The Misadventures of Ponified Friends

Chapter 23: The Hills Have Fur (A Dog and Pony Show)


(Silver's POV)

"Come on! Don't you wanna be the fastest, toughest Pegasus around?!"

"I don't wanna be the fastest, toughest Pegasus around!"

So, you might be wondering why it seems like I'm encouraging a certain yellow stick. Here's why.

It was a pretty sunny day in Ponyville that was perfect for jogging around. After the buzz around the Talent show had died down, everything went back to normal as usual.

Well, I guess not everything.

Surprisingly, Speedy had never recovered from his sudden weight gain. I genuinely thought that if he finally goes back to flying, he'll burn all that fat out in a flash, but nope. I guess I was kind of reaching there since this is a cartoon world where logic can fly right out the window.

He went back to join the Weather team a couple of days ago, but he was immediately sent back home due to being sluggish and slow. Man, Rainbow Dash was going off on him that I kinda felt bad for him for once. So, I went in and proposed to bring him back to tip-top shape, and maybe even help him gain more muscle.

We have been running laps around Ponyville since the crack of dawn, only taking stops to do push-ups and sit-ups. Since we're in pony bodies now, I learned that we can run around longer and hardly get tired. But it's not the case for Speedy, though.

"Dude," he wheezed. "We've been running circles around Ponyville the moment we woke up. I think my spleen's about to explode."

"Don't say that, bro!" I said encouragingly, jogging in place. "I took the day off so that I could help you, so let's make the most of it. Be grateful that I'm even showing you my workout routine."

"Why would I be grateful…." Speedy panted hoarsely. "To someone who's slowly killing me?!"

"Jeez, it ain't that bad!" I did an Ali shuffle with my hooves. "Once you get used to it, you'll hardly get tired. It's always difficult when you just started doing something. Even I puked my guts out the first few days doing this."

"That's easy for you to say…." He stopped and sat down, catching his breath. "You're built different. The only time I get some exercise is when I play Wii Sports, and I rarely touch my Wii."

"Get off your lazy butt," I said, nudging him to stand up. "Just one more lap, I promise. Then you can do whatever the heck you want."

He sighed. "Alright, but are we gonna keep doing this?"

"Of course! Once you start working out, you have to do it regularly. If your body improves, then I'll finally leave you alone."

Speedy groaned. "Fine, but why isn't Rob part of this? He needs this torture just as much as I do!"

"Well, he's more of a magic-user, and his body is just fine as it is, so he don't need no special training." I reasoned. "Now, let's move!"

"Come on, dude. Can't we just take a break for at least 10 minutes?" Speedy asked. "Anymore running, and my body will fall apart like Jenga blocks."

I sighed at his complaints, but then again, I may just be overworking him a bit. I'm getting thirsty as well, and luckily, we're in front of a store that sells shakes and smoothies.

"Might as well stop for a bit. You want some of those? My treat."

"Oh, then can I have a Choco-caramel fudge vanilla-"

"No!"

After a quick drink, Speedy and I continued the workout, and we would stop an hour later and head back to the library. Been a long time since I went all out that even I'm kinda exhausted.

"That felt awesome!" I hollered. "How about you? Feeling the pain yet?"

"Do you even have to ask?" said Speedy, wincing every time he takes a step. "My body's so heavy. No way I can walk right, much less run. Can't even lift a feather on my wings."

"That's perfectly natural. We'll do this again the day after tomorrow or the day after that to let your muscles rest." I wiped the sweat dripping on my face. "Man, this was refreshing."

"Speak for yourself," Speedy retorted. "How come Pinkie never gets fat? She eats nothing but sugar and carbs probably her whole life."

"Dude, it's Pinkie Pie. No explanation needed."

I noticed suddenly a crowd forming not too far from us. It got a whole lot bigger when a few others came running by us, and they were all giddy about something or someone.

"Who the heck is that?" Speedy wondered. He hovered up for a bit to get a quick look. "She looks familiar. Must be one of Rarity's people?"

"What do you mean by Rarity's people?" I said.

"You know, ponies who speak and breathes nothing but fashion, like the Hoity Toity dude back then."

"Ah, so she's probably here to check out Rarity's stuff."

It went a bit silent after that.

"Speaking of Rarity, how's it going along with her?" Speedy suddenly brought up.

"What are you talking about?" I said.

"Come on, are you at least talking to her? How are you supposed to tell her how you feel if you aren't gonna interact?"

I sighed, "I dunno, dude. I feel like I'm not exactly her type, so I ain't doing nothing."

He scoffed. "And what do you think is her type?"

"You know, handsome, rich guys, like a prince or something. I'm not one of those things."

"You do have a point."

I'm slightly salty that he agreed so quickly.

"But you're fine just the way you are! It's not always about looks, as cliche as it sounds." Speedy told me. "I bet you're a hundred times a better guy for Rarity compared to some hotshot, narcissistic prince."

I was genuinely shocked that he was this supportive. "Wow, thanks, dude."

"And uh… You might want to turn around."

I was confused for a bit, and my heart started racing when I did.

"Silver Spur! Just the stallion I wanted to see!" Rarity herself was making her way towards me with a cheerful smile that already made my heart aflutter.

"Hey, Ra-Ra-Rarity…" I began stammering like an idiot. My chest feels like it could burst out.

"Oh, you two aren't busy, are you?" Rarity questioned.

"Nope! Free as birds!" Speedy answered, slinging his left hoof over my shoulders. "What's up, you grape-frosted marshmallow?"

What the heck was that nickname?

"Well, I'm in a bit of a…." She cleared her throat. "Pickle. Do you two know about Sapphire Shores?"

"Sapphire Shores? You mean the pop star?" Speedy answered.

"She's the one. Oh, it was amazing! She knows all about me and came here to Ponyville to order one of my dresses, and she loves it!" Rarity squealed out of excitement.

