The Misadventures of Ponified Friends

Chapter 13: Pinkie Pied Piper of Ponyville (Swarm of the Century)


(Speedy's POV)

"Hurry up, guys! The library isn't gonna clean itself!"

"It obviously didn't mess itself..." That's what I say…

"Princess Celestia will be here tomorrow." Twilight reminded us again for like, what, the 10th time while she was dusting the books?

"Jeez, it's just a casual visit, Sparkles," I said to her, sweeping the floor with the broom in my hooves.

You know, the library wasn't totally a MESS this morning. When a letter arrived yesterday morning in Town Hall about Princess Celestia's 'unofficial and casual' visit, Twilight suddenly started freaking out and began to say, do this! and do that! to everyone in town.

The books were all stacked and neatly minding their own business on the shelves. Why did Twilight have to ruin it? Why are we even cleaning the entire library? I doubt Princess Celestia is gonna inspect every room if she does come here.

The pressure of being a student of a princess must be unbelievable and unbearable. I'm sure glad I'm not too smart and responsible, and I meant that in a kind of way where I am delighted than I should be.

"There's nothing casual about a visit from royalty! I want this place to be spotless, and you've barely made a dent in the clutter!"

"Well, maybe if you'd start reading books one at a time-"

"Dude, you are not helping!" Silver said from a ladder, arranging books at the top-most shelf. "Twilight, just relax. We're doing this as fast as we can."

"I'm sorry. I just want everything to be perfect when she arrives." Twilight exclaimed. "There's no time fooling around!"

"Girl, this is fooling around to you?"

"This would be a lot easier if it weren't the three of us getting under each other's feet-I mean hooves." Silver said as he climbed down the ladder. "Why don't you check the preparations outside Twilight?"

"Great idea, Silver!" Twilight handed me the duster. "You two clean the library while I'll go see how everyone else is holding up."

When Twilight left the library, I glared at the man who made the suggestion annoyingly. "Thanks a lot, Hassan. Now we have to work twice as hard!"

"Oh, stop complaining." Silver walked towards a pile of scattered books. "I've already done my job in Sweet Apple Acres and came back home to help voluntarily. It's not gonna kill you to sweep and dust."

I groaned. "Fine… But all this hard work better be worth it!"

"You call this hard work? Just how lazy are you?" Silver questioned. "And remember, dude, Celestia's not the only one coming back tomorrow."

"Yeah, yeah, Robert's coming back as well with Spike. My goodness, he's in that Canterlot place for more than a week." I said, and then I began to wonder. "What could possibly be the reason why he stayed for so long? Is it a good vacation spot or what?"

"I can think of many, like… you know… regarding the three of us?" Silver said.

"Hmm, that DID cross my mind," I informed him. "But it could be anything. Let's just wait for him to come back. I'm sure he'll tell us."

"We shall see. Let's go back to work then."

As annoyed that I'm feeling right now, there was so much to be done around here. Need to do this fast because the sooner we finish this, the sooner I could do whatever the hell I want today.


I took a deep breath as I observed our handiwork. The whole place was dust-free in every corner. The books were arranged and re-arranged by topic and alphabetical order (which gave me torturous flashbacks), and I even washed the dishes cause I was in a pretty good mood.

"Wow. The place looks brand new." Silver commented.

I smiled proudly. "Eeyup, squeaky clean."

"Gotta admit, you did a good job." Silver said.

"WE, man. WE. And I thought cleaning without hands will be tough."

"Yeah, well-" Silver yawned and loudly as I looked at him, "I'm exhausted, so if you need something, I'm just gonna take a nap upstairs."

"Go and do your thing, bro. I'm gonna take a breather outside." I said to him before turning around, facing the door. I stretched my body like a cat would do before flying outside.

I saw that the town was already jammed with colorful decors, mainly blue, green, and pink. Oh, and ribbons. Lots and LOTS of ribbons. It was like a festival of ribbons, really.

I was so distracted by the sight that I almost didn't notice a banner that stood out and made me laugh. I glided down and looked closer at the pink written words.

"Welcome Princess Celest?" I read aloud and tried to stifle my laughter.

"Yeah… We couldn't fit it all in." A yellow and orange pony said to me. She was with a purple pony with a berry Cutie Mark.

"Boy, if I were you, I'd start working with that banner again. You don't want Twilight to see that." I warned. "Trust me."

The two ponies looked at each other and said, "Noted."

I sympathize with the annoyed look on their faces, but it had to be done. I went along and observed the ponies who were working with the décor in the park. It wasn't too long when I finally saw Twilight checking the flowers that Bon Bon was watering.

"They look beautiful. It's perfect! Keep up the good work." Twilight said in approval as Bon Bon smiled back and continued her work.

"Well, someone is super busy," I said, catching Twilight's attention.

"Speedy Glee," she said. "What are you doing here? You're not lazying around again, are you?"

