PSYCHOPATH - O.O I'm glad my story was such a big help to you
PyraohXBlaze - Oh, I'll be keeping things going for a long time to come. And do you mean action... or 'action'...? Lol either way the answer's the same ;)
PBJFanFiction - Lol I know how it is to get caught up in a good game... I've been pretty wrapped up in Kerbal Space Program myself... (62) Oh I might in a later chapter (63) Lol yup. But will that be the last we see of him...? She may be a klutz, but she certainly knows what she wants ;)
Ponified Bacon B - It's hard to believe I've already gotten so many reviews...
birdguyxx - To be honest, I don't think I've ever heard any of their music before...
stormsurge - Why thank you :D It would honestly be pretty hard to explain here, but maybe, if you're good, Blake will explain it for us in an upcoming chapter ;)
bobfromsiam99 - Lol. You're not the only one... toodles
DragonLovingBrony - Lol. What can I say? Lulu's a prankster at heart... which is why it's odd that she doesn't get along with Pinkie
Mikalzilla - It's certainly a possibility ;)
Ponified Bacon Boss- (ch1) Lol. Yeah, I always found that kind of annoying... (ch63) Hmm... must be gas...
xel101 Lol I see what you did there :P
killer43penguin - And there are many more to come :D
Kyguy - Lol not a cliffhanger dammit!
HeadBangingBrony - Can't say I've ever been a fan of those big, gimmick-y proposals...
HYBRID BATTLESHIP INFINITY210 - Lol you hope :P
DragonLord RyuKizoku - Well I could have... but where's the fun in that?
Mikalzilla - Hmm... how indeed...
thecreator339 - Thank you :D
A/N - Howdy everypony! I can't believe I'm at over 600 reviews already! You guys are all awesome! I really wanted to celebrate with a double-update (and give you all the one I promised before I left for my trip), but fate, it would seem has other plans; my keyboard seems to be going out on me, making writing rather difficult, and at this point, I'm only into the middle of ch66. Unfortunately, since most of my major bills come in around the first, I won't be able to afford a replacement until next Friday... Until then though, I plan to do my best to keep things going so I don't have to miss yet another update, this time due to literally not having anything to post. As always, don't forget to follow/favorite, review, and most importantly; enjoy!
"I know you don't want me to get hurt Lulu… and I know you could probably handle yourself a hundred times better than I can, but this is something that I can't be bringing along a whole bunch of ponies on. In fact, Starswirl suggested I only take Twilight with me." I knew that wasn't actually what he said, but I really didn't want to have to pull the 'I'm your knight' card. "Besides, do you really want to be crawling around in the mud and sleeping on the cold, hard ground?"
I felt her shiver beneath my hand. "You are right, I do not wish for those things, but I also do not want you to endure them alone. Please, if you will not allow me to accompany you, at least allow Applejack to go with you…" There was a short pause. "… If that is what you wish, of course."
The country mare chuckled from my other side. "Heh heh… shoot Luna, Ah thought y'all'd never ask!"
I sighed in defeat, knowing I couldn't win against the two mares. "Ok ok, fine… AJ can come, but that's all; the more ponies that are with us, the more supplies we'll have to bring and the harder it will be to keep a low profile."
A sudden hoof to my shoulder nearly sent me tumbling into Luna. "Don't y'all worry none 'bout that Sugarcube! Twilight n' Ah c'n help ya carry some o' that stuff, so it'll be easier on all o' us."
"Thanks girls. Now, that business is still days away, for now… who wants ice cream?!" The instant cheering of Scoots and Dinky would had to have been enough to bring a smile to everyone's face.
After a quick stop to Sugarcube Corner, where Luna opted to stay outside in an ultimately fruitless attempt to avoid Pinkie Pie, we all headed home.
The rest of the morning was relatively quiet, with Applejack taking Scootaloo and Dinky to school before I joined her at Sweet Apple Acres to help her with chores. When we were done there, she headed off to pick them up again while I went to Hammer Hoof's shop to see if she'd let me do some work.
"I dunno Blake… I mean, you're good and all, but do you really think you can handle a forge with just that weird sight spell thingy of yours?"
I gave her a small shrug. "I don't see why not; I seem to be getting used to it, and who knows, it might let me see something I might miss otherwise."
