Soarin begins arising from the dirt also "Hey! Who did that?!"
"I'm wondering the same thing, punk!" Rainbow Dash retorts. She quickly recovers and dashes up into the air to face her perpetrator "... Soarin?"
"Rainbow Dash?"
"Ha! And here I thought you were slower than a bottle of molasses!" Rainbow Dash chuckled with her hooves on her hips
"Yeah, yeah, whatever" Soarin muttered, also flying into the air so he could hear Rainbow Dash better and vice versa "So I suppose you're on your way to find your item?"
"Nah, I'm just practicing!" Rainbow Dash admitted "But, yeah. I'm also on my way to find those flowers I'm looking for"
"Oh, then, do you wanna... Search together?" Soarin nervously asks, voice cracking a bit at the last part
Rainbow Dash looks at him, half-surprised, half-confused. She didn't wanna say yes, but at the same time, she didn't wanna decline the offer. She wanted to spend time with the Wonderbolt, but how could she, the biggest tomboy and best flyer in Equestria, be caught getting all "lovey-dovey" with a stallion?
"Um..." The pegasus silently began "Well, I don't need help finding my thing, but if you need help, I guess I'll help you. Y'know, since I'm so nice like that" Rainbow Dash arrogantly replies, with her nose in the air and her eyes shut
"I'll take what I can get" Soarin says to himself in his head "Sweet! Let's go!" He flies away "Bet ya can't beat me!"
"Ha! Keep dreaming!" Rainbow Dash yells, as she follows the stallion
Now we pan to yet, another single pony. Another pegasus in fact
"I can't believe this. An ice sculpture? Are you serious?!" Fluttershy whisper-shouts to herself "Now how am I supposed to miss something so... Noticeable!"
Not that it was much of a surprise, but she quickly spots her target lodged in between 2 trees "Oh great..." She says
"Well, I better make sure I get everyone's attention. I mean, if they know I'm here and I can't find it, they won't think to look here, right?" Fluttershy asks herself "Hmm.." She looks both ways to make sure her members are near her "Oh! Oh my! I can't seem to find my item! Oh! Woe is me! Well, I might as well go somewhere else and not check here again!" She blurts out. "Perfect" She smiles
Cheerilee and Big Mac gallop over there after hearing her "Fluttershy! Did you say you couldn't find your item?"
"Yup!" The pony beams with a big grin "I guess we should go and check somewhere-"
"Oh! It's right there, dear" Cheerilee noticed, pointing her hoof at the solid, translucent masterpiece
Fluttershy, shocked that she saw it, forced a smile at her "O-Oh! Thank you!" She says through gritted teeth. She awkwardly flies over to the statue
"Awesome! I think we're in the lead now, don't you Big Mac?" Cheerilee asks her team mate
"Eeyup"
"Well, we best keep looking. Bye Fluttershy!" Cheerilee chimed, galloping away with Big Mac
Fluttershy strains, trying to push the rather hefty statue "Ugh..."
"So what are you looking for again?" Cheerilee inquires
Big Macintosh looks at his note pad a second time, then shows it to Cheerilee
"A watering can? Well that shouldn't be too difficult" Cheerilee says "How about we check in that lake? Discord seems to be the kind of person that would hide something in there" She suggests
Big Macintosh nods in agreement and the 2 set off to find it there
Cheerilee sticks her head into the mildly polluted lake, holding her breath and closing her eyes. After a few seconds she opens them and scans the shallow body of water. She could only spot a few rusty cans and deceased marine life, but other than that, no watering can
"Did you find anythin'?" Big Macintosh asks
She lifts her head out of the water. Her mane was soaking wet, but luckily, she wasn't poisoned from all the possible toxins Discord let enter that lake "Nope, sorry" That's when a quick electrical current is sent down Cheerilee's spine, causing her to buzz around in pain for a while "Yikes!" She exclaims, after the pain is over. Big Mac then notices something in her mane, and takes it out, revealing an electric eel, which must have caused the shock. He throws it back in the lake before he got shocked
"Now why in Equestria are there eels in a lake?" Cheerilee fumed
That's when a distant sound is heard. Sort of like several leaves rustling
Both ponies turn around to see what was causing the commotion, but no one was seen
"What was that?" Cheerilee worriedly asked
Big Macintosh steps a bit closer, preparing to tackle anything that dare lunged at Cheerilee... O-Oh! And himself too!