I chuckled. She was in for a real surprise later today. "More like the opposite. Anyway, I can't believe you're inspecting all this stuff by yourself. "

"It's nothing too tough to handle," She said with certainty. "But I admit, I could really use some extra eyes and ears to get this done much faster. If only Spike was here."

"Hey, why don't I help you out? I've got nothing to do anyway." I offered.

"That will be great, Speedy. Are you sure you don't have any other obligations today?"

"I actually have weather duty, but Rainbow Dash got it all covered." I then heard zooming up in the clouds. That pony was in a hurry about something. "See? That's like, five percent of my salary."

"Okay then, I can appreciate the help. Will you go and check the banquet in Sugarcube Corner?" she instructed.

"Sure thing!" I said before galloping towards the bakery.

Oh yeah, the smell coming out of the building was heavenly. I was told that the Sugarcube couple was tasked to cook the Princess's food, so no wonder it was bound to be special.

I peeked through the door and saw Mr. and Mrs. Cake creating all kinds of confectionary sweets.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Cake!" I greeted them.

"Hello there, Speedy Glee. What can I do for you?" Mrs. Cake asked while she continued to flatten the dough with the rolling pin.

"I'm here to check the banquet for Twilight. How's it holding up?"

"Well… it would be coming a lot better if…"

She pointed to a table full of completely massacred cakes and deserts. Most of the goodies had enormous bite marks, except for the huge cake on the other end of the table. Then it was suddenly devoured by Pinkie Pie, who gulped it all down in two bites. At least there was another one on the counter over there.

"Uh, Pinkie Pie? You do know that food is for the Princess, right?" I questioned.

Meanwhile, she licked all the frosting around her face in mere seconds and smiled apologetically. "I-I know, that's why I'm tasting them! Somepony needs to make sure that everything is tasty enough to touch the royal tongue."

"That doesn't mean that you have to eat it all! Twilight's gonna lose it if she finds out about this, Pinkie."

'Weeeeell, what if I ACT like a princess?"

"No, Pinkie. That's not how it works."

"I, Pinkie Pie, declare these treats fit for a king, or a queen, or a princess such as myself."

"Yeah, I don't think so, even if you're speaking in a regal way," I said indignantly. I kinda understand how my friends feel when I act goofy like this. Yes, I'm aware.

"Pinkie Pie! You won't believe what I-!" Fluttershy's voice rang. She sounded excited for some reason. She stopped when she noticed that Pinkie Pie and I were discussing. "Oh, I'm sorry… am I interrupting?"

"Nah, you didn't interrupt anything so-" I did a double-take when I noticed the untouched cake was gone. "What the?! Pinkie Pie!"

She just shrugged and grinned, her teeth full of pink frosting. I don't work here, so it's not my problem anyway.

"So what's up, Flutters? You sound jolly earlier." I said.

"Oh, you won't believe what I found at the edge of the Everfree Forest. Come on out, little guy. It's okay."

Fluttershy sweetly called something out from inside her hair. Then, something popped out. It looked like a flying, little blue ball of fur with huge eyes. Seconds later, it was followed by a yellow and brown one. She looked surprised at the sight.

"What are thoooose~?" I questioned. Heh, I'm using a dead meme.

"I'm not sure. I'm also not sure where these other two came from." Fluttershy replied.

"Woah… They look so fluffy!" I reached out to the yellow one and held it between my hooves. So soft! "Can I take this one home with me? It'd be cool to have a pet like it."

"Of course!" Fluttershy answered. Yes! "Do you want the other one, Pinkie?"

"Ugh, a Parasprite? Are you crazy?!"

"Wait, what?" Did she just look at this poor, innocent creature in disgust?

"Ugh?" Fluttershy said in confusion as we watched Pinkie heading towards the exit.

"Now I gotta find a trombone!" she declared.

I was puzzled at the way Pinkie was acting right now. "You need a what?"

"A trombone! You know," she proceeded to make trombone noises.

"I know what a trombone is! Tell me why you need- hey! Come back!" It was too late as Pinkie ran off somewhere. "I swear that girl is weird sometimes."

"Um… that's actually typical Pinkie Pie…" Fluttershy added.

"If you say so," I said. I quickly brushed off the moment as I looked at my new friend. I chuckled as it began to purr and nuzzle my left cheek. "So you're the cuddly type, huh? I think I'm gonna call you… Blitzy!"

"Blitzy really likes you, Speedy," Fluttershy said with a smile.

"Does it now? Anyways, I have to tell Twilight about this stuff." I told her, and man, do I have to sugarcoat some details. "You busy today as well?"

"I am. I was picking the prettiest flowers in Ponyville with the critters for Princess Celestia tomorrow." She said. "That reminds me, I need to return and see what they're doing while I was gone."

"Want me to go back with you? I can tell Twilight later-"

"It's fine, Speedy, but I appreciate your help." She told me before she turned back and walked towards the exit as well with the Parasprites she had.