Hammer Hoof was quiet for some time as she tapped a hoof on her desk in thought. "Alright, here's the deal; I'll let you work for one hour today, if I think you can handle it, I'll pay you for a full day and let you come back tomorrow. If I don't think you can handle it, I won't let you do any metalworking until I'm convinced you can see again; is that clear?"
I gave her a mock salute. "Yes, ma'am!"
She nodded in return. "Good. Now, get to it mister!" She finished with a playful bump towards the shop floor.
Something peculiar happened once I started working; I noticed that the metals I was working with started to look strange; certain pieces had flecks or lines in them, like the impurities showed up differently to me, and some less-than-subtle experimentation involving a hammer led me to discover that I was in fact detecting the impurities and flaws in the metals that would have been invisible to even the most careful observer.
"Why did you break that shaft, Blake? That was for a mining company outside of Manehatten."
I picked up the two halves in my magic and held them up to her. "The metal had a cluster of slag stuck in the middle, and that made it brittle. If they had tried to use this, it would've snapped right in two on them."
She took the pieces and inspected them for a long moment. "Hmm… Yeah, I see it now… but, how did you see it, it was in the middle of the bar."
"To be honest, I'm not entirely sure; it just sort of showed up. The slag looked different to me to me than the rest of the metal was, but I didn't know what it was until I broke the thing and saw for myself."
She glanced between me and the bar several times. "That vision thing of yours is weird, but you won't hear me complaining; if it can save us from shipping out defective product like this, I say use it as often as you want. Oh, and your hour's up, feel free to stop in tomorrow if you want to work some more."
Hammer Hoof and I said our goodbyes, and I headed back home, eager to see Applejack, Luna, Derpy and the fillies. When I got there, I was only slightly surprised to find a certain purple unicorn sitting on a couch, talking with all three of my marefriends. "… There's no 'buts' about it, if Blake needs my help then he's got… oh, here he is now!"
I patted her on the shoulder as I walked by and sat down next to Derpy. "Heya Twi, what's up?"
She shook her head with a small smile right before I dismissed my aurasight yet again. "Oh, nothing much, just thought I'd stop by for a visit, you know how it is…" Something seemed off about her voice, and I could guess at what she wanted. "I have to say though, I wasn't expecting to hear about you needing my help for a trip into the Everfree to find some weird plant that can give you your sight back."
"Heh… 'fraid that'd be mah fault Sweetheart… Ah didn't know y'all hadn't talked to 'er 'bout it yet…"'Sweetheart' huh? That's a new one…
I waved a hand in the air dismissively. "That's ok AJ, I never exactly said I wanted to be the one to talk to her about it anyway. So Twi, what do you say, willing to lend a helping hoof?"
"Of course! I just need to know when you plan to leave and how long we'll be gone so I can schedule around it."
Derpy, AJ and I let out a chorus of groans. "Sugarcube, Ah think this's a bit more important than yer schedule…"
"Applejack's right; Blake needs us right now, and you should be willing to just drop everything and help him!"
I gave Derpy a light squeeze between the shoulders. "Now now girls, it's not fair for us to assume Twilight can just 'drop everything' to help me out, especially on such short notice." Derpy pressed a little harder against me, and I could tell from the silence that I had gotten my point across. "Now, to answer the 'when' and 'how long'; I'm thinking the day after tomorrow will give everyone enough time to prepare and for me to finish recovering, and I'm not sure exactly how long we'll be gone. It's about one hundred kilometers into the forest, and I would guess that we would only be able to cover about twenty a day, and that's being optimistic."
Luna decided to join the conversation at this point. "Why so little? Should you not be able to cover at least twice that distance?"
"If we were on a smooth, paved road, maybe; but we'll be trudging through underbrush and who knows what else, not to mention stopping for frequent breaks to rest and make sure we aren't lost."
I felt Derpy lean away from me slightly. "Why not just fly there? I mean, you do have that really cool armor, don't you?"
Twilight beat me to the punch on the answer. "It's not a good idea to fly over the Everfree; manticores aren't the only flying creature that live there, nor are they the most dangerous. We'll want to stay hidden as best as possible to avoid confrontation, and you can't exactly be discreet while flying; besides, Applejack and I can't fly, and Blake can't see far enough with his aurasight to be able to do it safely."