The sound becomes louder and louder, and soon enough, the suspect was revealed. A rather young suspect
"Diamond Tiara?" Big Macintosh says
"Well, duh! Who else?" Diamond Tiara rudely snapped at him "Have you guys perchance seen a broken television set anywhere?"
They both nod their head 'no'
"Ugh!" She groaned loudly
** CONFESSIONAL **
Diamond Tiara: Hey, I don't wanna admit it, but I'm at serious risk of being eliminated now! Think about it, if we were to lose this challenge, which we probably will, who are they gonna vote for? Stinky Pie? No way! Everypony loves her, for some reason. Crash Sentry? Of course not! That bumbling Wonderbolt? Never! That male Pinkie Pie? Nope! Sweetie Belle's dumb sister, what's her name? Rarity? And the blank flank! Then there's me, the team leader, the strongest player, but for some reason, they want me out! Like, what have I ever done to them?! And I can't risk losing that money! I'm part of the Rich family, how could I lose one million dollars like that?! So the only solution is to make sure the other team loses another player. A strong player. *thinks for a while, and then gets an idea* You know who are really strong players? Twilight Sparkle and her little unicorn friend, the orange one. I mean, those 2 are in an alliance, and it seems like they're both adored by their whole team! So I better break those 2 apart if I wanna win. But... Who should I get rid of first, that's the real question. I mean, I guess Sunset Shimmer is liked, but Twilight's the princess of friendship! Of course it's gonna take a while till she's out. So Sunset it is! Then the others will be dropping like flies and I'll have a briefcase full of a million big ones in my hooves! Mwa ha ha! Ha ha! *sighs* I love how despicable I am!
- STATIC -
"Come on, Big Mac, we should go and check somewhere else" Cheerilee says. Before the two could leave, they were stopped in their tracks
"Wait! I almost forgot to tell you two!" Diamond Tiara exclaims. Then she quickly stops talking and looks down innocently, as if she was trying to act disappointed "You know what? Never mind! I'd hate to spread rumors about one of your team members.." She tries her best to hide an evil glare after
Big Mac and Cheerilee look at each other, confused "What are you talking about?" Cheerilee asks
"Oh! You two haven't heard, have you?" Diamond Tiara asks, using the same innocent and worried tone as before "Well, I don't think I should say..."
The two trade glares a second time "Ok then" Big Mac says. The two continue to walk off
"HEY!" Diamond Tiara blurted out angrily, as she didn't think they'd run off. The 2 turn their heads back to listen
"I'll tell you! Jeez!" Diamond Tiara says, ending the 'innocent little filly' act. She leans in closer to the two's ears "Did you know.." She leans in even closer "That Sunset Shimmer helped my team this morning?" She whispered
Cheerilee and Big Mac eyes widen. They weren't sure whether they should believe her or not
"She what?" Cheerilee asked to clarify
"She helped the Parasprites!" Diamond Tiara repeated "Let me go into a bit more detail. This morning, at the cabins, while that Fluttershy girl was crying, she snuck out! Where, you may be asking. Well, she went to the back of my team's cabin, where I was. She told me a bit about what was going on, and that's when, she just, like, totally told me that she would purposely throw today's challenge so her team could lose and she could get rid of you guys one by one! And she said she's gunning for Big Mac first, since he seems the most vulnerable"
Now they were really getting into the story "Really?!" Cheerilee asks, befuddled and astonished "She... She said that?"
"Yup!" Diamond Tiara says "Oh! And don't even bother asking my other teammates. Like I said, I was the only one she told"
The two grown ponies looked even more fearful than before
"Well, I better get going, you two. I don't wanna lose this challenge" Diamond Tiara says, skipping away snootily "Since I don't enjoy throwing challenges"
** CONFESSIONAL **
Cheerilee: Should I believe her? Is what Diamond Tiara's saying true...? I mean, Sunset Shimmer seemed so nice and sincere! I was sure I could trust her. But... Now I'm having second thoughts..
