Plot shall thicken
At Babs' place, the crusaders are talking.
"So tell me, how's things been going?" Babs asked.
"It's been fun, our sisters and their friends expanded their group, twins named Flitter & Cloudchaser, and a stallion named Thunderlane, when they befriended them we got Thunderlane's brother Rumble here to join us"
Rumble nodded, "It was Scootaloo's idea, she got me into the group"
"Without consulting us first", Sweetie said.
"Oh clam it Sweetie, it was just a rash judgement", Scootaloo said.
"One that worked well for us, Rumble's a nice boy, a little timid though", Apple Bloom said.
"A little? He doesn't wanna try anything to get our cutie marks unless it's totally safe and non-dangerous, weird coming from a colt that performs with Rainbow Dash" Sweetie complained.
"Hush up Sweetie Belle, so he's a little cautious, he'll lighten up, personally I'm flattered, it just means he cares about us", Apple Bloom stated.
Rumble blushed, "Yeah, I don't want you getting hurt, pretty fillies need to be careful", that comment caused a little blush from the crusaders, though Sweetie and Scootaloo maintained a serious expression.
"Aw, see, he's as sweet as an Apple Family Apple Pie"
Babs looked somewhat suspicious.
"We don't like being careful, that's boring, and we're not just some 'pretty filies' as you called us", Scootaloo said.
"Relax Scoots, he's just a natural flirt like his brother, besides nothing wrong with being pretty, we are pretty, hey Rumble, don't you think Babs is pretty too?"
Rumble looked at Babs, she looked nice but she didn't really fit his definition of 'pretty', due to her odd mane style and the fact he thought she looked a little chubby, he wouldn't say this out loud, he didn't want to hurt her feelings, "Uh yeah, she is"
Babs could sense the doubt in that, it actually insulted her a bit that he didn't really think she was pretty, not that she liked him, she doesn't since she barely knows him but she's still upset that he probably didn't mean what he said.
"So you condone him being a flirt?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Yeah, ah find it cute"
"That doesn't make any sense, you like being called pretty, even though you know he's just being a flirt, so he likely just says it without meaning it, and you condone that? That makes you seem very shallow and desperate", Sweetie said.
Apple Bloom looked very angry now, "Ah thought ah told you to cool it with this bad attitude Sweetie Belle, like it or not, Rumble's a Crusader, ah like him and so does Scootaloo, you need to start liking him"
Sweetie turned away.
"Come on, you like Babs even though she used to pick on us"
Rumble glared at Babs, "You what!?"
Babs looked taken aback by that.
"Long story, point is if she can get past that, she can get past this nonsense, yah never even did anything to her so I don't get this bad attitude"
"When we let Babs in, we at least knew about it first hand, we made the decision before she arrived in Ponyville"
"Scootaloo let us know about Rumble beforehand"
"She said she'll check him out before we decide, the next time she spoke to us she told us she made him a member shortly after Thunderlane was accepted by our sisters"
Rumble looked uncomfortable, granted it's not as bad as the whole Applejack situation from a while ago but it's still somewhat awkward for him.
Apple Bloom noticed his tense nature, "Ah don't want to deal with you on this now, ya got Rumble all nervous, come on Rumble, lets go find your brother", Apple Bloom left with Rumble while Babs spoke with the crusaders.
"What's your take on him Babs?" Scootaloo asked.
"I don't trust the kid, he's too nice, no colt is that nice with fillies unless he wants somethin' from them, I mean ya heard the way he called you'se 'pretty fillies', the kid's just dragging ya's for a ride"
"Perhaps, we'll keep an eye on him then, I still don't like the kid much, there's just something about him", Sweetie said.
"Maybe I did jump the gun on bringing him into the group, but maybe Apple Bloom's right, the kid needs a chance, if he doesn't quit the timid stuff, then we could probably boot him from the Crusaders"
The other girls nodded in agreement.
~Random Moment~
Cheese Sandwich was busy putting some final touches on the party, "I'm gonna make this a SUPER party...well as well as I can, some ponies don't like the hard party style, ah well the world runs on diversity, good to have a challenge"
Pinkie barged into the building, "CHEESE!"
Cheese looked around, "Pinkie?"
Pinkie noticed Cheese, "Cheese!"
"Pinkie! It's so good to see...Pinkie wait!"
Too late, she had hug tackled him.
~Random Moment Over~
In the hotel room, Trixie started talking business with Lightning Dust, Suri & The Flim Flam Brothers.
"So darling, what's the plan?" Suri asked.
"The plan is simple, you're all gonna attend a party tomorrow, it's for fashion enthusiasts, since you're trying to push out your product, go there and get the interest of the ponies there, to seal the deal promise them seats to Trixie's show that Trixie will be performing at the theater tomorrow, Trixie will promote your products through her show, and your star sponsor Lightning Dust shall put on a great performance, Trixie guarantees you and the brothers there will rule the world of fashion", Trixie explained.
"Fashion is just the start, soon we'll hit other products, I'm sure the brothers want to get back into the Cider Business that the Apple Family were foolish enough to turn down"
"Sur we made more but we made the machine that would make the job easier, all they had to do was get the apples, not that hard, plus the profits would have added up", Flim stated.