"Okay then, Blitzy. Wanna go home for a bite?" I asked my newest companion. I don't know what that chirp meant, but it sounded pretty hungry. "Yo, Mr. Cake! Can I get six chocolate donuts on the go?"


"Alrighty, make yourself at home!" I announced, almost slamming the library's door. "Hassan! Food's here!"

I placed the donuts that I bought on the table as I continued to watch Blitzy flying around the room in awe. What did Pinkie Pie call them again? Pair of sprites?

I heard audible hoof stomps making their way on the staircase. "Ugh, did you have to scream?"

"Dude, check this out," I then held my hooves towards Blitzy in the middle of the room. "Say hello to our new friend!"

"What the heck is that?" Silver halted coming down the stairs. "That's a huge bug!"

"Chill out, man. Blitzy's cool!"

"Blitzy?"

"Yeah! Come here, little fella," I whistled, garnering Blitzy's attention as he began to fly over to me. "It's a Parasprite! Isn't he cute?"

"A Parasprite?" He repeated. "How do you even know it's a He?"

I stared at Silver for a moment before turning to Blitzy. "Nah, he's male, I'm sure."

He rolled his eyes. "What'd you bring anyway?"

"Donuts from Sugarcube," I answered. "I swear their sugar must be cocaine cause I'm addicted to these bad boys."

"Your way with words is alarming, man." Silver said. He took his place next to me and grabbed one donut from the carton. "But it is kinda true. These are delicious."

I laughed at his response while I took a donut as well. As I was taking my time savoring the flavor, I just wondered what diet the Parasprites had. If it was an insect, do they eat flowers or something?

Only one way to find out. "Come here, Blitzy. You want a donut? I know you want a donut!"

I grabbed one from the box and placed it on one side of the table. Blitzy carefully landed down next to it and took some sniffs. He looked back at me as if asking if it's okay to eat.

"Go on, little guy." I smiled approvingly.

That was all he needed to take a bite at the donut. He chirped in satisfaction and continued to take small bites from the sweet treat.

"My, that thing is trained as hell." Silver said. "You seriously just got Blitzy as a pet today?"

"Yeah. Fluttershy found and gave me this cute guy." I said as I petted it.

"He's a nice insect and all, but do you think Twilight will approve of this?"

"What do you mean?" I questioned.

Somebody began to knock on the door. After a moment, it opened, and Twilight came in coincidentally.

"Hey, Twilight." Silver and I greeted simultaneously.

"Hello, boys." She said. Her eyes began marveling around the clean library. "Wow! You two really have outdone it!"

"And you call this lazying around?" I said with a smirk.

"Okay, Speedy. I'm impressed," she replied admittedly. "How's the banquet coming along?"

Oh shoot! My eyes instantly widened at the question. "Oh, uh, it's um, it's- don't worry about it, okay? The food looks tasty enough for tomorrow. Yeah! The Cakes did great along with Pinkie as taste tester!"

"…Okay?" Whoo! Nailed it. "Nonetheless, you two did wonderful today. I think it's time we all get to re- what is that?"

Twilight pointed to Blitzy, who was still eating the donut on the table. "THAT is the newest member of the family. Say hi to Blitzy!"

"It looks amazing! What is it?" Twilight said, observing the heck out of him.

"He said it's a Parasprite." Silver answered. "Sounds like an insect of some kind."

"Oh my, I've never seen anything so… adorable!" she carried Blitzy up and hugged him. That was unexpected. Twilight blushed when she noticed Silver and me looking at her. "Anyway, it'll be nice to have another companion around, especially for Spike, so that he won't be a bother so much when I'm studying."

Blitzy made a noise that sounded like a yawn. I looked at the clock. It was already seven?

"Speaking of being a bother, maybe I should let the little one sleep," Twilight said.

She handed me the little Parasprite gently, whose eyes began fluttering to sleep. My kokoro couldn't handle the adorable sight.

Twilight and I gathered around the Parasprite, who was sleeping soundly in Spike's bed that I brought from her room.

"Thanks for letting me borrow it for tonight. I hope he doesn't mind." I said.

"It's okay." she sighed tiredly. "The decorations, the banquet… I hope everything comes together on time tomorrow."

"Don't you worry about a thing, Sparkles," I assured her. "Everything'll go smoothly as a baby's bottom, guaranteed."

"I sure hope so." she yawned. "Make sure you two look presentable for the Princess tomorrow. Good night."

"Night." I waved as she exited our room. I looked at Blitzy one last time before going to bed myself.


"…Speedy! SPEEDY!"

What the heck? Someone's already screaming at me while I was still sleeping? That's new.

Thanks to the constant bellowing, I found myself awake. I sat up slowly and rubbed my eyes. "Isn't it a little too early to be pissed? What did I do this time?"

"Get down here quick and help me fix this mess!" Twilight yelled.