- STATIC -
"Do you..." Cheerilee begins "Do you think we should tell the others?"
Big Mac looks at her, completely silent. And about 10 seconds later, he gives his response
"... Eeyup"
"Do you see those keys anywhere?" Twilight Sparkle asks
"No, still don't see them" Sunset Shimmer replies, looking under a boulder
Twilight Sparkle groans, but Sunset makes sure to give her a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder "Hey, don't worry. I know we'll find those keys!"
Even though she felt like she'd lost all hope, she grinned at her teammate "I guess you have a point"
"Awesome! Besides, I doubt the other team has found any of their things yet" Sunset Shimmer says
That's when 3 Parasprite members and Applejack trot by
"I can't believe we all found our items in the same place!" Rarity says, looking at Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Apple Bloom
"I know!" Pinkie Pie exclaims
"Yeah! What a coincidence!" Apple Bloom adds
"Heh, you're tellin' me!" Applejack chuckles "I mean, I already found my quill, but it was good to see 2 of my friends and my sister find their things"
They keep on walking and soon enough they left the area
Twilight Sparkle just stared at them, astonished at the likeliness of that happening
"... Well at least we know Applejack found her item... Heh heh..." Sunset Shimmer nervously tittered. Twilight Sparkle just glared at her, and kept looking for her item
We pan back over to the two speediest pegasi on the island. They were currently surveying the area, looking for their items
"See anything yet, Soarin?" Rainbow Dash asks
"Nope! No flowers in sight! See an afro?" He replies
"Nope! No afro in sight!" She repeats
"Maybe we should start looking on the terrain" Rainbow Dash suggests, diving down. Soarin does the same and lands hoof first onto the ground
Soarin sticks his hoof inside a large gap in a nearby tree. He keeps digging through, and he quickly pulls out a bouquet of pansies "Hey, RD! I found your flowers!" He called out
Rainbow Dash turns around and approaches him. Sure enough, he had them "Wow! You actually found them! Thanks dude! You're awesome!" She begins to hug him, but before she could even make physical contact, she stops herself "Er.. I mean, whatever.." She snatches them out of his hoof with her teeth and walks away
Before she could make much distance, she's confronted by Big Mac and Cheerilee
"Oh, hey, guys!" Rainbow Dash greets "Hey, have you 2 found your items yet?"
"Unfortunately, no" Cheerilee says "But we wanted to tell you something"
"Really? What?" Rainbow Dash eagerly asked. She was up for hearing anypony's secrets
"Well.. We recently heard that Sunset Shimmer tried to help the other team-" Cheerilee begins, but is cut off
"She WHAT?!" Rainbow Dash exclaims rather loudly "That traitor!" She didn't even need to hear the whole story to be convinced "I always knew there was something fishy about her! Are we voting her off?"
"W-Well... We aren't completely sure yet.." Cheerilee nervously retorts
"Well I know I'm voting for her!" Rainbow Dash jeered "I gotta tell the others! See ya, Soarin!" She dashes off, letting a rainbow streak fly behind her
Cheerilee turns to her left and notices a rather thick hard cover book stashed in a bush
"Hey! I think that's my dictionary!" Cheerilee says, running towards the bush. She lifts it up and in big, black font it says "Mare-Riam Webster Dictionary" on the cover
"This is my dictionary! And Big Mac, I think I see your watering can!" She holds up a rusty, silver watering can with her teeth and throws it at the red stallion
He catches it with his teeth "Thank ya, Cheerilee" He says with gritted teeth on his watering can handle
"Anytime! Let's go and see if the others found their things" Cheerilee suggests, as the two gallop away. Leaving only Soarin in that area of the forest
"Man, I better go and find that wig if my team's gonna win!" Soarin frets, flying away to see if he can spot it
Our camera pans, once again at Rainbow Dash, who's flying at mad speed past the trees in her way to find one of her other teammates to tell them the current rumor. Luckily, she spots Applejack, who's walking with Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Apple Bloom
"And then I was like, 'Oatmeal, are you crazy?!'" Pinkie Pie jokes, while the other 3 mares giggle at her joke. Trust me, you'd have to hear the whole thing to get it..