"We're gonna rule all retail, we'll dominate and be the richest ponies in ALL of Equestria!" Suri raised her hands high, "It all starts tomorrow, so long as you pull your weight Trixie"
"Trixie has everything under control, just do what Trixie says, and DON'T screw this up"
"I don't screw up okay, I'm a genius, the only reason I failed against Rarity was because of that backstabbing Coco Pommel, after everything I've done for her"
"Listen, we need to band together, we all have something in common, we all hate Twilight Sparkle's friends, Trixie herself dislikes Rainbow Dash, Applejack & Rarity for heckling Trixie and taking part in ruining Trixie's career, as well as Pinkie Pie, due to her annoying nature, and her family's stupid rock farm, have you seen Pinkie Pie's sister Maud? All she does is talk about rocks, like seriously, who likes rocks that much!?"
"Same here, showing up at the academy, they nearly get killed but not because of me, because they never should have even been there in the first place, it's like blaming someone if they go to a weapons testing facility and they get caught in the crossfire, then Rainbow say I'm insensitive, the way I see it, if they got hurt, it was their damn fault, they should have just been happy enough to be alive, but that wasn't enough, they ruined my dream", Lightning Dust stated.
"Those girls interfered in a competition me and my brother had against the Apple Family", Flim stated.
"Hardly seemed fair, I mean we couldn't turn them away, it would have made us look bad", Flam stated.
"Those girls also got involved in my plans, then they manipulated Coco", Suri stated.
"So we have that extra motivation, not just the retails, or being the best fliers, or being the greatest showpony, but to get revenge on The Elements of Harmony", Trixie stated.
"So we're all in", Lightning Dust stated.
They all nodded and put their hooves in for a pact.
Later that night, the entire gang were in the hotel, getting settled for bed.
Applejack had just dropped off the Crusaders in their room, "Behave yourselves tonight"
After she left she crossed paths with Rarity.
"Applejack, hello darling, how were things today, did Sweetie Belle behave?"
"Yeah, a little"
"A little? Did it have to do with Rumble?"
"Sorta"
Rarity sighed, "I need to deal with her soon, but I was wondering, I know you were supposed to stay in Twilight's room but I wanted to know if you would join me in my room instead, we won't be alone of course but it would be nice to spend a little time with you, we don't speak too much anymore, I'm starting to miss you"
Applejack rubbed her head a little, "Aw shucks Rarity, ah guess ah can do that, kinda miss you too, I'll just let Twilight know"
Rarity nodded, "Sounds good to me"
Applejack left to let Twilight know of the room change.
Then soon Thunderlane himself was getting to his room, Rainbow Dash confronted him.
"Hey Thunder, got a minute?"
Thunderlane nodded, "Totally, what's up?"
"Listen, we haven't had a chance to really do much together since arriving here"
"Oh, sorry about that, Applejack really wanted me to go to see her cousins"
"That's cool, I know Applejack just wants to be nice to you after all the crap she gave you before, but lets try to make time for us"
Thunderlane chuckled, "Oh, so now there's an 'us'?"
Rainbow Dash punched him a little, "Quit getting funny ideas"
"Ow, sorry Dash"
"Yeah whatever, listen lets go grab a drink tomorrow, then see the Manehatten sights, this is a cool place to fly, if you're careful around the skyscrapers"
"Sounds awesome...well we should probably get ready, you all ok with me sharing a room with you though?"
"Psh, like you'll try anything, you don't have the guts"
"I...yeah I wouldn't, I'm pretty sure you could all kick my ass"
"Damn straight we could, be happy you're on our good side"
Both chuckled and went to their room, though along the way caught Spike trying to sneak into Rarity's room.
"Time to keep Rarity company", Spike muttered.
"Spike...what are you doing?" Rainbow asked.
Spike stopped, "Oh crap"
"Yeah, didn't Twilight tell you not to bunk with Rarity?"
"Hey what are you, Twilight's message boy?"
"I'm just relaying what she said, you don't wanna get in trouble do you"
"I got this, Twilight will never-"
"Spike!"
Spike grew worried, "Oh no", he turned around and saw an unhappy Twilight.
"Spike, room, now" Twilight pointed to the door.
"But Twilight!"
"No buts! Now"
"You should listen to her little buddy, she knows best", Thunderlane added.
"Don't be a kiss up Thunder-lame"
"Spike!"
"What?"
"Do NOT insult Thunderlane, do we have that clear?"
"What are you in love with him?"
Twilight gave him a glare that shut him up, then he walked off to the room while grumbling that Twilight isn't his babysitter or anything like that.
Twilight approached Thunderlane, "Sorry about Spike, he can be a little out of line, so I gotta play authority"
"It's fine, Rumble can be like that on occasion"
"Really? He seems like such a nice boy"
"He is, but he does have his moments, all ponies do, or in this case, dragons"
They all chuckled and went to their room, ready for the party the next day.
~Next Day~
The gang approached the party, led by Coco Pommel.