"What are you talking about?" I yelled back. God, I sound like Tommy Wiseau in the morning.

That's strange.

Why do I keep hearing baby chirp noises around me?

It felt like my eyeballs popped out of their sockets when I looked around the room.

Parasprites. EVERYWHERE!

"Where'd you all come from?!" I screamed as I covered myself with the bedsheets. "Blitzy! You didn't tell me you had friends coming over!"

Speaking of, where the heck did that Parasprite go? Damn it! He had exact copies of himself flying around the room. I didn't know which one is him!

I yelped when someone burst through the door. It was Twilight.

"There's something called knocking. Just so you know!" I told her. All the buzzing sounds were beginning to make me dizzy.

"I have no time to explain the situation!" Twilight exclaimed while dragging me out of bed. I don't know where she got the strength to do so. She then led me to her room, which was also pestered by the crawlies.

"Our rooms are not the only ones filled with them. The whole LIBRARY is filled with them!"

"Okay! Just calm down, Twilight!" I said as calmly as I could, motioning with my hooves.

"Calm down? CALM DOWN?! How can I CALM DOWN?! The Princess will arrive within the next few hours! I can't let her see THIS!"

Sheesh, she was REALLY stressed. How did this even begin?

Books began crashing left and right as the Parasprites began to lift random things in the room. Our hard work! We just finished arranging those!

"Hey! Stop it!" I waved around the air madly to make the insects drop whatever it was they were carrying.

"Speedy! Help me round up these little guys!" Twilight commanded while she was shooing them with a duster.

How was I supposed to herd all of them? There must be dozens around!

"Where did you put our saddlebags?" I asked her.

"They're all in the closet downstairs. Why?" The Unicorn answered.

"Let's gather all the Parasprites we can get and bring them to Fluttershy. She'll know what to do with them!"

I sped through the downstairs and into the library's main room, where more of the Parasprites were waiting for me. I sighed as I witnessed a bunch of furniture, getting wrecked by these creatures.

Before I could fly to the closet where our saddlebags were stored, I noticed a large group of Parasprites swarming around something huge.

I gasped. "Hey! Get away from him!"

Once I shooed the bugs, I saw Silver breathing very heavily. It got me worried big time.

"Yo! Are you alright? Speak to me, man!" I grabbed him by the shoulder and started to slap him in the face repeatedly. "Don't leave us yet! You're still young!"

I stopped when I heard him groan. "That… hurts… you idiot…"

"Oh my gods, you're okay," I said in relief.

"I'm just tired… I've been stopping them for hours…"

"HOURS?" I glanced at the clock. "But it's already past eight!"

"I don't want to… wake up everybody else because… it's still dark out…"

What the-? How in the hell did I even sleep through all this?! This ain't even a time to be considerate of others!

"Can you at least stand up? We have to bring these things to Fluttershy." I said.

Silver blinked heavily and yawned. "Sure, sure… Just let me… let me shut my eyes for a second…" and just like that, he was snoring and getting covered by the Parasprites again.

I had never seen him this tired before, aside from the time he got sick months ago. I heard a rumor last year that the basketball camp he attended was so hellishly-difficult that he slept for three days straight when he got home.

Anyways, gotta go back to my task and bring these things back to where they came from.


One round-up later, Twilight, Silver, and I began heading to Fluttershy's home.

And I say, capturing these things one by one was difficult. We haven't even had breakfast yet. They even ate all the food!

After a moment, we finally arrived at Fluttershy's, and we happened to run into Rarity. We skidded to a stop, and I heard chirping noises in Rarity's saddlebag.

"Let me guess. Parasprites?" I questioned.

"Indeed. I see we're having the same problem?"

"There's more where that came from, girl."

"DITTO!" We heard Rainbow Dash cry out. She was trying her best to shake off the Parasprites clinging to her.

"Wait, wait, wait. Why do the two of you even have one?" I asked.

"Well, after Twilight left the boutique yesterday, Fluttershy arrived and presented us these things." Rarity shivered. "I didn't know that they can multiply by… Oh, it was simply ICKY!"

"Multiply?" I wondered. Then I remembered something. "So THAT'S why Flutters thought it was weird she had more with her!"

"Can we hold this conversation later?" Twilight intervened. "Fluttershy knows everything about animals. I bet she knows how to stop them from multiplying."

We approached the door and knocked before opening it. We were caught off guard as swarms of Parasprites blasted out of the house.

Silver groaned wearily. "Or not…"

"Do something, Fluttershy! Can't you control them?" Twilight asked desperately.

"I've tried everything I know!" The Pegasus said, dashing about in her home. "I've tried begging, and pleading, and beseeching, and asking politely and-"

As Fluttershy was being chased by a Parasprite with a skillet, all I could do was grunt in frustration.

"This can't be happening," Twilight whined. "If we can't get them under control before the Princess arrives, it'll be a total disaster!"