"That's cool! I'm happy for you, Rarity." I said.

"I'm still in awe." Rarity said. "Anyways, I do need your assistance for this, Silver Spur. A box full of gems is enough for just one outfit, but Sapphire Shores wanted five. So, I need your help to carry and dig up at least a cart of gems just outside Ponyville."

Is this for real? Rarity's asking me, and only me? And we'll be all alone?! This is already one of the best days of my life!

"Of course, I'll help you out!" I said with a wide smile. "Let me just get cleaned up and borrow some tools from Applejack."

"Oh, wonderful!" she said. "Let's meet up at the Boutique, yes?"

"Okay!"

After she had left, I felt myself fluttering off the ground, enlightened at what had occurred. It was almost like I had wings all of a sudden!

"Yo, Silver! Chill!"

Thanks to Speedy's voice, I got out of my trance, and I found myself falling hard to the ground.

"Man, you're so crazy about Rarity that you actually started floating," Speedy said.

I shook my head and jumped up quickly. "I need to fix myself up fast. I don't wanna have her waiting."

"Sheesh, it's not like she asked you out on a date," Speedy said.

"I know that," I stammered. "But still, this is the first time she's ever asked me for something! I'll do whatever I can to make myself look good to her."

"Yeah, but don't think that something romantic is gonna happen while you're digging up rocks in that minefield."

"Ew, gross!"

"What do you mean gross? I meant that something terrible is gonna happen, and you're gonna save her like a damsel in distress. What did you think I meant?"

I turned away with a blush. "… Nothing."

He yawned. "Well, I guess that does it with the workout. I'm gonna go hit the hay now. You comin' back with me in the library?"

"Nah, I'll stop by at Applejack's and clean up there."

"Okay, then. Later dudes."

As Speedy flew away, my face couldn't contain the smile forming any longer. I then ran with the biggest grin that I've ever had since coming into this world.


I got all the stuff I needed. A pickaxe, a shovel, and some hammers and chisels that were just lying around on the farm. I dunno how I got it all to fit in my bag, but it doesn't matter right now!

I finally arrived at the Boutique. I knocked on the door and welcomed myself in.

"I'm here, Rarity! I got all the stuff we need!" I announced happily.

"Oh, just on time, Silver!" she said, wearing her saddlebag.

Now that I've noticed, what are Spike and Rob doing here?

"Spike had insisted on joining the gem hunt! Oh, as well as Star Blast."

My now genuine smile rapidly turned into a forced grin. "Well, ain't that nice?"

"My gem supply's running on empty, and it's a coincidence that Rarity's going out there in the rock fields, so I might as well join!" Spike said. I'm pretty sure that's not the only reason why he's joining.

I turned to Blast, "Why are you joining in, dude?"

"Well, I've always wanted to learn the spell that Rarity uses that can locate gemstones and crystals. It might come in useful someday," Blast said. "This is probably the only time I'll have free time to learn, so I'm coming along too."

"How'd you know that she's gem hunting?" I asked, and I think I already know why.

"Speedy told us!" Spike said. Yup, I knew it.

"Let's come along now! Those gems aren't going to mine themselves!" Rarity announced as she exited the Boutique, and we followed along.


I unconsciously let out a disappointed sigh as I trotted. We've been gem hunting for almost an hour now. I was surprised at how quickly Rarity could detect the gems and how easy it was to dig around here where it's literally almost all rock and no soil. So, the cart that I was pulling was nearly half-full, and it's still wasn't enough for the dresses, apparently.

"Are you okay, Hassan? You look down ever since we left Ponyville."

"Huh?" I waved it off as I chuckled awkwardly. "It's nothing, dude."

"Come on. Tell me."

Blast gave me a firm look, and I yielded. "Man, I was so looking forward to this. I thought I'd finally have some alone time with Rarity, and this was my chance to… I don't know. Tell her what I feel about her."

"Really? Wow." Blast said. "If I had known, I would've backed out. Why didn't you tell me earlier? I could've come up with an excuse."

"Nah, bro. It's okay. Besides, Spike also needs his supply of crystals." I said. Speaking of, Spike was way ahead of us with Rarity, who was scanning the path while walking.

"To tell you the truth, Spike only joined because of Rarity. His stock is still plenty."

I snorted. "Figures."

"Look who's talking?" He chuckled. "You're only here cause of the same reason."

I was turning red out of embarrassment. "Shut up, man!"

"Oh my gosh! Sapphire Shores! The Pony of Pop!" We heard Spike begin excitedly at the front, pulling his own little wagon. "She is awesome! I mean, she's gorgeous and talented and-"

He stopped when Rarity looked back at him with an irritated look.

"And not even half the pony you are. I mean, you're ten times more gorgeous and talented."

"Kid's got a point," I muttered to Blast. He nodded amusingly.

"Spike, a lady is never jealous." Rarity declared.

"Of course not, but were you totally flipping out or what?!"

"Ladies do not flip out, Spike. However, I was quite in awe." Rarity said with a smile. Her horn glowed, and she continued scanning, pacing around the area we were in. "I need more jewels than ever before to decorate her costumes."

Rarity skidded to a stop in a spot right by us. She moved her head around slowly, until an area turned transparent, revealing a bunch more jewels and crystals.

"Ah-ha!" Rarity cheered.

"Did you find some?" Spike asked.

"Yes, Spike! Right there."

"I'm on it, Rarity," I said. I was reaching into my bag to get the shovel, but Spike was already ahead when he clawed his way under.

After he was done, a sudden flash of brilliant colors emerged from the spot he dug in. I took a closer look, and the jewels were probably the biggest and brightest we've had today.

The jewels were so beautiful that Spike started to drool and dived right into the hole. But, before he could gulp a bunch of crystals, Rarity called him out.