"Oh, Pinkie! You always find a way to make me smile!" Rarity says
"That's my job!" Pinkie titters, while the others start laughing again
As they keep walking, they're quickly stopped unexpectedly, by Rainbow Dash, who lands right in front of the 4
"Ahh!" They shriek, flinching
"What gives?" Apple Bloom complained "Ya almost scared the livin' daylights out of us!"
"Sorry, guys! But I have some very important news for you guys! More specifically, you, Applejack!" Rainbow Dash says, pointing her hoof at Applejack
"Me?" Applejack asked "What is it?"
"Well, according to Cheerilee, Sunset Shimmer has been helping the Parasprites and betraying us!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, loud enough to be heard for miles
"WHAT?!" Applejack screamed, but the Parasprite members accompanying her just looked at each other, confused. For they hadn't remembered anything like that
"I know, right?! Are we all in agreement of voting for her if we lose the challenge?" Rainbow Dash asked
"I know I am!" Applejack agrees with a stern voice "I'll try and tell Fluttershy! If she'll listen..." She gallops away
"She... She did?" Pinkie Pie asked
"I don't remember her helping us!" Rarity says
"Same!" Apple Bloom adds
"Huh? Are ya sure? It's not like Cheerilee was lying to me. Or else I'd have to vote for her in the next elimination!" Rainbow Dash threatens
The 3 ponies trade confused glances
** CONFESSIONAL **
Pinkie Pie: Is it true? Did Sunset Shimmer really help us? Agh! I don't know what to believe anymore!
- STATIC -
"Are you kidding me? We still haven't found my key chain?" Twilight Sparkle yells
"It's bound to be here somewhere!" Sunset Shimmer reassures her
"But we checked everywhere!" Twilight whines
"Don't exaggerate, Twilight" Sunset Shimmer replies
"No! I'm serious! We literally checked everywhere! We've been going in circles for Celestia's sake!" Twilight Sparkle barks
"Oh.. You may have a point there..." Sunset Shimmer mumbled
That's when Soarin and Diamond Tiara approach the same area
"Oh no! Parasprites!" Sunset Shimmer warns, turning around to look at them
"WHERE?! WHERE?!" Twilight Sparkle fearfully screamed "I thought I got rid of all of them! We can't have them multiplying here!"
"No, Twilight, I mean the team!" Sunset Shimmer explains
"Oh... Still! That can't be good!" Twilight Sparkle worried
"Have you guys, by any chance, seen a rainbow afro wig around here?" Soarin asks
"No, and even if we did, we would never tell you!" Sunset Shimmer replied
"Hmph! Now I can see why your team wants to vote you off! Rude!" Soarin insisted
"Wait, what?" Sunset Shimmer asks "What do you mean that-"
"Hey! I see my TV!" Diamond Tiara exclaims, pushing out an old, dusty television with a cracked screen "And look! Your stupid wig is right next to it!" She pulls out a multi colored clown wig
"Hey! My wig!" Soarin happily exclaims "Let's see if the others got their things so we can show them to Discord and win!" They both gallop away to find their team
"Oh my gosh! I still haven't found my key chain! We're gonna lose!" Twilight Sparkle fretted
"But..." Sunset Shimmer quietly mumbles, as she watches Twilight Sparkle fly off to look for her key chain "What did he mean...?"
Soarin and Diamond Tiara soon run into Apple Bloom, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity, all with their items
"Awesome! You 2 have your things too!" Soarin says
"Where's Flash and Cheese?" Pinkie Pie asks, looking around
And sure enough, the 2 stallions arrived "We're right here! And we have our things!"
"So that means we have everything!" Rarity declared "Come on! Let's get back to Discord before the other team does!"
