Smiling oh so gently, Fluttershy passed out knitting needles to Yew Wood and Ripple, took a deep breath to prepare to instruct them on their use, decided another deep breath was in order after she didn’t feel particularly confident after the first deep breath, and then took another deep breath when she realised that good things come in threes and she was bound to feel better after a third one.

Ripple, holding a long knitting in her wing, lifted it up to examine it closely, noticing its length and pointy end. Her eyes narrowed in concentration as she hefted the needle, getting a feel for the footlong implement of impalement. With a fluid motion, her wing whipped out and the needle went flying.

“Apple,” Ripple called out languid disinterest as the missile flew, no longer looking at her target, but at Yew, giving her a wink.

A second later, it skewered an apple sitting in a pile of fruit in a fruit bowl over a dozen feet away. It had flown between a banana and an orange to find its target. It quivered for a moment, the apple bleeding out juice, and the pony sitting at the table with the fruit bowl raised one eyebrow in annoyance when she saw the improvised implement of impalement.

“Ripple… what have I told you about turning relatively harmless things into terrifying weapons of grievous bodily harm?” Bon Bon said, tapping her hoof on the table in annoyance.

“Not to do it?” Ripple squeaked in reply. Ripple knew full she had crossed the line with mother Bon Bon and she was in deep meadow muffins now.

“Yes. Now get over here,” Bon Bon demanded in reply.

Drooping as much as possible to look submissive, Ripple spilled off of the couch and began to walk over to Bon Bon, dragging her hooves, her lower lip protruding and her nostrils flaring. She kept her head low and her wingtips dragged along the ground. “I’m sowwy,” she murmured in as much of a foalish voice as she could muster.

Fluttershy, feeling stressed, decided a few more deep breaths were in order and she watched with almost moistening eyes as Ripple drug herself off to whatever terrible punishment awaited.

Reaching the table, Ripple reclaimed the knitting needle, pulling it free of the apple, licked it clean, gobbled down the apple in a few wolfish bites, and then looked at Bon Bon pleadingly, her eyes wide as her bottom lip quivered with guilt.

“You were bad. Don’t be bad again,” Bon Bon said in a faintly angry monotone.

Rubbing her head up against Bon Bon, Ripple closed her eyes and begged for forgiveness the only way she knew how, trying to be as affectionate as possible to her mother and snorting to get Bon Bon’s attention. Finally, Bon Bon melted, reached out one leg, and Ripple felt herself being squeezed in a way that only Bon Bon could squeeze, which for most ponies might be bone shattering, but for Ripple it was a comforting reassurance that Bon Bon still loved her.

“No more throwing spoons, knives, forks, letter openers, melon ballers, spatulas, playing cards, or knitting needles and sticking them into things. You could scare a pony… just look at poor Fluttershy. She’s almost hyperventilating… for shame Ripple,” Bon Bon said in a low voice to the petulant pouting pegasus.

“That list keeps getting longer,” Ripple whined.

“You keep throwing stuff! You scared poor Lyra almost to death with the playing cards slicing off sections of eggplant!” Bon Bon scolded. “And don’t get me started what you did with the melon baller! Bucky blinked! You scared your own father! Well, somewhat... well, the fact that he blinked is what concerned me… You oughta be ashamed of yourself!”

“I really am sorry,” Ripple whimpered, cowering away from Bon Bon. “I’m ashamed!”

“Go learn how to knit. And not kill things. Now go!” Bon Bon commanded in a firm tone, sending the pegasus filly away with one hoof pointing back towards the couch from whence Ripple had came.

Ripple backed away from Bon Bon, her head low, her tail tucked between her legs. She backed her way to the sofa, never once taking her eyes off of Bon Bon, until she felt something grab her by her hips and pulled her into a crushing hug. She was suddenly snatched into a very yellow embrace.

“You shouldn’t be so hard on her Bon Bon! She’s almost crying! She’s a filly... how can you be so harsh? You raised your voice at her… look at her, she’s miserable,” Fluttershy scolded as she snuggle-huggled Ripple in a crushing panicked embrace. “That was uncalled for! That isn’t how you speak to foals, you encourage their gifts!”

Rolling her eyes, Bon Bon stared down at her book upon the table, unable to look at Fluttershy babying the deadly killer that Bon Bon called her daughter. Fluttershy clearly did not understand that a firm hoof was necessary when dealing with the murderous little brute.

“I’m bored.”

A cold chill crept over Applejack as Pinkamena Diane Pie uttered the most terrifying words in the world. She shiver-shuddered and then reached up to adjust her hat. “Now now Pinkie, there is plenty to do, there’s no need to be bored.”

“But I am bored,” Pinkie Pie replied, her left eyelid quivering.

“Maybe you could play with Harper and Peekaboo? They’re not Pumpkin or Pound, but they’re foals,” Applejack suggested.

“That’s a good idea!” Pinkie chirped as she bounced off of the sofa to be with the foals sitting on a quilt in the middle of the floor.

Lifting off her hat, wiping her brow, and then heaving a sigh, Applejack gave silent thanks that the crisis was averted and that something had drawn Pinkie Pie’s attention.

There was nothing quite as bad as a bored Pinkie Pie.

The sun had settled over the horizon far to the west and they continued to head east. The companions were all gathered in the large common room, save for Lugus and Ripple, who were up on deck with Flash Sentry, talking to one another and looking at the stars.

Twilight and her friends continued to get to know Bucky and his family as they raced eastward, towards Griffonholm, and the twin cities, Huginn and Muninn.

“So, have any of you been in a serious fight before?” Bucky asked, his tone soft, gentle, and inquisitive.