"Spike, I promised I'd help you find gems to snack on, but we need to collect more first, or I'll never be able to make these outfits for Sapphire." Rarity explained.

Spike had a pout when he carried the gems to the cart.

"I will miss you, my sweets," Spike said dramatically before dropping it in.

I'm kind of curious now. "Hey, Spike. What do crystals, and gems, and jewels taste like?"

"Oh, it depends!" Spike said, enthused. "The kinds that take almost a thousand years to form are the best, similar to how the sweetest apple tastes! The kinds that we're mostly digging right now are just a few years old, so they taste a bit blander but still good."

"So it's basically like fruit." Blast said. "I wonder if only you dragons can taste it…."

Our convo got cut short when Rarity called our attention. "Come along, gentlecolts! We have many jewels to find."

"Yes, ma'am!" The three of us said in unison. Spike quickly took off with his wagon and caught up with Rarity at the front.

"Not gonna lie, this thing's getting heavy," I said, putting more effort to pull the cart. "I wonder if Rarity's done this before? Carrying all of this by herself."

"Probably, but this is the first time she is getting a huge order, I assume. And I guess she can also levitate stuff since she's a Unicorn."

"True, true."

The gem hunt continues as Rarity keeps finding a ton more jewels. I was rendered useless at the moment since Spike did all the digging. There was also no use for the equipment I brought when all it takes is his claws and even his tail that can turn into a shovel. I guess that's dragons for you. At one point, he even became a drill.

Our wagon was overflowing with jewels now. Spike nearly loses control of his appetite as he drools over the stuff.

"You've been patient today, Spike. Don't lose control now." I joked.

"He has indeed been very patient, and for that, you'll get the finest reward." Rarity said. She pulled out a huge, blue gem from the stash. "This is from me to you."

Spike reached for the gem, and right when he was about to take a chomp, he and Rarity got a staring thing going on.

"Is something wrong, Spike?" Rarity asked, her eyes batting so dreamily.

Spike smiled, "No, it's perfect."

I pouted. Lucky dragon…

"Of course, how could I forget you, Silver."

I instantly perked up. "Oh, you don't have to give me anything, Rarity. Just helping you out is enough."

"I insist!" She stepped towards the cart and began rummaging around the crystals. "There must be something here just as grand…."

"Oh, I don't need gems. I don't even know what to do with one." I said.

That reminds me. This one time, Lemuel found a ruby on the borders of this wasteland and Ponyville I think around our first week in this world. He managed to find several and tried to sell those for quick cash, and it turns out, each of those is worth merely a dollar or a Bit in this world. We were bummed, but at least we had extra money for groceries that week.

"Well, there must be something I can do to repay you. I won't take no for an answer, Silver." Rarity said.

Nothing's coming on top of my head. I turned to Blast and gave him a look that tells him to help me out, and he only shrugged.

Wait… You know what? This is my chance to lowkey ask her out! I could go treat her to dinner at that fancy new restaurant I've heard about. I don't know if I have a budget for a full course meal, and definitely some gifts to give her, but I don't care!

This is it. It's now or never!

"Actually… I've been meaning to ask you. You don't mind if I-"

Rarity's horn glowed again, and she was distracted by it. It's as if her horn had a mind of its own and started to drag her.

"Maybe we should talk about it after this?" Rarity asked.

"Yeah, sure," I replied.

"Bring the cart then, Silver. There are more over here." She instructed.

As she went along, I swung my hoof in disappointment once she was out of sight, "So close!"

"You're really going to ask her out, huh?" Blast questioned.

I shushed him immediately since Spike was around, hugging the gem Rarity gave him.

"Sorry," Blast said. "But you still have the chance to tell her later, right? Don't worry about it."

I nodded at his reassurance. Yeah, the day ain't over yet. There are plenty of times I can ask her out. I just have to seize the opportunity!

"Yes… Gems… Gems!"

I quickly turned my head and searched the area around us. Where did that voice come from?

"Silver, what's wrong?" Spike asked.

I checked the fields one more time. There was no one around but us. "It's nothing, Spike. I thought I heard a voice just now."

"It's probably just an echo." Blast said. "Come on. We're getting left behind."

Blast and Spike went ahead. As I began to walk, I heard a bush near here rustle. I gave it a quizzical look before leaving, and I made sure to be observant from here on out.

"Spike? Silver? Where are you?" Rarity called.

I rushed towards them. "Sorry, Rarity. I got occupied just now."

"Well, no worries. But it is terrible to keep a lady waiting."

"… Sorry."

"Now, it should be right under this spot." Rarity pointed at a spot near a couple of trees. "Did you get the hang of the spell now, Star Blast?"

He tilted his head. "Somehow."

"Care to do the honors? I just know we're going to strike gold this time! So to speak." She said excitedly.

Blast went in front, and his horn glowed green. He scanned the spot thoroughly and slowly until finally, he hit the jackpot.

"It's over here!" He announced. "And it is way more than the previous digs."

"I'm on it, Star Blast!" Spike said as he wasted no time digging. "It's not just a jackpot, it's THE Jackpot!"

"Wonderful!" Rarity levitated all the jewels to the cart. "Well, I think this is all we can do for today."

"We certainly cleaned house here." I looked back at the holes we made. "I bet there's still more, though."

"These will certainly get me well on my way with Sapphire's outfits." She told us. "Why don't we start heading-"

She squeaked when her horn glowed once again, but it was even brighter. Even Star Blast's horn was glowing.

"What's this? Another jewel?" Rarity wondered.

"It just appeared out of nowhere." Blast said, trying to keep control of his head.

"You're right. How strange…" Rarity started going near one of the trees.

I looked at the tree, and something was shining. Rarity traced the path, and a small piece of gold was on the branches.