Derpy sank back into me, and I hugged her closer. "That's ok Derpy, it was a good idea…" I leaned in close and whispered into her ear. "And when I do get my sight back, we can go for a nice, long flight together, how does that sound?" I felt her perk up against me and snuggle in for a sort of side-hug.
We lulled into silence for a short while. "Well, I'd love to stay and visit with you longer Twi, but I just remembered that I promised Fluttershy I'd take her up on her offer to adopt one of her animal friends, I'm sure they're all waiting for me." I gave Derpy, Luna and AJ each a quick kiss, and hugged Twilight before heading out to the timid mare's cottage.
I knocked quietly, and after waiting far too long, the door finally swung open, only there wasn't anyone there. I looked down when I heard an impatient-sounding tapping noise coming from below to see her own pet bunny Angel standing there with his little arms crossed, looking equally cross with me. He pointed off to his right, and I guessed he meant that Fluttershy was around the back of the cottage, probably tending to her little friends even now. I shrugged and gave a mock salute to the demonic little fuzzball before heading back around to the back of the pleasant little home, and once again pondered on how odd it was that timid little Fluttershy could live so close to such a dangerous forest.
Just as I had suspected, I turned the corner to see quite a gathering of furry critters all lined up and looking eager. I had long since given up on how the animals of this world, particularly birds, could express emotions the same way anyone else could. I pondered how best to approach the buttery-yellow Pegasus without startling her, but an idea popped into my head when I saw some of the critters spot me.
I motioned to them, then to myself, then finally to Flutters, hoping that they would get the message that I wanted them to let her know I was here. I breathed a silent sigh of relief as a particularly plucky-looking otter bounded over and started chittering in her ear. There was no hope for me to make out what the little guy was saying, but it seemed he'd done his job as Fluttershy turned around with that soft, warm smile of hers. "Oh hello Blake. Some of my little friends were just starting to wonder if you were going to show up or not."
I walked over and gave the soft mare an equally soft hug. "Sorry Fluttershy, I got caught up with a few things."
"Oh, that's quite alright, I'm sure they understand. Now, why don't you go over and introduce yourself to all our little friends, and then you can decide which one you want to adopt?"
I gulped slightly, but did as she asked, walking over to the group and kneeling down in front of them and extending my hand. The same otter that had told Fluttershy I was here padded slowly over and sniffed my hand. He sat there for a moment and stared into my sightless eyes as I looked back at his with my focused aurasight. He surprised both me and Fluttershy, who let out a startled yelp, when he lunged forward and scurried up my shoulders to perch atop my head. I quickly found myself getting a much more up-close-and-personal look at the otter's eyes as he draped himself from front to back on my head and dangled his own down in front of me.
I started chuckling, and the otter let out a strange chittering sound that sounded a lot like laughter. "Hee hee… it seems he likes you." She turned to the rest of the gathering. "I'm sorry everyone, but it seems Blake's found himself a friend already…"
I sidled over to her and gently placed my hand on her shoulder. "Hey now; who says I can only have one furry friend? After all, I do have a rather spacious house and a growing family." Fluttershy's face lit up in that delicate smile of hers as the rest of the animals started chittering excitedly.
After nearly an hour of playing with and getting to know the rest of the critters at the gathering, I started to feel like the otter, who I had yet to name, really would be the only pet I would be taking away from this little gathering. The other animals had been fun and all, but none of them really seemed to click like he did.
I suddenly froze in place when I felt an oddly familiar presence near the edge of the Everfree, which should have been well out of the range of my aurasight. The animals seemed to notice it too, as they all suddenly quieted down and started looking off in a single direction. I felt Fluttershy press herself against the back of my legs as she hid behind me. I watched, waiting for whatever it was to come into range so I could find out what it was.
My wait wasn't a long one, as the familiar shape of a timberwolf materialized out of the static-filled background that marked the edge of my vision. Something was strange about it though; it walked with its head slightly lowered, almost seemingly in respect, and it seemed to be carrying something in its mouth.