So the team begins to run (and Soarin begins to fly) all the way back to the mess hall, where Discord was supposed to be
"So then, I was like" Discord begins "'Are you kidding me?! I'm the Lord of Chaos!'". He was supposedly talking with his co-host/chef, Smooze, who merely gurgles his slimy body in response. But their "conversation" is cut short by the approaching ponies
"Discord! Discord!"Pinkie Pie cheerfully exclaimed "We found all of our items! Wanna see?" She lifts up her back, revealing a rather minuscule, acid yellow rubber duck, tied on to her like a saddle
Discord arched an eyebrow at her "Hm.. I see? Well, I'll only believe it once I see it! Everypony, show me your items!"
So the other Parasprites gather up their items in front of the host, and sure enough, they had everything
"Wow! You guys actually managed to find your things!" Discord says, amazed and still arching an eyebrow "Ok, the Parasprites win, yet again!"
"Woo hoo!" They all cheer
"I'll just bring the other team back over here to break the news to them" Discord says, and with a snap of his talons, the 7 other ponies teleport in front of Discord
"What the-? Why are we-" Rainbow Dash asks, and she didn't even need to be cut off at the end, she just stopped questioning the draconequus on her own terms
"You guys didn't find all your items in time!" Discord answered
"Oh..." Rainbow Dash groans while Fluttershy gives a big grin
"Ok, spill!" Discord excitedly says, resting his hands on his chin "Who blew the challenge this time? Was it Applejack? Or was it Rainbow Dash? Oh! Oh! I bet it was both!" He cackles, but the two mares he mentioned were not amused in the slightest
"No, it was me.." Twilight Sparkle sighed "I wasn't able to find my item in time... But let's be honest, how could you expect me to find a gosh darn key chain in a forest on an island?"
"It's not my fault you're terrible at scavenger hunts, Princess!" Discord teased, patting her on the mane. He rests his hands in his pockets "I guess you just weren't fit to the task, eh?"
Twilight Sparkle's face begins to turn an almost unknown shade of red as she cringes in anger. But before she could literally explode, Sunset Shimmer once again places her hoof on her shoulder to calm her down, and she succeeds
As aforementioned, Discord places his unusual looking hands into his pockets, and to his (and everyone else's) initial surprise, once he lifted them out, he was holding a bright red key chain resembling a dog tag "Oh! Would you look at that! The keychain was in my pocket the entire time!"
While others were merely facehoofing, Twilight was just left standing there, mouth gaped wide open. She had no idea what to say, but she knew exactly what to do. Before anyone could even spot prior movement, Twilight had lunged into the air and dived down immediately onto Discord, knocking him to the floor
"Agh!" He shrieked in pain, hitting the floor
"IT WAS IN YOUR POCKET THIS ENTIRE TIME?!" She screamed, and before anyone knew it...
BAM!
... Was the sound of Twilight violently punching his face with her hoof
Many shocked gasps were heard, some snickers, and even some screams
"Sweet Celestia!" Sunset Shimmer exclaimed. She was afraid, shocked, and somewhat amused, all at the same time
Twilight Sparkle was panting heavily, flying off from on top of Discord and back onto the ground
** CONFESSIONAL **
Rarity: Oh...
- STATIC -
Apple Bloom: My...
- STATIC -
Pinkie Pie: CELESTIA! I can't believe that just happened!
- STATIC -
Flash Sentry: Woah... I can't believe Twilight Sparkle actually punched Discord like that! That... Was actually pretty awesome!
- STATIC -
Fluttershy: Oh my gosh! Th-That was horrible! Oh.. I hope Discord is alright! A-And Twilight! Oh, that was terrible to watch! *begins to cover her eyes and whimper*
- STATIC -
Sunset Shimmer: Oh my goodness! I knew Twilight's anger could get the best of her, but not like that!
- STATIC -
Discord now had a fresh, new, red bruise on his cheek
"OUCH!" Discord shrieked, even after the blow to the cheek "Are you CRAZY?! My poor cheek!" He rubs it, while whimpering like a child
"Discord!" Fluttershy squeaked, flying towards him "A-Are you ok? Oh my, that mark is huge!"