But… something's off…

The branches started to move, and there it revealed itself. It was a huge, dog-looking guy wearing a red vest, and the gold was attached to its collar. It was a trap!

"Rarity! Back away!" I shouted, and I found myself struggling to get the belt of the cart off of me.

"Get behind me!" Blast stepped in between the dog and Rarity.

"Good day, gentle… uh, fellow." Rarity trembled, shielding behind Blast. "I am Rarity, and these are my friends, Spike, Star Blast, and Silver Spur."

While Spike waved nervously to the dog, Blast and I had our game face on.

"And you are…?"

"A Diamond Dog!" the dog announced, marching menacingly towards us.

"Oh, really? Oh, well, that explains your fine taste in jewelry." Rarity gestured to the collar. "I mean, I know that diamonds are a girl's best friend… and now I know that they're a dog's best friend too. Ha ha ha…"

"You've been following us the whole time, aren't you?" I demanded. "You're after our gems!"

"The voice you heard earlier, Silver. It no doubt came from this Diamond Dog." Blast added.

"Oh, so you're hunting for gems as well?" Rarity asked the Diamond Dog.

"Yes. We hunt!" The Dog said in a gollum-ish voice.

"We?"

"We hunt for gems! But you Unicorns are better hunters! So now we hunt…"

Two holes started to form behind them.

"For you!"

Two more Diamond Dogs emerged, and they were huge!

"Guys, behind you!" I shouted, but it was too late.

Blast was about to shoot out magic from his horn to attack the ambushing dogs, but the one we encountered first used the moment to knock him out with a boulder, hitting him behind the head. That filled me with enough rage to rip out the belt holding me with this cart.

"Robert!" I charged at the bigger Diamond Dog, but it was surprisingly too agile for me. It swung its paw at me, and I was too startled that I couldn't dodge and I was knocked down. I shook my head. They're strong for dogs, I'll give them that.

"Rarity, just run away from here!" I told her as the Diamond Dog shoved my face to the ground.

"I can't leave you three fighting all by yourself!" Rarity replied.

I felt the weight of Diamond Dog on top of me go away, and it was Spike who tackled him, coming to the rescue.

"Run, Rarity! Run!" Spike added before he was stepped on, sinking to the ground.

I tried to get up despite being sluggish to get Blast, but he was gone. The Diamond Dog had brought him down to the underground.

I was getting dizzier until it all became a blur. I turned around, but my body got heavier, and I fell. All I could hear was Rarity screaming our names for help, and I blacked out.


"Silver… Silver!"

I was being stirred awake by something yellow. He looked familiar…

"Come on, man! Snap out of it!"

My face was getting slapped left and right. That woke me up. "Alright, stop it! I'm good!"

I groaned and tried to clear up my head. "Thank goodness, you're here, dude! Rarity and Blast-"

"We know. Spike told us everything."

I frowned as everything became clear. I looked behind Speedy and saw that the Harmony gang was here.

"Well, not actually everything. He was hyperventilating when he got back from Ponyville." Speedy added. I did see Spike breathing into a brown paper bag on Twilight's back.

"Yeah, not a lot to go on there, Spike." Applejack said.

Spike stopped using the brown bag. "Sorry. Rarity, Blast, Silver and I were looking for jewels when these creepy guys showed up!"

"Creepy guys?" Twilight questioned.

"They call themselves the Diamond Dogs," Spike continued. "They grabbed Rarity and Blast and disappeared down the hole in the ground!"

"Well, that sounds mighty easy!" AJ declared. "Just take us to that there hole, and we'll save 'em."

"I don't think it will. One of 'em managed to knock out Silver!" Spike added.

I snorted angrily. "I was caught off guard. They're just lucky…"

"Come on, everypony. Let's get started." Twilight said. She began leading the way to the clearing, but what we saw shocked us. Huge holes were scattered around!

"Holey Moley, that's a lot of hole-ys!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

"Hmm… A rocky wasteland, huge holes everywhere, and people abducting other people?" Speedy started. "Hey, dude, have you ever seen that horror movie called 'The Hills Have Eyes?'"

"The one with the mutated people?"

"That's the one!" Speedy announced. "Looks like we have the same situation here."

"Hopefully, without the other… R-rated stuff." I added. Shivers ran down my spine, remembering some stuff from the movie.

Each one of us started to look inside the holes. The hole I began to investigate went deep, and the bottom was pitch dark.

"Hello?" I called. I furrowed my eyebrows as I looked closer, then heard a low growling noise. Then, I saw eyes almost glowing in the dark, and it definitely wasn't Rarity's or Robert's.

I was about to jump into the hole to catch one of the Diamond Dogs when it was instantly filled with dirt. I could hear the others yelling, and the same thing was happening until almost every hole was overflowing with dirt.

"Quick! We gotta get down one before they're all filled up!" Twilight said.

I immediately rushed to the non-filled holes, but the Diamond Dogs were just too quick.

I spotted one hole that was seemed to be ignored by them, so I ran as fast as I could and jumped down on it. I thought I had finally made it in, but a stream of rock and earth gushed out, and I flew high into the air, crashing down on the now-filled hole.

"Darn it! The Diamond Dogs are starting to tick me off!" I shouted, smashing the ground out of frustration.

"Easy now, Silver." Applejack walked to me, all covered in mud. "Heavens to betsy, now I'm used to pickin' myself up and dustin' myself off, but Rarity won't even touch mud unless it's imported!"

She's right. It just dawned on me that Rarity's now underground! Looks like her physical well-being won't be the only thing we have to worry about!

"Oh, Rarity…" Twilight said worriedly.

"Oh, jeebus, imagine all the whining she's doing down there!" Speedy said.

"Wait! But what about Star Blast? Is he good with mud?!" Pinkie wondered.

"We don't have to worry about anything mud-related with him, but we gotta get them somehow," I replied.