The wooden wolf walked straight towards me, not even bothering to glance at the other animals that were gathered, staring silently at the would-be predator. When it finally got to me, it deposited what it had been carrying at my feet, regarded me for just a moment, then turned and bounded away, back into the Everfree.
I looked down to see what looked like a small pile of sticks, only it was glowing softly with a bluish aura that was so light as to be almost white, and flickered and shimmered from time to time. The pile suddenly shifted, and my suspicion was confirmed before I even managed to open my mouth. "EEE!" Fluttershy's squeal was uncharacteristically loud. "It's a cute little baby timberwolf!"
I looked back down to the pile just in time to see a tiny head form an even tinier yawn. Fluttershy bounded out from behind me suddenly and started fawning over the little pup. "Oh, she's adorable! She's such a pretty white color too…"
I knelt down and regarded the pup for myself. "How can that be, aren't timberwolves made out of wood?"
Flutters giggled. "Yes, but that doesn't mean they have to be brown… this little one looks to be colored after some kind of birch."
I reached my hand gently out to the little wolf and it started to sniff, timidly at first, then more eagerly, as if it liked the way I smelled. "I wonder why that other timberwolf brought it here, and who it was… was it the pups mother, a pack-mate… it's all so weird…"
Flutters cooed cutely at the little pup, who stopped sniffing my hand to regard her. After a couple of quick sniffs, the pup started delicately licking the tip of her nose with its surprisingly soft-looking leafy tongue in an adorable display. Fluttershy giggled and nuzzled the pup. "Well, whatever that was, she certainly seems friendly…"
The pup turned back to me, wagged its tail, and promptly flopped over on its back. I had to suppress my laughter at the sight so I didn't accidentally scare Fluttershy. "Looks like it; she certainly didn't waste any time demanding belly rubs…" I gave into the cuteness and scratched the pup's wooden tummy. "Though I have to ask; how did you know it was a 'she'?"
Fluttershy was silent for a moment, and I couldn't read her expression, though I guessed she was thinking. "You know… I… I don't really know… I've just always been able to tell an animal's gender, just by looking at it."
I gave her a dismissive wave of my hand. "Ah, it's not important; you can't ask too many questions like that in this crazy world and expect to stay sane… Heh heh… especially when Pinkie's involved."
"PIIIIINKIIIIIEEEEEEE!"
The sudden shout from Ponyville startled poor Fluttershy so badly she flopped over onto her back like a fainting goat, oddly enough making a 'baa' sound as she did. "Speaking of… sounds like that pink mischief-maker just pulled a prank on Twilight…" I looked up suddenly when I felt an impatient foot tapping lightly on my head. My new otter buddy was looking down at me with his arms crossed.
"It looks like he wants you to give him a name…" Fluttershy said as she continued to lay on the ground.
I helped her up as I thought. "Hmm… I guess I hadn't really thought that far ahead… how about… 'Norris'?" The little guy stuck his tongue out in disgust. "Chuck?" A shake of his head.
I sat down and thought about the name I would give him, with Fluttershy occasionally giving some input. Eventually, I thought of a name that I felt like I might have heard of before, and seemed to fit. "How about 'Pabu'?" He crossed his arms for a moment, then gave me a thumbs up. I chuckled and held my hand out for a high-five, which he eagerly gave. "Pabu it is then… now, I just have to think of a name for her…" The little timberwolf looked up at me curiously from its back, where it was still blissfully receiving belly rubs.
Flutters rubbed behind the little stick-wolf's ear, earning her a few happy grunts and whines. "How about 'Molly?"
I mulled over the name for a moment. "Nah… That'd be a good name for a regular dog, but this little one here is anything but a regular dog…" my Pegasus friend sat down next to me and continued to scratch behind her ear. "Hmm… anything like 'Fang' would be too aggressive-sounding, not to mention way too cliché… I know! She glows a little to my aurasight, so how about 'Aurora'?
Fluttershy cooed a little and the pup yipped happily. "That's a wonderful name; so pretty and serene. I'm sure she'll grow up to fit it nicely."
"Speaking of 'growing'… what am I supposed to feed her? I mean, Pabu will be easy enough; fish and some fruits and veggies should keep him happy, but aren't timberwolves carnivores?"
