The light of the sunrise filtered through the upside down house. The loud clanging of pots and pans echoed through the house as the smell of breakfast filled the air. Joy got up in a lazy state as she looked around the crazy house and was about to rub her eyes when she saw black hooves. Confused for only a moment she got up to join the others for breakfast and maybe talk to Twilight about the book.
"Well, good mornin' Sunshine," Applejack welcomed.
"I see you managed to wake up before Rainbow Dash," Twilight chuckled.
Pinkie Pie was downing pancakes too quick to talk.
"So where are the two reunited siblings?"
"I'm not sure where Anarchy is. Discord is on top of the house," Twilight replied.
Applejack set a plate of wheat grass and alfalfa pancakes in front of Joy.
"Eat up Sugar. We still have a long road ahead of us," Applejack stated.
Soon the rest of the gang got up and had breakfast. Joy omit was struggled with when to bring up the subject of the book.
"So uh, Twilight. I think I might have a problem," Joy started.
All a sudden the front door slammed opened to reveal the rhino headed Anarchy.
"To pass through my barrier, you must not be stingy. For a present inferior, is life here always dingy."
With a flash of light Discord appeared beside Fluttershy. "It's too early for this kind of racket. What's going on?"
"Anarchy just told us what we have to do to get through her barrier. Darling," Rarity replied.
"But it's in the form of a riddle," groaned Rainbow Dash.
"Hey! I worked hard on that. It gets boring having to repeat the same thing over and over again," Anarchy snapped.
"Well it's simple enough to understand," Fluttershy commented.
"Yah, all we have to do is give her a generous gift," Pinkie Pie added.
"Any ideas Rarity," asked Twilight.
"I could offer to make a dress for you," Rarity suggested.
With the snap of her lion paw an elegant and lovely emerald dress appeared.
"I can make my own, but thank you any way," Anarchy replied.
Then the ponies tried thinking up something that they could give to a draconequus. That can make pretty much anything appear when Joy started to sing. Her voice was sharp, sweat, and loud as she sang a couple of lines from the song Mo Ghile Mear.
Everyone stared at her for a couple of moments. Joy felt the urge to explain herself.
"My father's Irish. He made me take singing lessons for old Celtic songs, ever since I was six," Joy explained in her haste.
"No, no, it's okay darling. That was beautiful," complemented Rarity.
Everyone else agreed.
"Does th't count as uh present," Applejack asked Anarchy.
Again with the snap of her lion paw Anarchy made a recorded player appear. An even more lovely voice with music filled the little topsy-turvy cottage. Everybody groaned in frustration.
All a sudden Pinkie Pie's eyes light up with excitement.
"Oh! I know, I know," Pinkie shouted.
Before long the little pink pony was inches from the Female draconequus's face.
"You said it has been hundreds of years since you've last seen Discord, right?"
"Yes," sighed Anarchy.
"So that means you've missed hundreds of years of Discord's birthdays, rrriiight?"
Anarchy was starting to get a little misty eyed, "Yes."
"Lady's… and Genteldracon. I know what to do," Pinkie Pie exclaimed.
Then out of nowhere Pinkie Pie pulled out her party cannon. Soon enough the cottage was strung up with party decorations. A triple layered birthday cake on the table and everyone wearing skewed party hats. After that Pinkie Pie started singing happy birthday to Discord, everyone else joining in.
As the party went on Anarchy started sharing chaotic games. She and Discord use to play as kids. Discord was reluctant at first but got sucked into the fun. Soon the party had to end and a back door finally appeared in the cottage.
"Yes! Finally! We can get moving and finally kick that chaos prince's evil hide," Rainbow cheered.
"Awe, but this party was just getting started," whined Pinkie Pie.
"Well, you know what they say Pinkie. The good times don't last forever," Fluttershy said in a gentle hollow voice.
"Well come on, we better keep moving," Twilight stated.
"Thank you for letting us stay the night," Joy told Anarchy.
Everyone else thanked her as well.
Anarchy looked to her little brother with puppy dog eyes.
The draconequus rolled his eyes at his sister and gave her a hug.
Once everyone had exited through the back door the door slammed shut. Vanishing and leaving Anarchy all alone once again.
"Th't was mighty kind of you. To given yer sistar uh partin' hug like that," Applejack commented.
"Yah, well. I now know more than what I did before," Discord stated.
Once again a blinding flash of light hit the group and took out Pinkie Pie. Nobody was able to catch her before she fell to the ground. The group was about to pick her up when she was already gaining consciousness.
"Ugh, no more cherry chimichangas," groaned Pinkie Pie.