"We're almost there", Coco stated.
"I remember this place, fond memories", Pinkie Pie said.
"Pinkie you were last here yesterday remember?" Twilight said.
"Yeah, I gave Cheese a Super Duper hug! Like I said, fond memories"
Everypony chuckled and entered the building, they saw all the ponies hanging around.
"Wow, so many rich ponies", Rainbow said.
"Not all of them, some look pretty regular, at least this isn't some snooty stuck up party", Cloudchaser said.
They all walked through, though as soon as Pinkie saw Cheese, she ran to him.
"Cheese!"
Cheese noticed her, "Oh Pinkie, please don't tackle me again, I'm still sore from, oh no!" Pinkie had hug tackled Cheese again.
"She's totally into him", Rainbow said.
"You can all go mingle with whomever, me and Rarity are gonna go find some higher ups", Coco said.
Rainbow went to Thunderlane but Applejack cut her off, "Hey Thunder lets go try some of them fancy snacks"
"But Applejack", too late, Applejack pulled Thunderlane away.
Rainbow Dash growled a bit but took a breath, "Whatever, later we're going for a flight, I won't let Applejack screw that up", she walked off.
Rarity and Coco found Photo Finish and Hoity Toity.
"There they are, lets go", Rarity said to Coco.
Once they approached hem Rarity extended her hoof, "Hello Hoity Toity, Photo Finish, it's nice to see you again"
Both had shook her hoof.
"Nice to see you again darling, I see you come with zee girl from the Canterlot Talent show", Photo Finish said.
"Yes, the one with the great designs if I do say so myself", Hoity Toity said.
"I'm sure you're willing to give this nice mare a nice little showing for your next show, I assure you she's well worth the hype and investment"
"Perhaps she is, but I'd like to see something more from her, she shows potential but she needs that...push", Photo said.
"I assure you that she can come up with something to wow you, isn't that right Coco?" Rarity asked.
Coco nodded nervously, "Yes, I mean I think so"
"Darling, don't think so, know so, show some confidence", Rarity said.
"She has no confidence", an approaching voice said.
Rarity turned to see Suri arrive with The Flim Flam Brothers.
"You! Why are you here?" Rarity asked.
"Same as you darling, to get some business", Suri stated.
"I doubt either of them want what you have to offer", Rarity said.
"Why don't you let them decide little lady", Flam said.
Flim approached the duo, "I assure you Miss Polomare's designs are something to behold, ponies all over Equestria will line up to get a piece of her line-up, I assure you, you're gonna wanna invest in Suri Polomare's designs, there will be bits as far as the eye can see, posters, billboards, ads everywhere, all we need is a little endorsement"
Photo and Hoity glanced at each other.
"Darlings I assure you I will give that push you wanted, if you want to see for yourself, come see a show at the Theater tonight, have you ever heard of The Great and Powerful Trixie Lulamoon?"
"I think so, didn't she cause an Ursa Minor incident?"
"That was somepony else, she's a great magician, she's assisting a sponsor of ours, Lightning Dust"
"Didn't she cause trouble too?" Hoity asked.
"Come on, you gotta admit, she's talented, all we need is the one chance", Suri said.
"We assure you that you won't regret it", Flim stated.
"Well...I suppose we could come", Hoity said.
"Excellent, now to spread the word", Suri said and grabbed a mega phone, "Attention Party goers!"
All the ponies turned to Suri.
"Suri Polomare" Twilight said.
"I'm surprised she's here", Fluttershy said.
Rainbow also noticed, "Oh great, it's them"
"All ponies, meet us tonight at the theater near the center of the city and be wowed by the entertainment of our clients Trixie Lulamoon and Lightning Dust! Hoity Toity and Photo Finish will be attending to watch a great show! Be on the look out for my designs!"
All the ponies muttered a bit, then Rainbow Dash approached Suri, "You again? You just don't learn do you?"
"Look honey, it's business okay, face it we're gonna be the richest group in Equestria history, soon Lightning won't even need your precious Wonderbolts, she'll be tons better than any of you ever were"
"Alright, that's it, if Lightning wants to upstage me so badly, I'll give her that chance, it will be me and her in a flight battle, with nothing but bragging rights on the line"
"Alright but just be ready to have your flank handed to you, Lightning means business"
"So do I"
Rainbow flew off to her friends, "Looks like I have a show to get ready for"
"Rainbow why are you doing this? I know Suri's a pain but this was suppose to be a time to relax, don't start any fights", Twilight said.
"I got this Twilight, I need to shut these punks down"
"Do you need our help Rainbow?" Cloudchaser asked.
"No that's fine, this is between me and Lightning Dust"
Rainbow saw Thunderlane approach so she went to him, "Sorry Thunder but I don't know if we'll have our little flight time, I need to get ready for this showdown"
She then flew off leaving Thunderlane a bit disappointed and leaving Twilight to ponder, "Either she got caught in a bad mood or she's just being wreckless and stubborn, probably both"
Rainbow flew off to get ready, "Freaken ponies, gotta deal with them once and for all", then did some laps to prepare.
Major Confrontation Next Chapter.