"But they blocked up all the holes." Fluttershy pointed out.

"Don't mean we can't dig 'em out! Come on!" Applejack said as she climbed on top of one of the piles of dirt and started to dig.

I followed along as I began to do work on one myself with Speedy beside me. When I was halfway through, I felt my tail being pulled hard. I quickly turned back, and Speedy was also looking at me with a confused face.

"Did you just pull my tail?" I asked him.

"No, I didn't. Did YOU pull my tail?" he retorted, causing me to quirk an eyebrow.

That's when we were suddenly punched in the jaw by paws coming from the dirt below us, and we tumbled down our piles.

I rubbed my chin, and boy was I pissed.

"You punch me twice, and I'll stomp you to the ground tenfold!" I declared as I angrily shoveled my way at the half-dugged pile.

"There they are, dude!" Speedy, who just got back up, pointed behind me. The Diamond Dogs were popping in and out the holes and messing with the girls. "Let's rip 'em a new one!"

Me and Speedy charged at the dogs toying with Rainbow and Fluttershy when all of a sudden, we were tripped. We landed down hard on the ground, and our momentum made us roll around for a few seconds until a dirt pile made us stop.

I could see stars circling my head, but I recovered very quickly. Everyone was lying on the ground, tired. Fluttershy was the first one who stood up.

"Oh, those scary monsters popping up everywhere," Fluttershy started. "Rarity and Star Blast must be terrified!"

"I'm sure Star Blast there can calm Rarity down," Twilight said, then she made a face of worry. "But who knows what horrid things those Diamond Dogs are making them do! What are we gonna do?"

"Well, those dogs like gems, right?" Speedy started. "What if we lure 'em in with one?"

"Speedy, that's a great idea!" Twilight said. "But how? They probably already have a whole lot stashed up."

"Then we need a gem so beautiful they wouldn't hesitate to take it."

That reminded me of a particular gem, and Spike was thinking the same thing.

"I've got it!" Spike exclaimed, pulling out the blue gem Rarity gave him. "I'll save you, my sweet!"

The girls and Speedy looked at one another and went, "Huh?"


We proceeded with the plan as we dug up one of the holes. Spike then tied up the gem in a fishing rod that Rainbow Dash quickly picked up from Ponyville, and the waiting began.

We were all just sitting around the hole as Spike waited with a determined face on the edge. Twilight walked up to him.

"Spike, it is very noble of you-" she said but was shushed by Spike. She began whispering. "To sacrifice the gem Rarity gave you."

Spike then made a smitten face. "Oh, lady Rarity, my damsel in distress. I'll save you!" I knew he was daydreaming about saving her when he began making a smooching face to Applejack, which they all just laughed about.

I pouted once again.

"Well, someone's jelly!"

I scoffed. "I am not."

"Yes, you are. You're mad cause Spike's doing all the work saving Rarity." Speedy said.

"And who do you think is the reason why that's happening in the first place? Hmm?"

He raised a hoof, and then he let go of whatever excuse he was thinking. "My bad. How the heck would I know Spike and Robert's gonna tag along?"

I sighed. "It's okay. Who knows what could've happened if only Rarity and I were the only ones here. I'm glad Spike was around to tell everyone."

Speaking of which, there was a commotion going on around him, and I noticed that the fishing rod was tugging. The Diamond Dogs took the bait!

"I got a bite! I got a bite!" He yelled as he was being pulled down the hole.

"Hold on there, little fella!" Applejack rushed to his aid, but even she was getting overpowered. And then Twilight came to her aid, then Rainbow, then Fluttershy, and when it was already too late, Pinkie basically just bit Fluttershy's tail to get dragged down with them. It all happened too quickly that the only thing we could do was watch.

Speedy and I examined the hole, and it was a long way down.

"You guys okay?!" I said, but the echo of my voice was the only response I got.

"Well, we tried," Speedy said as he started to fly away.

"Where do you think you're going?!"

He began chortling. "I'm kidding, dude! I'm kidding!"

I groaned at him. "We gotta catch up to them!"

"Yeah, but who knows how long they keep getting dragged down to their base." He hovered over the hole. "Well, it's a good thing this hole goes down into a slope and not a straight drop. We could slide down there so we can go faster."

"Slide? Where the heck are we gonna find a sled or a board? Our butts are gonna get peeled off if we don't use any." I reasoned.

Speedy started to wander around, and his eye caught a dead tree. He went to it and started to rip apart the bark of it.

"Resourcefulness, my dude!" He grinned, holding two makeshift boards, and those did not look sturdy at all.

Dread quickly took over my system as I kept shaking my head while Speedy wore a mischievous grin, slowly approaching me.

"Oh, I am SO not using that to slide down!" I exclaimed.

"Too late!" He said as he dashed and pushed me down the hole.

I gripped my board hard and held on for dear life as we slid down the hole with breakneck speed. While I was screaming my lungs out, trying to stir my way through some boulders, Speedy was surfboarding like a pro, and he was even doing some kickflips.

"I'm going to die!" I screamed through gritted teeth.

"I never felt so alive!" Speedy whooped with his arms outstretched.

The slope suddenly started pointed upwards, and I could see the end of the tunnel. I went pale when I couldn't see another path.

"Please don't tell me there's a huge cliff out there!" I prayed.

"We're about to find out!"

We both shot out of the tunnel, and we went gliding in the air that I felt lasted an eternity. I didn't want to find out if there was a cliff, so I closed my eyes shut during the whole thing while Speedy kept on hollering and cheering.

I felt that we landed, thank goodness, and the board slowly stopped now that the ground was level.

I peeked at one eye and saw that we were now in a smaller cave. But! First thing's first.

"I'm alive!" I laughed out of pure joy, touching every part of my body. "I can't believe I'm alive!"