Fluttershy froze in place for a moment and stared at Aurora. "You're right… they usually eat *gulp* meat…"
"Hmm… well, I can always check with the griffon merchants and see if they have any food for carnivorous pets; I mean, heck, we had food like that back on Earth, who's to say it doesn't exist here too." I decided it would be best for the poor mare's mental health if I kept my thoughts about having to hunt to feed my little pup to myself, though those thoughts spawned another. "Hmm… I wonder if timberwolves can eat fish…"
Fluttershy gave me a small smile. "Well, there's only one way to find out…" She got up and trotted off, around the corner of her cottage and out of sight.
A moment later, she came back with a small pail clenched in her teeth and a clothespin on her nose. She set the pail down next to me and I reached in and picked up two of the small fish inside. I handed the larger of the two off to Pabu, who hopped down and started munching happily, then dangled the other one in front of Aurora, who had flipped back over onto her belly. She sniffed the small fish, some kind of trout by the look of it, and took an experimental bite of it.
Once she figured out how to chew the nibble she had taken, she munched it down and started licking the spot on the fish she had bitten from. I set the fish down and she went to work, wagging her tail as she nibbled away at it.
Fluttershy clapped her hooves together next to me. "Oh, how wonderful…"
I gave her a gentle pat on the back, which only caused her to jump slightly. "Yeah, but I get the feeling she'll need more than just fish… still, I suppose this will work until we can figure out a more permanent solution."
I sat with Fluttershy for a while longer before I decided it was time to head home. I was sure my family was starting to miss me, especially Scoots and Dinky, and I was also starting to get hungry. I had invited Fluttershy over for dinner, but as I expected, she declined, citing that she needed to tend to the rest of her animal friends. I highly doubted that to be the real reason, with her timid nature and all, but I didn't press the issue, instead wishing her a good night and heading home with my little buddy Pabu perched on my shoulder and Aurora nestled comfortably in my arms.
I had barely gotten up the steps to the front door when said door swung open and I was greet-tackled by streaks of orange and purple. I did my best to shift Aurora into one arm while I scooped up the two squealing fillies in the other.
"Papa, you're- What's that?!" Scoot's happy cry turned into a scared and confused one almost instantly.
"This, Scootaloo, is Aurora." I gestured up to my new buddy. "And this is Pabu, they're our new pets."
Dinky squealed and wriggled around in my arms. "We have pets?! And one of them is a cute little doggy?!"
Scoots however, tried to squirm away from the no-longer-sleeping pup. "NO, that's a timberwolf! It's anything but a pet Papa!"
I sighed and set the three of them down and unbuttoned my shirt, revealing not only the scar on my chest from Nightmare Moon's attack, but also the scars from the timberwolves I had protected Fluttershy and my adoptive daughter from my very first day here. "I know full well how dangerous timberwolves can be girls, and I have these to remind me of that every day. Heck, you were there when it happened Scoots…"
Dinky gasped and Scootaloo gulped. Aurora however, tucked her tail between her legs and scooched over to me, letting out a low, sad whine the entire time. When she got close enough, she rubbed her head against my leg, whining a little louder, like she was apologizing for what had happened.
I reached down and gingerly patted the surprisingly soft wooden pup on the head. "It's ok Aurora, None of this is your fault. In fact, from the look of you, I doubt you'd even been born when this happened."
Aurora looked up at me and her tail started wagging slightly. Dinky suddenly bounded over and hugged her, getting a yelp of surprise from the oddly adorable wooden pup. "She's so cute! We have to keep her!" Dinky started giggling as Aurora turned and started licking the side of her face.
Pabu sniffed the air and suddenly bounded off my shoulder, likely smelling and wanting to check out the pool. "I'll have to draw up plans for a pond for him to play in…" I looked around after he'd rounded the corner to see that Aurora and Dinky had wasted no time in getting to know one another, and were now happily playing in the yard.
I looked down as I felt something tugging on my pant leg. "Hey Papa, do you really think it's safe to have that timberwolf pup around?"
I sat down on the steps and waited for her to snuggle up to me. "Scoots, if I didn't think it was, I never would have brought her here in the first place. I can't really explain it, but it's like we were meant to be together; maybe it has something to do with how I got her in the first place…"