Right there in front of me, I watched a Parasprite puke out something wet and hairy, and in a matter of seconds, it became a Parasprit- WHAT?! Gross!

"Eeeww~!" Rarity cried in disgust. "If you ask me, it's already a total disaster!"

If that was the way how Parasprites reproduce, then it was only a matter of time before these things could take over all of Ponyville!

"I have an idea to stop them from multiplying!" I declared loudly.

"YOU DO?" The mares exclaimed.

"That's right!" I turned to Silver Spur. "Hassan! Go and fetch me a flamethrower!"

"WHAT?!" Fluttershy cried out in shock.

"We want to stop them, not erase them from existence!" He retorted.

"…Welp, that's all I got." I shrugged.

When the others sighed in disappointment and Fluttershy giving me a death glare (I'm sorry, okay?), Applejack was crossing the bridge with a cart full of apples.

"Here's all those apples you ordered, Fluttershy," she announced. "But I still can't figure out why you need so many."

The flying gremlins noticed her and began attacking the fruits. Not even a single seed was left behind when they were done.

"Hey!"

"What do we do?" Fluttershy asked, worried.

"Why don't we let Applejack take care of this? She's pretty good at herding." Silver brought up.

Twilight gasped in realization. "That's it! Nopony can herd like HER!"

"Yeah! We can drive em' back into the forest!" Rainbow Dash added in encouragement.

Applejack sighed. "Alright, I'll wrassle' em' up, but I need everypony's help to do it. Twilight, you and Rarity wait over there. I'll herd the little critters straight at ya' like a funnel. Rainbow Dash, you and Fluttershy stay on top of 'em. Don't let them fly away. "

"Aye-aye!" RD saluted before she and Fluttershy took off.

"Speedy and Silver, both of ya'll come help me and stay on either side so they won't escape," Applejack ordered to us.

"Roger, AJ!" Silver responded.

"Yeah! Let's do this!" I exclaimed, more than willing to get started.

"Yeeee-haw!"

Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, Silver, and I started to fly off the Parasprites and bundled them all in a single area. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy prevented them from flying away and lowered them down in the same place.

Once they were packed, the Parasprites formed into a huge sphere, and we rolled it into the forest. Applejack began giving orders left and right. "Alright, y'all. Here goes nothin'!"

We all took our positions. "Look out Rarity, that one's fixin' to get away! Keep a lean on 'em, Rainbow Dash! Hold on, gang. We're almost there!"

Suddenly, Pinkie Pie appeared out of nowhere, running in front of Twilight.

"Twilight! We don't have much time!" Pinkie said.

"You're telling me? The Princess could arrive at any moment!"

"Exactly, so I need you all to drop what you're doing and help me find some maracas!"

"We've got MUCH bigger problems than finding some dumb instrument, Pinkie!" Silver yelled from the left side of the sphere.

Pinkie gasped. "You're RIGHT! Getting a tuba HAS to be your number one goal! Follow me!"

"Pinkie Pie, you are so random." RD flew down and told her.

"And you are all so stubborn!" Pinkie ran away in the other direction. Yesterday she was looking for a trombone, and now she is looking for maracas and a tuba? What the heck was she trying to do?

"Forget her, everyone. Focus!" Applejack said. "Head 'em up and move 'em out!"

We finally reached the edge of the Everfree Forest. A few seconds of herding later, we let the sphere roll far into the forest. It was finally over!

"Alright!" RD slapped hooves with Fluttershy.

"Ouch…" she said.

"We did it! Nice work, Applejack." Twilight told her happily.

"Couldn't have done it without y'all." said Applejack humbly. "Well, almost all of ya'."

"What's up with Pinkie? Why is she looking for maracas and a tuba?" Fluttershy asked.

"She might be onto something," I said. "Yesterday, she was looking for a trombone."

"Earlier, she was looking for a banjo." Rarity said.

"She said something about an accordion yesterday as well," Rainbow added.

"I let her borrow my harmonica. I thought she's gonna play with it to keep herself busy or somethin'." Applejack explained.

Pinkie Pie hunting down instruments felt like it was connected with the Parasprites. Then again, she began with this thing when Fluttershy arrived with the bugs. There was no doubt.

"Don't you think it's a good idea if we listen to Pinkie Pie right now?" I brought up. "I know this sounds ridiculous, but I feel like she knows what she's doing."

"How in the hay can she get rid of these critters with instruments? It makes no lick of sense!" Twilight deducted. The others also agreed as they nodded.

"But, you never know, Twilight." I countered. "The Parasprites might come back, and we've done everything we can."

"They're already deep within the Everfree Forest, Speedy. I'm pretty sure they won't be coming back." she groaned. "We've already wasted enough time here. Let's go back and clean the mess before the Princess arrives."

I sighed as we continued to walk back to Fluttershy's.