"Yup! And we barely made it!" Speedy told me, holding his board now snapped in half.

I took a look at mine, and it was ground to bits.

"We are never doing that again…" I whimpered.

"Yeah, like we're ever gonna come back here."

I stood up and went into serious mode. Now, to trace down the gang's path.

Speedy and I started walking forward as we looked around, and there was a huge problem.

We ended up in a dome inside, and tunnels were everywhere, much like the outside. They could have been pulled from any of them!

"Of course, this wouldn't be simple," I muttered.

"Can't we just call them?" Speedy suggested.

"No, we might alert the Diamond Dogs," I said. "And the chances of us getting outnumbered is a guarantee since we're in their turf. We're done for if that happens. They probably already know that we're inside."

"That makes sense," He flew up and started to peek at the holes at the upper part of the cave. "Looks like the only thing we can do now is find Rarity and Robert ourselves and hope that we bump into one another while avoiding those dogs."

I nodded in agreement. The girls might have a similar idea, so if we split up, the chances of finding Rarity and Rob are higher.

The hard part now is to choose a hole that might lead us to any of them. Since it was the biggest one, I considered the one on my right. After that, though, I second-guessed and went towards the one in the middle of the dome. I had a bad feeling about the big one. It might lead to their quarters.

Speedy and I looked down on the tunnel and then turned to one another.

I sighed. "Well, here goes nothing…" and I jumped down the hole.

I landed down with a grunt, and I had to squint my eyes as sparkles of light took over my sight. Once I adjusted, I found myself in a cave full of all kinds of crystals. I heard Speedy gasp, and he wrapped himself around me with huge round eyes.

"Dude… We. Are. So. Rich!"

He then went ballistic, buzzing around the area and stopped once he saw a huge diamond sticking out of a rock. He pulled it out and marveled at it, his mouth left open.

"We are eating good tonight, my friend!" He announced and proceeded to pluck out other precious crystals he saw.

I just rolled my eyes. "We already know that diamonds and jewels in this world don't mean squat! We only got like 30 bucks from the bucket of rubies you got last year. Rarity's literally using them as decoration for her dresses!"

"But what if we take all of 'em? Eeeeh?" He suggested, waving a crystal temptingly.

"Yeah, good luck with that."

While he was busy collecting, I started to explore this area. I went even further along once I saw lanterns scattered around and forming a path to one of the caves. Could we be close?

"All right, this is all I could carry," Speedy said as he finally caught up. "I got golds, I got silvers, I got… uhm… Aquamarine? I don't know if that's valuable, but whatever."

I quickly shushed him and started to tiptoe my way. I cringed when he did too, but with the clinking sounds of the treasures he's got. I gave him a sharp glare.

He chuckled. "Sorry."

I shook my head and followed the path, leading us to a more enormous cave with countless tunnels and rock-made stairs scattered around. At the middle was a rusty, old gate.

"That's definitely where they're being kept," I pointed.

"Yo, this could be their mining area," Speedy said, flying around. "Look at all these rocks just waiting to get cracked open."

"Would you focus on saving Rarity and Rob?" I scolded him as I began to inspect the gate. I gave it a little shake. "I think this can break at any moment."

Speedy landed next to me and lightly tapped it. "For sure. One kick, and it's scrap metal."

We started to hear a faint cry coming from beyond the gate. My ears were pricked up as I listened. That voice was unmistakably Rarity's!

"I can hear Rarity!" Speedy declared. "Come on, dude! Break this gate!"

I nodded. "All right. Stand back!"

I turned around and bucked the gate hard, but somehow it was still intact. So I bucked it one more time, two more times, three more times, and it still wouldn't break!

I stopped once I heard sounds of footsteps coming from behind us.

"Guess we're compromised!" Speedy said as he broke a pointy rock dangling on top of the cave and held it like a club. "Keep working on that gate! I got you covered."

"The gate's surprisingly sturdy. It's gonna take a while," I growled and turned around, ready to face the enemies coming. "Let's take care of these dogs first."

Speedy began to twirl the rock club around while I braced myself as the enemies started to get closer, and closer, and…

"Speedy? Silver?"

We both relaxed once we saw who they were.

"Oh, hey, girls!" Speedy threw away the spike as he waved. "We've been looking for ya!"

"How did you find this place?" I asked.

"Twilight used the spell that Rarity uses to find gems, and it led us all the way here," Spike said.

"Well, that's convenient," Speedy commented.

"Never mind that," Twilight told us. "We heard Rarity's cry. Do you know where she is?"

I nodded and gestured to the gate. "They're inside that cave."

"Well, what are we standing around here for? Let's go!" Rainbow cried.

But before we could, a bunch of armored guard dogs jumped out of the tunnels above and rode on our backs, tying our muzzles with ropes.

"More workhorses!" The one on my back declared.

I slowly looked back with a death glare straight into his eyes. "Finally. You're finally within my reach."

"Oh, doggies, if you can take these bulls by the horns, you better be ready for a ride!" AJ said, and she started to buck around like a bronco in a rodeo.

While the other followed her lead, I had other plans.

Instead, I bit on the rope and pulled the dog on my back and slammed him down on the ground. Before he could escape like the rest of his comrades, I pinned him down between my forehooves and snarled at him.

"What have you done to my friends?!" I demanded.

The dog now began to quiver below me, "I dunno! I've never even seen the ponies they caught yet!"

"Don't you dare lie to me!"

"It's true!" he replied, "But I do know that they're making them mine inside that cave!"

I growled as I looked at the gate, then I grabbed the Diamond Dog by the collar of his armor and gave him another death glare. "If I found even just one spot of dirt on my friends, I'll make you wish you never existed."

I finally let go and let him whimper away. I gave a satisfied nod to myself.

