Chapter 5: Incomplete
Windy sighed. Moonstone hadn't been banished for more than three days and it already felt like years. The purple unicorn gazed moodily out the window of the rainbow palace, to the starscape highlighted by a pastel rainbow streaking across the center.
"Hey, why the long face?" A yellow earthling with watering cans splattered across his rump walked up behind Windy, a cheeky grin glued on his face. Though he was a rainbow pony like Windy, his mane displayed colors only vaguely resembling a rainbow, and therefore marked him as a lesser rainbow.
"I'm a pony. I was born with one, Trickles." Windy replied wryly.
Trickles chuckled, "Good one, Windster. But seriously, what's wrong?"
"We are incomplete," Windy sighed. "Without Moonstone, our powers have all weakened."
"And you miss him like hay." Trickles finished.
"And I miss him like-hey!" The unicorn snorted indignantly.
"Look, there's an echo in here." Trickles winked cheekily.
"Trickles?" Windy's voice dropped to a soft, musical murmur.
"Yeah?" The earthling paused to look at the unicorn, his voice dropping as well.
"One of these days I'm going to rip that cheeky tongue of yours out of your mouth and feed it back to you."
"Can't I barbecue it first?" Trickles pouted.
Windy burst out laughing.
Flutterbye strode regally past the two, giving a theatrical sigh. "It's nice to see some ponies around here have time to waste sitting around and giggling like bullfrogs in a pillow factory!"
Trickles puffed his cheeks out, croaked, and then gave Flutterbye's tail a tug. "Why not stop pretending to be busy and join us, then? There's always room for another tadpole or two!"
The orange lesser yanked her tail away from Trickles, huffing pompously, "I guess this proves me right-I am the only mature one in this nuthouse! Now go crawl back under the lilypad you were born under, tad- foal." She hissed scathingly, gave her head a dramatic toss, and fluttered from the room indignantly.
"Whoa. who peed in her oats?" Trickles raised an eyebrow, earning another laugh from Windy.
"That would be you, Trickles."
"Oh. right." The lesser chortled.
Further conversation was interrupted by a light yellow pegasus trotting in. "Very comical, I'm sure, but you two are late for dinner. Prince Starshine has something important to discuss, so you may not want to miss it."
"Hold your water, Skydancer, we're coming. Wouldn't wanna miss one of Starshine's amazing six-hour lectures, would we Windy?" Trickles strode past the strict-looking greater, prancing towards the dining hall.
Windy giggled again, all thoughts of the missing greater temporarily banished. "That would be a fate worse than death. Coming, Sky?"
Skydancer nodded rigidly, glaring down his nose at Trickles' retreating form, "Lessers these days, just no respect for the rules."
Windy sighed. Moonstone hadn't been banished for more than three days and it already felt like years. The purple unicorn gazed moodily out the window of the rainbow palace, to the starscape highlighted by a pastel rainbow streaking across the center.
"Hey, why the long face?" A yellow earthling with watering cans splattered across his rump walked up behind Windy, a cheeky grin glued on his face. Though he was a rainbow pony like Windy, his mane displayed colors only vaguely resembling a rainbow, and therefore marked him as a lesser rainbow.
"I'm a pony. I was born with one, Trickles." Windy replied wryly.
Trickles chuckled, "Good one, Windster. But seriously, what's wrong?"
"We are incomplete," Windy sighed. "Without Moonstone, our powers have all weakened."
"And you miss him like hay." Trickles finished.
"And I miss him like-hey!" The unicorn snorted indignantly.
"Look, there's an echo in here." Trickles winked cheekily.
"Trickles?" Windy's voice dropped to a soft, musical murmur.
"Yeah?" The earthling paused to look at the unicorn, his voice dropping as well.
"One of these days I'm going to rip that cheeky tongue of yours out of your mouth and feed it back to you."
"Can't I barbecue it first?" Trickles pouted.
Windy burst out laughing.
Flutterbye strode regally past the two, giving a theatrical sigh. "It's nice to see some ponies around here have time to waste sitting around and giggling like bullfrogs in a pillow factory!"
Trickles puffed his cheeks out, croaked, and then gave Flutterbye's tail a tug. "Why not stop pretending to be busy and join us, then? There's always room for another tadpole or two!"
The orange lesser yanked her tail away from Trickles, huffing pompously, "I guess this proves me right-I am the only mature one in this nuthouse! Now go crawl back under the lilypad you were born under, tad- foal." She hissed scathingly, gave her head a dramatic toss, and fluttered from the room indignantly.
"Whoa. who peed in her oats?" Trickles raised an eyebrow, earning another laugh from Windy.
"That would be you, Trickles."
"Oh. right." The lesser chortled.
Further conversation was interrupted by a light yellow pegasus trotting in. "Very comical, I'm sure, but you two are late for dinner. Prince Starshine has something important to discuss, so you may not want to miss it."
"Hold your water, Skydancer, we're coming. Wouldn't wanna miss one of Starshine's amazing six-hour lectures, would we Windy?" Trickles strode past the strict-looking greater, prancing towards the dining hall.
Windy giggled again, all thoughts of the missing greater temporarily banished. "That would be a fate worse than death. Coming, Sky?"
Skydancer nodded rigidly, glaring down his nose at Trickles' retreating form, "Lessers these days, just no respect for the rules."