And the more Twilight panted, the quicker she realized what she had just done "... Oh my goodness! Discord!" She flies up to him also "I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean-"
Discord angrily sighs "It's fine, Twilight... Just.. Get back to your cabins and start voting for who's gonna leave the island!" "Hopefully, it's Twilight Sparkle..." He silently murmurs to himself
Everypony but Fluttershy trots back to their cabins. She wanted to spend some time away from the others and by herself. Enough drama had happened in just this one day
"So, it's settled. The 4 of us are voting for Sunset Shimmer?" Cheerilee said. She was standing in the boys' (well, boy's side, in this case) side of the cabin since it was the only private space, with Big Macintosh, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack
"Settled!" Rainbow Dash agreed, putting her hoof in the center of the circle the 4 made, standing next to each other
"Settled!" Applejack also agrees, placing her hoof on top of Rainbow Dash's
"Eeyup" Big Mac said, placing his hoof on top of his sister's
"Then it's settled" Cheerilee says, placing her hoof on top of all three of their's "Sunset's leaving. Though, I still find it hard to believe that she would actually try to throw the challenges! That's not like her"
"It's the nice ones you gotta watch out for" Rainbow Dash advised the teacher "One second Fluttershy's helping us win that dodgeball challenge, and the next she's trying to vote herself out?! Unbelievable!"
Shifting over to the female's side of the cabin, stood only Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer
"I still can't believe I did that!" Twilight Sparkle stammered nervously "I've never punched anypony before, ever!"
"Well, he wasn't a pony, he was a draconequus" Sunset Shimmer grinned, trying to lighten the mood with a joke
"This is no time for jokes, Sunset! Not only have I done something terrible and probably unforgivable, but I put myself at major risk on being eliminated!" Twilight worried "I'm the princess of friendship for Celestia's sake! I can't go around punching innocent people like that!"
"It's ok, Twilight, really" Sunset Shimmer reassured "We're supposed to learn from our mistakes"
"I guess you have a point.." Twilight Sparkle muttered, looking down, frowning "Thanks Sunset..."
"Trust me, I won't vote for you. The only question is, who should we vote for?" Sunset Shimmer asked
"Good question..." Twilight Sparkle wondered. She then sighed "I really don't wanna do this, but I do remember Fluttershy saying she wanted to go home. So.."
"You're saying we should vote for her?" Sunset Shimmer asks
"Well, who else should we vote for?" Twilight Sparkle retorted "Honestly, it's sort of a win-win. We can get rid of Fluttershy and she can go home and be happy!"
"But, why would it be a 'win' for us? We love Fluttershy, don't we?" Sunset Shimmer questioned
"Of course! She's my best friend!" Twilight Sparkle insisted "But, let's be completely honest. All she's been doing is weeping and trying to throw challenges. We might as well get rid of her before she jeopardizes the game for us. I don't see the merge coming anytime soon"
"I guess you may have a point" Sunset Shimmer admits "Ok, we'll vote for Fluttershy"
Tension was arising at the campfire, and the elimination hadn't even started yet! No pony knew who was gonna get the boot off the island
Rather than teleporting like he usually did, Discord arrived by walking, holding an ice bag to his almost swollen cheek. Twilight cringed at the sight of him. Not out of disgust, but more out of guilt
"Ok, let's count these votes and get this over with" Discord sighed
"That's odd" Cheerilee says "Usually, you're really enthusiastic about the eliminations. You didn't even say 'I have a platter of 6 marshmallows and one of you will not be receiving one' or something like that"
"Well, excuse me for not be excited after somepony punched me in the cheek!" Discord griped. Turning to that somepony after he finished talking, who then just sank down on her stump "Anyways, let's start this elimination" He takes a glance at the votes, and his eyes widen a bit "Hm, these are some... Strange results... I really don't get why- ... Oh, never mind! Ok, safe with absolutely positively no votes, Cheerilee and Big Macintosh!" He throws the two of them marshmallows "And so are Rainbow Dash and Applejack!" He throws them marshmallows, leaving Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, and Sunset Shimmer
"Oh my gosh!" Twilight Sparkle gasps "Me and Sunset are on the chopping block?! I don't want her to go!"