"Woah, Silver." I heard Twilight say. I turned to the guys, and for some reason, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were hiding behind Applejack and Rainbow Dash.

"Why are you guys still scared? The Diamond Dogs scampered off." I said.

"Oh, they're not afraid of them," Twilight said. "They're afraid of you."

"Huh? Why?"

"Well… We saw the look in your eyes when you're talking to that Diamond Dog…" Fluttershy told me shakily.

"And we heard what you said! You can erase them from existing!?" Pinkie Pie mentioned exaggeratedly.

I scoffed. "I won't do it literally! I just said that to scare 'em off and won't mess with us anymore." I then made a pause for a moment before continuing. "But if they do, though, they'll have another thing coming."

We heard a loud ruckus beyond the gate, like a million glass was shattering.

"We're coming for you, milady!" Spike said as he climbed on my back with the spikey rock Speedy was holding earlier, now being held like a lance.

"And just what do you think you're doing, Spike?" Twilight said in a scolding tone.

"Come on, Twilight. Just give me this?" Spike pleaded.

"It's alright, Twilight," I said. "I was just about to bust that gate open, anyways. You ready, Spike?"

"You betcha!" He pointed the rock lance to the heavens. "Hi-ho, Silver!"

I neighed proudly and charged straight to the gate, and I made sure to barge in it a lot harder this time around. The gate finally broke down, and I didn't stop running until I saw the three Diamond Dogs that ambushed us earlier.

"Lady Rarity, we're here to save you!" Spike announced boldly.

But instead of threats and blackmailing, the Diamond Dogs were begging for their lives as they ran towards us.

"Save us! Please save us!"

"Make it stop! Please!"

I was severely puzzled at the current situation.

"Excuse me?" Twilight said in confusion.

"Why in the hay are you the ones wanna be saved?" I demanded.

"So picky!" the short one told us.

"And critical!" The big guy added.

"She won't stop talking!"

"And crying!"

"We give her back! And the male pony! Yes!" Now it was the first dog we encountered who told us.

And coming right behind them were Rarity and Blast, dragging along multiple carts loaded with even more gems. They seem just fine! They weren't dirty or even wounded or anything. Well, except for Rob, who's definitely still feeling that hit he took earlier. And was he carrying an icepack?

"Rarity! You're safe!" Spike said as he jumped off me and gave Rarity a hug.

"Why, yes!" Rarity said with a smile.

I quickly went over to Blast to check him out. "You okay, bro? They didn't do anything bad to you, did they?"

"No, and it's all thanks to Rarity over here." He responded.

"Wait, really?" I said. "I thought it would be the other way around."

"Well, she's no damsel in distress in this situation, that's for sure. All I did was sit and rest up while she handled the Diamond Dogs."

"Woah, how?"

"Well…" Blast rubbed his left temple soothingly. "Let's just say her methods are a bit… whiny."

While I was too busy scratching my head, wondering what he meant, Twilight and Fluttershy literally shoved me out of the way to face him.

"Oh, Star Blast. Thank Celestia, you're all right!" Twilight said.

"They hurt you, didn't they? Those mean doggies." Fluttershy said worriedly, examining his head.

"Yeah, I'm fine, you guys." He winced. "Just a little headache is all."

"Your timing couldn't be more perfect, everypony." Rarity announced. "You're just in time to assist us."

"Assist you with what?" AJ said, and Rarity pointed to the carts.

Spike and Speedy looked at the jewels of all shapes and sizes in amazement.

"I think I just cried a little," Speedy commented. There was, in fact, a tear rolling down his right cheek.

"Same," Spike said, his eyes sparkling. "You're really letting them leave with all these jewels?"

"Yes! Take them, and especially her with you!" The middle-sized D-dog said, cowering with his fellow dogs in one corner of the cave.

"Please!" the small one added.

I was intrigued. Blast mentioned that it was all thanks to Rarity that they didn't do anything to them.

What the heck did she do?


The sweet sunshine brightened our eyes as we finally exited the cave, bringing along the jewels that Rarity and Blast got.

On the way, Rarity had told us everything that had happened, and boy, I finally understood what Blast meant with whiny. I kind of felt bad for the dogs now. Though, I'm so proud of Rarity holding down the fort for him when he and Twilight are usually the ones to think of ways in this type of situation.

I had to also give myself a bonk to the head for thinking that Rarity's the type to always be saved. And now that she proved me wrong and finessed the hay out of those dogs? I think I fell for her even more.

"I can't believe you found all these gems!" Pinkie said excitedly.

Rainbow Dash chuckled. "I can't believe you tricked all those dogs."

"Just because I'm a lady doesn't mean I can't handle myself in a sticky situation," Rarity retorted proudly. "When Star Blast is out for the count, I knew I had to do something. I had the Diamond Dogs wrapped around my hoof the entire time."

"Heh, I'd give up too if you kept whining. Man, bad memories of my sister with that one. I don't even wanna find out who's worse between the two of ya'." Speedy said.

"Please, don't remind me. My head's already aching bad as it is." Blast mentioned. I do remember that he used to babysit Lemuel's sister way before I met them.

"I'm truly sorry, Blast, but it had to be done." Rarity reasoned.

"I can't wait to write to Princess Celestia to tell her what you taught me today," Twilight told Rarity.

"Me? What did I teach you?" Rarity asked.

"Just because somepony is ladylike doesn't make her weak. In fact, by using her wits, a seemingly defenseless pony can be the one who outsmarts and outshines them all." Twilight said happily.

"Outshines is right," Spike said, snacking on the jewels on Rarity's cart. "Now we have more than enough gems to put on Sapphire's costumes."

"Not if you eat them all, Spike." Rarity said, taking away the gem Spike was eating before he could bite it and making the girls laugh.

"Hey, Rares. You're really giving us this whole cart of gems?" Speedy asked, perched on top of the said cart, which I was pulling, by the way.