"Okay, everyone knows what to do, right? We gotta work EXTRA hard to make up for lost time." Twilight announced. I already lost most of my energy, so I kept quiet.

Fluttershy bit the door handle, and when she opened it, another army of Parasprites bursts out of her house.

Great…

"Where did THEY come from?!" Twilight cried.

"Um, I may have kept just one… Heh…" Fluttershy told us.

I was sure we all glared at her in irritation.

"I couldn't help myself. They're just so cute."

"Looks like we're all back to square one." Silver said grimly after face-hoofing.

"We just can't keep rounding up these things! What do we do now?" Twilight said.

"We call in the weather patrol!" Rainbow Dash appeared with goggles. She flew up, did a war cry before going down at high speed that surprised the Parasprites.

Wait a second. I know this formation.

"Are you gonna do what I THINK you're gonna do?!" I demanded as RD gained more speed.

"You bet I will!" she responded, circling around us.

"What IS she trying to do?" Silver asked.

"She's gonna make a mini tornado!" I screamed. "Everybody take cover!"

Rainbow Dash continued to fly in circles until she finally made a tiny whirlwind. It sucked all the Parasprites in the area, those who tried to escape failing to do so as RD controlled the wind. It became powerful enough to even bring us along.

"Can you lower the power of that thing? That'll be nice!" I bellowed, holding tightly on a fence.

She was able to collect all the bugs inside the tornado in a short while.

"Way to go, Rainbow Dash!" Twilight congratulated.

"Looks like our problems are solved!" Oh, come on, Applejack. Don't jinx it.

"They will be with these cymbals." There goes that pink pony again, appearing randomly. She was clashing the cymbals together until it got caught in the tornado. "Hey! Give me those back!"

The bronze instruments began causing problems to RD. It came at her like two sharp blades, threatening to cut her in pieces as it goes round and round in the twirling death wind.

"I can't hold it! She's breaking up!" she cried inside the tornado. She was spat out and crashed straight into a tree. We all cried out at the pain of that crash.

The tornado began to disperse, releasing the bugs and shooting them straight to…

I sighed. Ponyville… Of course.

"Pinkie Pie! What have you DONE?" Twilight asked furiously.

"I lost a brand new pair of cymbals. That's what I've done!"

"Will you just forget about those silly instruments for one second?! You're ruining our efforts to save Ponyville!"

"ME? I'm not the ruiner, I'm the RUINEE. Or is it ruinness? Ruinette?"

"Come on, there's no reasoning with that one." Applejack said. "She's an apple short of a bushel."

Applejack led the girls to Ponyville. Me and Silver stayed back for a while.

"This is THE worst morning I've ever had. None can top this off…" Silver exhaled tiredly.

"Even the day we turned into ponies?" I said.

"… That one is a close second. I'm just super tired."

"Hey! I'm trying to tell you all that the ruinee is on the other hoof!" Pinkie called at the girls. "If you could just slow down and LISTEN TO ME!"

"We're here, Pinkie," I said. "Just tell us what you need."

"Wait, why am I with you- OOF!" I elbowed him before he could talk back.

"You… Believe me?"

"Well, we all tried the best we can, and it was always dumpster fire." No offense to the girls. "But we've yet to try out your idea."

"Why do you need the instruments anyway?" Silver wondered.

"You see, I've dealt with these cute-yet-terrifying critters before. I found out that they like the sound of the instruments!"

"Seriously?"

"Yeah! When I play them, they always get distracted and follow the music wherever it goes. So if I can get every single Parasprite to follow me, I can lead them back to the Everfree Forest!"

"Interesting. That actually sounds like it would work better than the previous attempts." I admit.

"So this plan is like, Pied Piper-ish." Silver compared. Oh yeah, that Pied Piper guy was from that Shrek movie! You know the one who controlled all those ogres with a flute? So awesome!

"Uh-huh! Well, whatever Pied Piper-ish means." She dashed towards the direction of Ponyville. "Come on, fellas!"

Silver and I looked at each other.

"I'll get the tuba?" Silver asked.

"I'll go with maracas."


Holy hell, do these things eat fast!

The fruits, the vegetables, and even the food served in restaurants and stalls were rampaged by the Parasprites when we arrived in Ponyville!

"These creatures have one hell of an appetite!" Silver screamed.

"Okay, you go find that Tuba! I'll head over to that Mexican looking store there to find some maracas!" I said in a hurry. Silver nodded before running towards the other direction.

I heard Pinkie Pie calling me, getting near as she trotted. "Look, Speedy! I found the Tambourines!"

"Oh dang it, I haven't even started looking for maracas!" I exclaimed.

"Maracas? I already got them." She informed.

"Then all we need is the tuba, right?"

I suddenly heard a loud echo ringing in the air, followed by purple rings that emerged. I looked around, wondering what that was.

I noticed that the Parasprites stopped eating the crops and food. What the hell happened? One Parasprite in particular just sniffed an apple and ignored it.