"I don't want you to go either!" Sunset Shimmer pleaded
"Chill out!" Discord said "Surprisingly, Twilight Sparkle is safe with no votes. Despite punching me for no reason.." He flicks her a marshmallow
"Phew... But.. Sunset's still on the chopping block!" Twilight Sparkle sighed
"Yeah! Why am I on the chopping block?" Sunset Shimmer asks. The others just glare at her, as if she was playing innocent
"You know what you did!" Rainbow Dash scolded, getting extremely close to the mare's face
"Honestly, I have no clue!" Sunset Shimmer admitted
** CONFESSIONAL **
Sunset Shimmer: Honestly, what have I ever done to be put in this position? All I've done is be nice to everypony and help win the challenges!
- STATIC -
Fluttershy: I'm not too worried. Obviously, I'll be going home. Though, I still don't get why Sunset's on the chopping block...
- STATIC -
Discord faced the single marshmallow, squeezing it with his talons, he clenched his eyes fiercely and began sweating. It may have been the tension, or it could've been the fact that he was next to a blazing campfire
"And, the pony going home is..."
Sunset Shimmer was nervously holding onto her stump, and Twilight was just as, if not even more, worried as her friend, while, once again, Fluttershy sat there, relaxed, and even grinning a bit, as she knew she was going home
Or, she thought
"... Sunset Shimmer"
"WHAT?!" Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer exclaimed, confused "But why?!"
The 4 that voted for her just nervously began to look away, avoiding eye contact
"I-I don't understand! This has to be some misunderstanding! You must've counted the votes wrong!" Twilight Sparkle anxiously said
"I'm sorry, but the votes never lie" Discord shrugs "Sunset's leaving the island for good"
"But..." Twilight Sparkle slowly trailed off, trying her best not to cry, but in stead of having a water works fest, she grabbed onto Sunset in an embracing hug. Sunset smiled and returned it
"It's ok, Twilight" Sunset Shimmer reassured her "Listen, I honestly have no clue why I'm going home, but whatever the reason is, I'm greatly sorry" She said, directing that part to her team in general "I know you'll win this, Twilight. I'm rooting for you"
Twilight Sparkle was now on the verge of crying, and before she could even help it, she burst out in tears, and hugged onto her tighter
Sunset Shimmer just grinned even more, and patted her on the head "I'll see you all in the finale! Bye!" She headed for the dock, and Twilight was still holding onto her like a parasite
The other 4 looked at each other in uncertainty
"Um... Are ya sure Diamond Tiara said she helped her team?" Applejack asked Cheerilee
"Well, I'm very certain she said that.." Cheerilee said, looking at Applejack, just as worried "Come on, we should at least see her off"
So all of them (even Fluttershy) walk over to the dock to see Sunset entering the boat. Discord had finally pried her off of her
"Bye, ponies!" Sunset Shimmer repeated, waving goodbye to her friends as she sailed off
"Bye Sunset, we'll miss you!" Cheerilee said rather sadly, waving off to her
"Yeah, Sunset! We totally forgive you!" Rainbow Dash shouts out at her, as she sails away
"Huh? You forgive me? For what?" Sunset Shimmer inquired, as her voice trailed off
"Wow, you guys are down to 6 members!" Discord exclaimed "And it'll probably be 5 in the next challenge. Anywho, see ya!" Discord then snaps his fingers, and teleports himself into his cozy, air-conditioned lounge
Twilight Sparkle turns around with an aggressive expression "You guys! Why would you vote for Sunset?!"
"Oh, we haven't told ya?" Applejack said "Well, according to Diamond Tiara, Sunset was planning to throw the next challenges to get all of us out, one by win"
Twilight Sparkle arched an eyebrow at them, and sighed "And you're telling me you actually believed her?!"
That's when the 4 turn pale, and then somewhat red, and nervously bite their lips "Weeeeell..." They all say in unison
"Guys! Isn't it obvious?!" Twilight Sparkle exclaimed "She was clearly lying to get rid of Sunset!"
"Well, now that someone else says it..." Rainbow Dash said, looking down, nervously chuckling "It kind of makes more sense... Heh heh.."