"Of course. It's the least I could do after all the trouble I gave you." She answered.

Speedy then cheered, whooing. "Element of Generosity, indeed! Hey, we should totally buy that new gaming console! Maybe I'll even buy a few arcade games and hook it up in our room!"

"If you're going to use the money you'll get from those gems for your games, then I might as well just bury it somewhere out here." Blast scolded.

Speedy laughed at his response but stopped once he realized Blast wasn't joking.

"You're not really gonna hide it from me, will you?"

"We shall see, Lem."

While they were having their own little chit-chats, I was a bit let down. When Rarity said she gave us the gems for all this mess, my chances of asking her out went out of the bag.

But in the end, I let that thought go. I'm just glad that we all went back safely to Ponyville.


(2 days later)

"Come on, Lemmy! Just one more set of apple tree bucking, and we're done with today's session!"

"I freaking hate you for making me do this!"

Here we are in Sweet Apple Acres, continuing where we left off with his workout routine. We were doing just as I said; I made him buck an apple tree. But this is no ordinary apple tree he was bucking. The tree he's busy with right now is called the Spartan, and it definitely lives up to its namesake, which makes it a perfect tree to practice on.

"Come on! Just 10 more reps!" I continued.

Speedy's apple-bucking has slowed down as the end nears, and he was an exhaling, sweaty mess under the shade of the apple tree. Just what I like!

"I can't do it anymore, man." He said in a weak, whiny voice. "Half of my body feels heavy."

"Don't think about it! Just focus on finishing your reps!" I encouraged.

And so he did, and he collapsed on the grass.

"Good job, dude. You just earned yourself a rest day." I said, completely satisfied with his performance. He surprised me, too. We ran 5 laps around the farm, 3 sets and 20 reps of the usual push-ups and sit-ups, and 2 sets and 30 reps of intense apple bucking.

We've been doing this whole thing for 3 days now, and his physique is actually improving. I should definitely make him a diet plan now. Been trying to suggest that to him for years so he could at least have some meat on his skinny bones. I just have to figure out what should be in the plan. Should I ask that swole white Pegasus I've been seeing around the town?

Speedy was gasping for breath as he lay sprawled out on the ground. "I think I'm seeing spots, man."

"Don't be so dramatic," I said as I fetched a water bottle from my basket and tossed it to him. "If you want to stop doing this, then you better man up and get back into better shape."

"Why did my body stay like this? Curse you, cartoon logic!" He exclaimed before sitting up and drinking from the bottle. "Oh, man. My legs are burning."

"That means it's working. Never skip leg day, am I right?"

"That is such an outdated meme."

After that, we kind of just sat and chatted about random things, like the longer we stay here in this world, the more likely we can't use adult language and swear words? (the language of our world, specifically) We did test that out, and we can't mutter the f-word, the s-word, and even the safe for work versions of those words.

Our swear word experiments stopped when I heard my name being called from a distance.

"Hello! Are you there, Silver Spur?"

"Rarity?" I stood up quickly and walked to her. "Hey! What brings you here? Oh, and how's the dressmaking going? Good?"

"Oh, it was a bit of labor, but it worked out, thank Celestia. I just shipped it out this morning."

"That's great! Must've been a busy few days for you, huh?"

"Indeed." Rarity sighed sadly for some reason. "But I'm here to apologize to you, Silver."

"Huh? For what?"

"I completely forgot about your reward. With the whole Diamond Dog shenanigans and I got so busy with Sapphire's costumes that it slipped off my mind."

"Yeah, you don't need to apologize, Rarity. I told you, it's okay that you don't need to give me something. I just wanna help out." I said, but deep down, I was giddy. Never letting that show, though. She actually remembered!

"As I said, I'll take no for an answer," Rarity insisted. She then pulled a small chest out of her saddlebag. "Here's something I crafted for you as an apology."

She opened the chest, and there she revealed something I would never, ever forget.

It was an obsidian, diamond-shaped gem with a small, dazzling, crystal clear, well, crystal in the middle. But the thing that makes this special was that the clear crystal was carved and engraved to the black gem in the shape of my Spur cutie mark.

I was breathless. "This is just… wow!"

"I'm so glad you liked it!" Rarity continued. "Now, as for your reward-"

"Wait. This isn't the reward?"

"Why, of course not! I have something even better." Rarity said. "Fluttershy and I have an appointment at the spa tomorrow, a whole day of pampering and relaxation. So, I would like to invite you and Star Blast with us if you want to? After all you've been through against those dirty dogs."

I obviously accepted the invitation quickly. "Ye-Yeah, I'll join! I'll let Blast know."

"Wonderful! Free up your schedules tomorrow, yes?" she said before giving me the chest that contained the gem she had crafted. "I'll be on my way then."

"Sure. See you tomorrow."

I waved goodbye as she turned back and made her leave. I opened the chest, looked at the gem she made for me and held it close. I don't even care about that dinner date that I planned anymore.

"Hey, Lem. How about we go to that milkshake place and order that drink you wanted?"

"You serious?" He questioned, finally standing up. "That drink is sugar overload and addicting. You should've seen Pinkie when she took a sip."

I shrugged. "Meh, we both deserve a treat today."


Author's Note!

Yo~ an update that didn't take a year? I must be feeling good!

Another Hassan/Silver Spur chapter. The dude's been getting the longest word count for a chapter two times now since Chapter 5. Blast's POV with Rarity annoying the hell out of the D-dogs was supposed to be in, but I decided not to.

All thanks to the MLP New Gen stuff for sparking the fire in me!

Fav/Follow the story if you wanna stick around, and do leave a review if you have any thoughts.

Guess I'll see you guys in the next chapter! Have a good one! - Super Bright Brat


DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING BUT MY OCs