She got up looking a little gray around the gills but okay as far as the group could tell. They then continued on their way down the road. Nobody talked as they went along. All wondering what the next test is going to be. Weather or not they'll be able to defeat the alicorn prince in their weakened states. As they went on Twilight decide that it was time for Joy to learn how to deflect some spells.
As they went on Joy kept trying and trying to bring up the subject of the book. She couldn't think of how to word it or how to even mention it.
"So Twilight. There's been something I've been meaning to tell you," Joy started.
"Hey, look at that," Rainbow yelled.
Ahead of them was a rather thin griffin. With the front of a great horned owl and the back of a black jaguar. He was laying on a make shift couch made of sticks and grass. A little crown of dead leaves sat disheveled on his head. Not far behind the griffin was a giant, more majestic version of the griffin blocking the path. There was a little plaque at the base of the statue.
"Ah good. New servants," the griffin remarked, "I've been short on staff as of late. You can start by making me some mealworm bread and wine and then you can clean my statue."
Rainbow scoffed, "Yah. We'll get right on that."
The group walked towards the statue to read the plaque. Joy hung back to chat with the self-important griffin.
"To pass my giant feature you must be kind to my tiny creature. Show him the light of day and I'll let you on your way," read Discord.
"We don't have the time for this," Fluttershy argued.
The group stared at her in shock as she tried to go around the statue but just couldn't. Even flying over it wasn't possible.
"Well I guess we have to be nice to this griffin," Twilight concluded.
"Looks like Joy's already ahead of us on that," Pinkie Pie stated.
The group turned to see Joy was serving the griffin a scone of some sort and some water. The griffin took a nibble of the scone then spat it out in Joy's face then took a sip of the water and spat that out as well.
"Ugh! Disgusting! That scone is much too hard for my tender beak and this water isn't mineral water. It's dirty river water! Go make me something else," complained the Griffin.
Instead of getting mad or wiping the crumbs from her face she just bowed. "Yes King Gavin. As you wish." Then went on her way to please the griffin.
Twilight, Rarity, Rainbow, Pinkie, Applejack and Discord steamed as they saw this.
"Who do you think you are? You can't treat ponies like that," Twilight, raged.
"Yah! She didn't do anything to you," Rainbow Dash agreed.
"Where did she even get that stuff anyway," Pinkie Pike asked.
"A king is not to trifle with the going ons of such trivial tasks," Gavin replied.
Then the wannabe king pointed his fair claw at Twilight and Rarity.
"You two will clean up this place. It's unbefitting for a king."
With out protest the two set to work cleaning up the area. The rest of the group looked on in confusion.
Next Gavin pointed at Fluttershy and Discord.
"Why don't you two make me a new bed? My old one's starting to kill my back."
Then the draconequus and yellow pegasus started making a fancy bed. Seeing what was going on Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Applejack tried to tackle the griffin, too late.
"Why don't you massage my back? You go help that red head find me something to eat. You can just stand their looking pretty until I can think of something else."
Once again everyone froze in his or her tracks then Rainbow started massaging his back. Pinkie Pie went to find Joy and Applejack stood there. As everyone went about there business Applejack realized something. She was still herself. Her friends all looked mindless and focused on their one assigned task but not her. This was not some kingdom and that Griffin was no king.
"Hey! Why are ya doin' this," asks Applejack.
"Did I permit you to speak," sneered Gavin.
"Answer ma question."
The griffin glared at the orange earth pony then smirked.
"Because I'm king of course. As king I can do anything I want and command anyone I want. This world is my oyster and it gives me what ever I want."
"Th't's a lie. No great king is like th't."
The griffin waved for Rainbow Dash to stop. "Oh? So you have supreme knowledge of kings?"
"I know that a ruler is suppose to support and protect their subjects."
"…It that true?"
"Life is not your oyster. It owes ya nothing. Ya can't just order people around; ya have ta work hard to get what you want. And even then th't doesn't always turn out tha way ya want."
All a sudden everyone froze in his or her activities as Gavin contemplated what Applejack preached. Next everyone was starting to move independent again outside of Gavin's orders.
"What happened," Fluttershy asked.
"Look, there they are," Pinkie Pie, shouted from the tree line. Joy trotting behind her.
"What's with King Rudeness," Discord questioned.
"I don't know," Applejack, replied, " All I did was give him a little heart ta heart.
Soon the group saw the griffin statue stand. Making a little tunnel between its legs.
"Well your heart to heart got us through another barrier, Darling," Rarity stated.
Once through the tunnel they saw a dark castle in the distance.
"I think I see the castle," said Twilight.
Then just as she said that a flash of light struck Applejack causing her to faint.