"Honestly! It was Diamond Tiara after all" Twilight Sparkle noted "That dirty, conniving little brat! I knew we could never trust her! All she does to you two is bully your little sister!" She pointed her hoof at Applejack and Big Macintosh "All she ever does to you is bully Scootaloo!" She pointed her hoof at Rainbow Dash "And all she does to you is cause disharmony in your class! We need to make sure we get that pony off this island, stat! She may be young, but she's pretty smart, and that can't be good in a battle for $1,000,000"
"You're right!" Applejack said, becoming confident again "We can't have that filly manipulatin' everypony so she can win!"
"Alright! Conflict!" Rainbow Dash shouted, triumphantly. She then turned around, and saw a whimpering Fluttershy "Er.. I mean.. Oh no! Conflict!"
"Then it's settled, Diamond Tiara is officially our new enemy" Cheerilee said, with a stamp of one hoof
"Eeyup" Big Macintosh agreed
"Now how about we get some rest?" Twilight Sparkle suggests "This day has just been awful, and I really need it to end..."
They all trot off to their cabins, trust me, the drama has only just begun
It was nearly 4:00 AM, but Fluttershy just couldn't put herself to sleep. She wanted to go home, she wanted to see her animals, she wanted to escape everything. She just laid there, in the dark. She wanted to turn the lights on, but she didn't want to wake the others up and bring attention to herself. But she just couldn't help it, she felt trapped
"I can't do this anymore... I can't do this anymore..." The pony kept quietly repeating to herself. She then sighed and finally got out of bed. She walked out of her cabin and stared at the dark, night sky. It was fairly clear, but she could spot one star. A single star, in the huge, broad night sky. Except, there were a few more stars, very far away from it, surrounding the star, as if they were representing its own aura. It was just like how Fluttershy was feeling. She was surrounded by so many people, all of her friends, yet she just felt so isolated, as if she was on her own
She tried her best not to cry for the hundredth time and just sat there, on the grass, staring at the one star. But she couldn't hold her tears in, and she began crying
"I wanna go home! I wanna go home now!" She cried and cried
"No, you don't"
Fluttershy's ears perked up in shock, as she wiped her tears "Wh-Who said that? Who's there?"
"Fluttershy, I'm right here"
Fluttershy anxiously turned around, but saw no one "This isn't funny! Show yourself!"
"Fluttershy, you can't see me. I'm not visually present, but I'm there. Trust me"
"... Wh-Who are you?" She repeated, nervous
"I'm you, Fluttershy. Well, more of your conscious. But trust me, Fluttershy, you don't wanna go home"
"Yes I do!" Fluttershy stammered "I do! I hate it here!"
"It may be so, but your friends need you here"
"What could they possibly want with me? I'm not help to them! Especially after yesterday"
"That's not true. Your friends love you, they all do. They were all so disappointed when you were crying this morning, they were so worried about you. Even the Screaming Parasprites were. Heck, even Rainbow Dash was! And you know how tough she is!"
"... Th-They were?" Fluttershy said, on the verge of crying yet again
"Yes, they were. They love you Fluttershy, and you can't throw the challenge and abandon them like that. Besides, you can't just leave the island like this. Seeing you go home in such distress would break their hearts. If you ever were to leave the island, they'd want to see you happy"
"But I would be happy to leave the island! I wanna go-"
"No, you don't Fluttershy. You may feel happy, but are you really? Do you really wanna leave the island? Because you may be happy, but your friends won't"
Then it hit her like a bullet "You... You have a good point... I really don't wanna see my friends sad! I'd stay in a boot camp for the rest of my life if it meant they'd be happy!"
"Exactly. So trust me, Fluttershy. You need to stay. It's the best for you and your friends"
"Y-You're right!" Fluttershy said, feeling confident "I will stay on this island! Whatever makes my friends happy, and as long as their happy, I'm happy"
"See? What did I tell you? Now, you get some rest now"
"Trust me, now I can sleep soundly" Fluttershy happily reassured herself, trotting back to her cabin. She carefully sets herself in bed, careful not to wake up her friends
"I can do this"
"Yes, yes you can"
Thanks so much for reading, and I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I sure enjoyed writing it! I hope to see some reviews! Love you guys, and see you in the next chapter! :)