“I think the closest we came to being in actual combat was the changeling invasion of Canterlot. They didn’t want to kill us, just subdue us, and it turned into a real brawl,” Rainbow Dash replied, her friends each nodding in agreement. “Personally I’ve been in a few scuffles as a part of the Ponyville Militia, but nothing too serious,” she admitted with a surprising bit of humility.

“The changeling fight was fun!” Pinkie Pie announced.

“Fun?” Twilight grunted in incredulous disbelief.

“Yeah silly, fun, remember when I did this?” Pinkie Pie responded, yanking Twilight off of the sofa, whipping her around, and holding her in place. “I used you as a cannon!”

“I still don’t know how you did that,” Twilight mumbled. “And stop pointing me at things, it’s dangerous!”

“Oh that’s right, my unicorn cannon is now an alicorn cannon!” Pinkie Pie squealed. “Oh goodie!”

Covering her eyes, Applejack shook her head and groaned loudly.

“Pinkie Pie! Put me down!” Twilight commanded.

“Aw… sorry Twilight,” Pinkie Pie apologised.

“Unicorn cannon?” Bon Bon asked.

“Yeah… I used Twilight as a cannon. I cranked on her tail and made her horn fire,” Pinkie Pie explained.

“I still don’t know how she did it,” Twilight muttered.

Smiling, Bon Bon lifted herself free from the sofa, rose up on her hind legs, snatched up Lyra under one foreleg and then snatched Bucky, who squirmed and grunted. In a moment, Bon Bon had one unicorn under each foreleg, squeezed against her sides.

“I can dual wield unicorns,” Bon Bon said with a wry grin, hefting the two ponies around with ease.

“Hey, watch where you point me!” Bucky snarled.

“I could totally dual wield Rarity and Twilight!” Pinkie Pie shrieked with excitement.

“Oh no you don’t!” Rarity said, slapping away Pinkie Pie’s grabby hooves.

“Unicorns aren’t weapons!” Twilight protested.

“I beg to differ,” Bon Bon retorted, hefting Bucky and Lyra around. “Right now I am lugging enough firepower to level a kingdom. This is quite a rush. At this moment, I just might be the most dangerous earth pony who has ever lived,” she giggled.

“Bonnie, stop being a spaz and put me down,” Lyra said, squirming in Bon Bon’s iron embrace. “Bucky, tell her to put us down!”

Grunting, Bon Bon dropped her unicorns back down upon the sofa. “Well, that was fun while it lasted.”

“I ain’t bad in a slobberknocker,” Applejack said slowly as she watched Bucky and Lyra settle back into place and Bon Bon taking a seat between them. “I mean, I go on pie deliveries all the time and I’m still alive.”

“Pie deliveries?” Bucky inquired.

“Applejack delivers pies anywhere,” Pinkie Pie explained, hugging her cousin as she answered. “Even really dangerous places like the Everfree and Froggy Bottom Bog.”

“Interesting,” Bucky mused to himself. “In the event of trouble, you girls stick together. I mean it. You cling to one another like glue. Am I clear?”

“Yeah yeah we get ya,” Applejack replied. “You worry for us pretty little things and you plan to do your knight in scary armor bit.”

“Applejack, don’t be sarcastic. He’s worried and so am I,” Twilight said, staring at Applejack.

“Look, Celestia wouldn’t have sent us if this was actually dangerous. It might be a little scary now and then, but everything she has had us do so far hasn’t ever been that life threatening,” Applejack argued. “We have Twi… and Buckminster. Griffon’s ain’t stupid. They’re jerks, like Gilda, but they ain’t stupid. They know we have the upper hoof.”

“I am inclined to agree with Applejack, who has always had remarkable horse sense,” Rarity said, looking thoughtful. “Celestia would not sacrifice her national heroes for some ideal. We’re far too valuable. Just so long as we stick together, everything will be fine.”

A growing feeling of frustration filled Bucky, but he said nothing. There was no point in upsetting the mares or scaring them senseless. He took a deep breath, held it for a moment, and then let it out slowly.

“Nopony ever mentions me,” Lyra said. “It is always Bucky this, and Twilight that, and I always had to play second fiddle to Twilight in school, I was always second best to Twilight and never got the recognition I deserved.”

“Sorry Lyra,” Twilight apologised.

“Bucky is terrible at magic. Really. Back me up on this Twilight. I outclass him every important way I can think of but never once am I mentioned when issues of importance come up. I am always stuck in the background and nopony ever thinks of me being dangerous like they think of Bucky being dangerous, and I hate it,” Lyra protested bitterly.

“I’d like to go on the record as saying that Lyra is indeed a better spell caster than I am,” Bucky stated in a low serious voice. “And she never gets the recognition she deserves living in my shadow.”

“Thank you Bucky,” Lyra said, reaching around Bon Bon, grabbing Bucky by the head, pulling him in close, and kissing him on his withered scarred cheek.

“Fine, we have Twilight, Lyra, and the unicorn that killed the Crystal Lich,” Applejack corrected. “My point is, we outclass those fool griffons. We’re ponies. We have magic. We rule this world and it is about time those griffons realise that.”

“That seems a little… biased,” Rarity announced, her voice filled with hesitation.

“Shucks, it’s the truth,” Applejack muttered. “Those fool chicken cats were almost exterminated once. They’re like foxes who raid the henhouse. You kill enough of them and you feel kinda sorry, so you stop… and the next thing you know, to repay you for your kindness, you got dead chickens in the henhouse once again.”

A dreadful silence fell over the companions, and nopony knew quite what to say.

Author's Notes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59739LrJfYE

I wish I had an alicorn cannon to deal with typos.