…Why do I feel so nervous?

A blood-curdling scream was heard near Rarity's boutique. Was that Rarity herself?

"It sounds like Rarity's in trouble! You go on ahead and gather the instruments you need!" Pinkie nodded and left.

I flew quickly towards the boutique. As I was flying, I found it odd that the buildings I passed by were missing roofs. And wasn't there a booth that sells buckets on that street corner?

That's when I realized that Parasprites began eating, well, EVERYTHING NOW!

I landed in front of the boutique finally. I kicked the door open. Parasprites were eating Rarity's dresses and her materials for sewing.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKK~!"

I winced, covering my ears. "Stop it, my ears are bleeding!"

"Thank goodness! Save my outfits, Speedy Glee!" Rarity pleaded dramatically, sitting on a stool.

"Uh, shouldn't I get you out here?"

"Don't worry about me, rescue my precious dresses!"

"Are you crazy, woman?!" I cursed internally. "Fine!"

I swooped in and scooped her from the stool, carrying her outside bridal style. I dropped her carefully. "Stay here, and I'll deal with them." she nodded obediently.

I went in again and shut the door down. "Alright, you Parasprites!" I carried the stool that Rarity used. I grabbed a pony mannequin that was lying around, and I took a stance. "If you don't stop in five seconds, I'm gonna WRECK you!"

I totally didn't expect them to stop when I said that.

"Oh shi- I mean, that's right!" I composed myself. "I want you all to stop eating my friend's frilly fru-fru dresses and go back to where you came from. Sound good?"

The Parasprites started to look at me. I felt like I was threatened. Why are they salivating?

Slowly, they all floated towards me. Were they gonna eat me?!

"I said, get back! I'm warning ya!" I threw the stool, and it got devoured in a second.

I turned pale. "Eeeyah!" I threw the mannequin as well. It turned into dust.

I gulped as the bugs locked on to me. "Screw this!"

Panicking, I ran to the door. My hooves fumbled about the doorknob. How do I open this, how do I open this!? I didn't have hands!

I had given up. I curled up, closed my eyes, and screamed for dear life. So this is how I die? Being eaten by multicolored fuzz balls?

… What the? I'm still alive?

Glancing back at the Parasprites, I was bewildered at what was happening. They were all bouncing in the air, happy for some reason.

The sounds of different kinds of instruments jingled outside. Pinkie Pie did it!

Now that my mind was more relaxed, I opened the door and watched the Parasprites follow the sound. They were so distracted that they ignored everything in their path. I found it safe to follow where they were headed.

From the horizon, I saw Pinkie Pie, and I couldn't help but chuckle at the serious face she was making while playing all those instruments. It was a hilarious sight.

Twilight and the others were watching Pinkie Pie and her show. They all looked dumbfounded.

"Look!" Twilight pointed at the sky. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't have noticed Princess Celestia arriving. There at the carriage, Spike was waving at us joyfully, and right behind him was no other than Robert!

We all ran ahead of Pinkie Pie to meet up with them. They bowed when the Princess landed. I still don't know anything about royal formalities, so I just followed them.

"Twilight Sparkle, my prized pupil!" the Princess greeted.

"Good morning everypony!" Spike greeted as well.

"So lovely to see you again."

"We're happy to see you too, Princess." Twilight said for us. "Welcome back, Spike. You too, Star Blast."

"Glad to be back." He said with a smile.

"Dude! Long time no see!" I said to him.

The clashing of cymbals interrupted us. Pinkie Pie was still leading the Parasprites to the Everfree Forest. I forgot that we weren't supposed to let the Princess know about this.

By golly, this was embarrassing. I'm so glad I'm not Twilight right now.

"So… how's the trip? Did you hit traffic?" she asked, trying to change the subject while Celestia was watching Pinkie.

"Care to update us about what's happening here?" Star Blast asked.

I laughed nervously. "Long story, dude."

One of the Parasprites landed on Princess Celestia's left-wing. She giggled at it. "These creatures are adorable!"

"What are they?" The Parasprite then flew in front of Blast.

"A demon's spawn…" I mumbled.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing."

He rolled his eyes as the bug got back to the line, jumping up and down with the music. "Whatever they are, they sure look cute."

"Not THAT cute," Rainbow muttered. Tell me about it.

"I'm deeply honored that you and the good citizens of Ponyville have organized a parade in honor of my visit." The Princess said. Woah, woah, woah. Was this an escape plan, I'm hearing?

"A parade?" Twilight asked in confusion.

Before the momentum was gone, I took her place. "We're so glad that you appreciated it, your Highness. It was a lot of hard work training those Parasprites."

"Speedy, what are you-" I quickly shushed her.

"Just go with it…" I whispered.

"I mean- Yeah! The parade!"

"Unfortunately, that visit is going to have to wait for another time." The Princess apologized. "I'm afraid an emergency has come up in Fillydelphia. Apparently, there has been some sort of infestation."

"A-An infestation?" Twilight said shakily. Don't tell me that was our fault?

"Yes. A swarm of incredibly bothersome creatures has invaded the poor town."

… Why did it sound like the Princess was referring to our problem here?

"I just dropped by and decided to bring the two of them home myself. I'm sorry I caused you so much trouble, Twilight." she apologized.

"Trouble? What trouble? There's no trouble at all!" Twilight said and smiled innocently.

"Now, would you care to give me your latest report on the magic of friendship in person?"

"My report?" Uh-oh, she was so busy with this entire shindig I doubt she learned anything.

"Haven't you learned anything about friendship?"

Twilight looked at Pinkie Pie. The dedication she had with finding and playing the instruments to stop the pests was awesome, inspiring in some way even when no one listened to her. I think Twilight found what she was looking for.

"Actually, I have. I learned that sometimes, the solution to your problems can come where you least expect it. It's a good idea to stop and listen to your friend's opinions and perspectives. Even when they don't always seem to make sense." She finished.

Princess Celestia smiled. "I'm so proud of you, Twilight Sparkle, and I'm very impressed with your friends as well. It sounds like you're all learning so much from each other."

"Ain't that the truth," I said, making the Princess chuckle. Did I just make a powerful being laugh? I'm on a whole new level!

"Thank you, Princess," Twilight said to her mentor brightly.

Princess Celestia took her place in the carriage. "I'm glad that you enjoyed your stay in Canterlot, Star Blast."

"It was a wonderful experience, and I had an amazing time, Princess. I wouldn't have survived if Spike wasn't around, honestly." Blast said.

"Yeah! I'm not just gonna let you wander around all on your own. Remember what I told you about some of the ponies there?" Spike said.

"I remember, and I know a snob when I see one, kid."

"Just saying." Spike shrugged.

"Before I go, shall I tell them the big news, or should you?" Celestia asked Rob. What news? Was it about our transportation?!

"Well, they'll find out anyway, and there's an infestation problem in Fillydelphia that you need to tend to, right?"

"Perhaps I do." She then ordered the Pegasus stallion guards to be ready for takeoff. "I'm looking forward to your improvement and success in the following months. Farewell, little ponies!"

Her carriage finally flew away to the distance. Star Blast and Spike walked towards us.

"You all look worn out." No kidding, man.

"What in the hay happened here?" Spike asked.

"Oh, Parasprite infestation. Nothing fancy." I shrugged. "And what's this BIG news the Princess was talking about?"

"Yeah, what is it? Normally, the Princess would tell me about these things." Twilight said. The others also joined in and pestered him about the news.

"Now isn't exactly the best time to tell you all about that, at least. Why don't we meet up with Pinkie Pie over there?" Blast suggested.

We walked up to Pinkie, who was just leading the final line of the Parasprites into the Everfree Forest.

"Hey, what happened to the Princess?" she asked, halting with the instruments.

"Emergency in Fillydelphia," Twilight told her.

"Something about an infestation," Rainbow added.

"Oh, no! Have they got the Parasprites too?"

"Sounds like it, yeah," I said.

"Well, have tuba, will travel!" she declared, blowing said instrument.

"Don't worry, Pinkie. I believe the Princess can handle it." Star Blast said.

"Oh! Hey Star Blast! You didn't tell me that you and Spike were coming home today."

"We were very busy with our personal activities, so I apologize."

"Dude, do you even text? Or, in this case, letter?" I teased him. He just looked at me amusingly.

"So you knew what to do with those critters all along, huh Pinkie Pie?" Applejack stated.

"Well, duh? Why didn't you think I was so frantic to find all these instruments? I tried to tell you, but only Speedy and Silver helped me out." I hadn't even got to give her any instruments, but it felt nice being mentioned.

Now that I realized, where the hell was Hassan?

"We're very sorry that we didn't listen, Pinkie Pie," Twilight said. The others also apologized, while I'm still wondering where the heck that gray pony could be. "You're a great friend, even if we don't understand you."

The pink pony grinned. "Thanks, guys, you're all great friends, too, even when I don't understand me."

"You saved my reputation with Princess Celestia, and more importantly, you saved Ponyville!"

I whistled. I don't know about that.


"…Or not," Twilight said droopily. We all gazed at the remains of… whatever's left from the town.

Cue the sad trumpets. Ah, thank you for playing it, Pinkie Pie.

We just couldn't catch a break today, huh?


Author's Note!

This is weird.

It took me a month and a half to write the first quarter of this chapter, and then it only took me three days to finish the remainder and editing. What the hell is wrong with me?

Anywho, I'm just glad that I finally updated. Oh! And Star Blast finally comes back in the story! I wonder what that news could be? Find out in the next one!

You know the drill! Fav it! Follow it! Review and tell me what you think! – Super Bright Brat


DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING EXCEPT MY OC'S!